Barefoot Biodynamics: How Cows, Compost, and Community Help Us Understand Rudolf Steiner’s Agriculture Course
Written by Jeff Poppen
Narrated by Madison Niederhauser
()
About this audiobook
With decades of knowledge and proven, common-sense methods from “The Barefoot Farmer,” this practical guide to biodynamic principles and practices will appeal to growers of every scale and experience level.
In Barefoot Biodynamics, organic grower Jeff Poppen—“The Barefoot Farmer”—combines tales from his personal history in rural Tennessee with the practical applications of biodynamic principles and the deep aspects of the biodynamic methods that continue to make his farm a success today.
Jeff’s friendly, direct, and humorous writing will appeal not only to the biodynamic-curious, but also to farmers and gardeners who have experimented with the biodynamic approach and are looking for a deeper understanding of the practice.
Rooted in the teachings of biodynamic pioneer Rudolf Steiner, Jeff’s unique insights and deep reflections on “guiding lines” of biodynamic growing are an invaluable resource. Those “guiding lines” include:
- producing a farm’s fertility using cover crops, compost, and other on-farm inputs
- enjoying the renewing power of farm festivals
- augmenting scientific knowledge with the power of observation and intuition
- avoiding chemical fertilizers
- understanding that carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, and hydrogen make up 95 percent of the physical structure of plants and are freely available in the air around us
- enhancing the availability of critical minerals such as silica and lime through good farming practices
- building humus-rich soil teeming with microbial life
- using homeopathic preparations to heal and enrich the soil
In addition, Jeff walks the reader through the eight lectures on farming given by Steiner in 1924, summarizing important points from each lecture and “translating” them from Steiner’s profound yet sometimes impenetrable vocabulary into plain language. In Barefoot Biodynamics, Jeff provides new insight into these enigmatic lectures, revealing an often overlooked yet cost-effective farming method rooted in common sense.
Jeff Poppen
Fresh out of the psychedelic sixties, Jeff Poppen began farming in rural Tennessee in 1972 and has been there ever since. At Long Hungry Creek Farm, he and his farm partners tend about six acres of biodynamic vegetable crops, which they sell to wholesale buyers and to restaurants, and tend a herd of about 35 cattle. Jeff is the author of The Best of the Barefoot Farmer and The Best of the Barefoot Farmer II. In addition to his books, Jeff has produced TV shows (some episodes available on the Barefoot Farmer YouTube Channel), written newspaper columns, and lectured at garden clubs and organic conferences for over three decades. Jeff’s farm is the site of the annual Southeast Biodynamic Conference as well as other seasonal farm festivals. He has also mentored other farms and helped with school gardening programs in the Nashville area.
Related to Barefoot Biodynamics
Related audiobooks
The Intelligent Gardner: Growing Nutrient-Dense Food Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The One-Straw Revolution: An Introduction to Natural Farming Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Earth in Her Hands: 75 Extraordinary Women Working in the World of Plants Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Herbalism 101: How to Grow Herbs, Learn About Holistic Health, and Become a Herbalist From A to Z Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Iwígara: American Indian Ethnobotanical Traditions and Science Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Building Your Permaculture Property: A Five-Step Process to Design and Develop Land Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Becoming a Gardener: What Reading and Digging Taught Me About Living Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hoodoo Herbal: Folk Recipes for Conjure & Spellwork with Herbs, Houseplants, Roots, & Oils Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5African American Magick: A Modern Grimoire for the Natural Home Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5High Magick: A Guide to Cannabis in Ritual & Mysticism Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Nature Remedy: A restorative guide to the natural world Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Fasting Cure Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPlants that Speak Souls that Sing: Transform Your Life with the Spirit of Plants Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Compact Farms: 15 Proven Plans for Market Farms on 5 Acres or Less Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Grow: Nurture Your Garden, Nurture Yourself Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5If Trees Could Talk: Life Lessons from the Wisdom of the Woods Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lessons from Plants Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Keto Island Girl Living Healthy Being Healthy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDirt to Soil: One Family’s Journey into Regenerative Agriculture Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Gentle Art of Blessing: A Simple Practice That Will Transform You and Your World Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Comprehensive Conversation About What We Eat Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDaily Bread Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Personal Disarmament: Darkness and Light Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Nature of Plants: An Introduction to How Plants Work Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Morphic Resonance and the Mind Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Forager's Calendar Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fermentation as Metaphor: Follow Up to the Bestselling "The Art of Fermentation" Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5African American Herbalism: A Practical Guide to Healing Plants and Folk Traditions Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beekeeping: Explore the Marvelous World of Honeybees Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Agriculture For You
The Mushroom at the End of the World: On the Possibility of Life in Capitalist Ruins Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Miraculous Abundance: One Quarter Acre, Two French Farmers, and Enough Food to Feed the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Permaculture for the Rest of Us: Abundant Living on Less than an Acre Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dirt to Soil: One Family’s Journey into Regenerative Agriculture Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mini Farming: Self-Sufficiency on 1/4 Acre Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Building Your Permaculture Property: A Five-Step Process to Design and Develop Land Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Soil Science for Gardeners: Working with Nature to Build Soil Health Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Backyard Homestead Manual: A How-To Guide to Homesteading - Self Sufficient Urban Farming Made Easy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What Your Food Ate: How to Heal Our Land and Reclaim our Health Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Flat Broke with Two Goats: A Memoir Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Marijuana Horticulture: The Indoor/Outdoor Medical Grower's Bible Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Family Garden Plan: Grow a Year's Worth of Sustainable and Healthy Food Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Restoration Agriculture: Real-World Permaculture for Farmers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Lean Farm: How to Minimize Waste, Increase Efficiency, and Maximize Value and Profits with Less Work Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Holistic Homesteading: A Guide to a Sustainable and Regenerative Lifestyle Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Farming for the Long Haul: Resilience and the Lost Art of Agricultural Inventiveness Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Wicked Bugs: The Louse That Conquered Napoleon's Army and Other Diabolical Insects Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beekeeping For Dummies: 4th Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Norwegian Wood: Chopping, Stacking, and Drying Wood the Scandinavian Way Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cannabis: Step-By-Step Guide on How to Grow Marijuana for Beginners Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Tame a Fox (and Build a Dog): Visionary Scientists and a Siberian Tale of Jump-Started Evolution Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Seed Detective: Uncovering the Secret Histories of Remarkable Vegetables Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Chicken Health Handbook, 2nd Edition: A Complete Guide to Maximizing Flock Health and Dealing with Disease Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTrees of Power: Ten Essential Arboreal Allies Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Barefoot Biodynamics
0 ratings0 reviews