2011-2012 One-Year Part-time Practical Training in Biodynamics
| Place: | The Pfeiffer Center, Chestnut Ridge, NY 10977 |
| Start date: | Saturday 10, September 2011 |
| End date: | Sunday 10, June 2012 |
| Times: | 9.00am - 5.00 pm |
| Price: | Tuition course fee $1,200 |
Now entering its fifteenth year, the Pfeiffer Center’s One-Year, Part-Time Practical Training in Biodynamics consists of thirteen full-day workshops beginning in September 2011 and ending in June 2012. Workshop days run from 9 am to 5 pm, and feature an engaging mix of classroom talks and field activities covering • making and applying the biodynamic preparations • working with compost • the rhythms of nature and planetary influences on life and growth • agricultural handwork and pruning • weed and pest control • the honeybee • and much more. See below/
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011 Evolution, Environment & Ecology
A brief sketch of the evolution of the earth from a spiritual scientific standpoint. What are our tasks at this time in relation to the environment and why do farming and gardening play such a vital role in ecological, economic and social issues? We will do some hands-on work with the horn manure preparation, raised beds, and season-appropriate planting.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2011 Biodynamic Preparations
At the heart of the biodynamic method are the preparations used to treat the soil, compost and crops. Mac Mead and Megan Durney will lead us in making most of these preparations, as we discuss their healing effects on the earth and its produce.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2011 Soil Building & Composting
Healthy soils bring forth healthy plants. We will explore basic concepts concerning soil building and composting methods. In a hands-on session at our compost site, we will not only discover composts of different materials and stages of maturity, we will also get our hands good and dirty doing so.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2011 Farm Animal Husbandry
Steffen Schneider will share the gleanings of his 30 years of farm animal husbandry. This full-day session will touch on all domestic farm animals, with emphasis on the role of animals in the farm organism.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2012 Pruning Fruit Trees / Seed Saving & Rejuvenation
Pruning fruit trees is both a science and an art. The seed question is of vital importance for the future of our food supply. Hugh Williams, one of the best orchardists in the East and a biodynamic farmer with a large CSA, will be the main presenter. A few hours of hands-on pruning will be included.
SATURDAY, MARCH 17, 2012 Cosmic Forces in Relation to Nutritional Qualities / Seeing Nature Whole
We all know how the moon pulls the tides. What influences does it — or do the other planets — have on plant life? By learning how to strengthen and harmonize these influences, we can enhance the nutritional value of our food. Presented by Mac Mead. In the afternoon, Craig Holdrege will explore how we can better understand the world, and our place in it, by working with the living dynamic qualities of plants and animals, and will discuss the implications of this understanding for sustainability.
FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2012 Barrel Compost / Weed and Pest Control Preparations
Half the day will be devoted to making the barrel compost preparation and weed and pest control preparations. The other half will be spent on an artistic activity and the progress reports on research projects.
SATURDAY, APRIL 14, 2012 Bees / Life Rhythms, Farm & Garden Tasks
Given the drastic reduction of honeybee colonies in the last 20 years, we have to dig deep for the causes, and deeper still to discover the necessary means for reversing this trend. In the second half of the workshop, we will look at the rhythms of sun and moon, and learn to work with nature, not against it. This enables us to compensate for extreme weather, making our task easier and improving the quality of our crops.
FRIDAY, MAY 4, 2012 Preparation #501 / Compost Teas / BD Tree Paste
Making the horn-silica preparation involves grinding quartz crystals down to .2 microns. The day’s other focus will be the making and applying of herbal and compost teas and the biodynamic tree paste. Artistic activity and research project presentations follow.
SATURDAY, MAY 5, 2012 Water: H2O or Much More?
Water quality is fast becoming one of the world’s most pressing environmental issues. Do we really know what water is, what tasks it has in life processes, or how it carries them out? Jennifer Greene, director of the Water Research Institute in Maine, will take us far beyond what we commonly know, or suppose we know, of this element.
FRIDAY–SUNDAY, JUNE 8–10, 2012 The Final Weekend
Making nettle and yarrow preparations; taking out old preps; storing preps; various compost activities; presentation of research projects. We will bring together the year’s work into a comprehensive picture of the theoretical and practical aspects of biodynamics.
The Director of the Pfeiffer Center, Mac Mead, is the principal
instructor. Mac has worked with biodynamics since 1975, when he first
learned about biodynamic methods from former colleagues of Ehrenfried
Pfeiffer at the Fellowship Community. He was resident farmer at Duryea
Farm of the Fellowship Community until 2005, and has directed the
Pfeiffer Center since 2006.
OTHER FACULTY
Megan Durney is Head Gardener at the Pfeiffer Center and a graduate of the North American Biodynamic Apprenticeship Program.
Jennifer Greene is Executive Director of the Water Research Institute of Blue Hill, Maine.
Biologist Craig Holdrege, PhD, is Director of The Nature Institute. He
has written articles and books on genetic engineering, genetics, and a
holistic, Goethean approach to science.
Steffen Schneider is the farm manager at Hawthorne Valley Farm in Ghent, NY and a board member of the Biodynamic Association.
Hugh Williams, the owner of Threshold Farm, has been growing fruit using biodynamic methods on a a commercial scale.
Course sessions are from 9 AM to 5 PM. Dates and presenters subject to change.
ACCOMMODATIONS: Reasonably priced rooms with shared kitchens are often
available on campus in Holder House; book online, and find information
about housing alternatives, at www.threefold.org/housing.
TUITION: $1,200. Installment payment plans and some tuition assistance
are available. A certificate of completion is awarded upon completion of
all sessions and a special project.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
The Pfeiffer Center, 260 Hungry Hollow Rd.
Chestnut Ridge, NY 10977
PHONE: 845.352.5020 x20 • FAX: 845.352.5071
www.pfeiffercenter.org • info@pfeiffercenter.org
COURSE REGISTRATION
Send this form, with $25 non-refundable application fee, to the address
above. Upon acceptance, you will receive information on payment plans,
suggested readings, and other details.
BDA MEMBERSHIP
Course registration includes a one-year introductory membership in the
Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association (new members only).
