Plants, Earth and Cosmos
A workshop for farmers, gardeners and others seeking a renewed relation to the land
February 12-17 and/or February 19-24
Conducted by The Nature Institute and the Hawthorne Valley Farm Learning Center in partnership with the Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association

The Nature Institute and the Hawthorne Valley Farm Learning Center are offering two complementary weeks of instruction to those seeking a fuller understanding of biodynamic agriculture. The first week will offer participants a way of becoming more perceptive and thoughtful land workers by practicing flexible thinking with projective geometry and by deepening their observations of the qualitative and dynamic aspects of plant growth and metamorphosis. The second week will extend these themes and introduce concepts and practices more specifically related to biodynamic agriculture, including: soil formation and fertility, annual and perennial crops and pastures, ecological weed management, cover crops and rotations, and cosmic influences.
The first week will be led by Craig Holdrege and Henrike Holdrege of The Nature Institute. Presenters for the second week will include: Steffen Schneider, farm manager at Hawthorne Valley Farm; Jennifer Reeve, assistant professor of organic and sustainable agriculture at Utah State University; David Fisher, from Natural Roots, a horse-powered vegetable farm in Conway, MA; Hugh Williams, from Threshold Farm, a diversified vegetable and fruit farm in Philmont, NY; and Malcolm Gardner, translator and editor of the central biodynamic text, Rudolf Steiner's Spiritual Foundations for the Renewal of Agriculture.
This Winter Intensive is part of the two-year North American Biodynamic Apprenticeship Program and alternates with an intensive focused on animals and the human context of agriculture. Apprentices may start with either year.
Fees are on a sliding scale: $250-450 for each week; or $400 to 480 for both weeks. (Fees for apprentices enrolled in the North American Biodynamic Apprenticeship Program are covered by the program.) For more information, contact the Hawthorne Valley Farm Learning Center, 518-672-7500 x 232; or email [email protected].
This Winter Intensive has been developed as part of the North American Biodynamic Apprenticeship Program and fulfills one its diploma requirements. It is also open to the public.