Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula)

Spotted Lanternfly (SLF) is an invasive insect pest that is native to China and Vietnam. It was first observed in the United States in 2012 and since then has become widely distributed throughout the northeast where it is considered a pest of apples, grapes, stone fruit, and many other crops. It is also moving west. Its “preferred” host tree is the Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima). I say preferred because there are nearly 200 other plant species where it will feed and lay its eggs. It doesn’t fly very far, so its distribution seems to come mostly from unintended distribution via cars, trucks, busses, firewood, etc., moving between regions; it will hitchhike as nymphs and adults and lay its eggs on pretty much anything. Control efforts have focused on cutting down Ailanthus altissmia, scraping egg masses and stomping on the paratrooper-like adults. They can be annoying, frustrating, and beautiful all at the same time. Yet, the real threats SLF brings are to agriculture where it presents perhaps the greatest challenges we face as farmers, consultants, and academics.

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America is simultaneously the most beautiful and most f*cked up country on Earth right now. The diversity of environments, ecosystems, people, and things to do and experience is mind-boggling. Yet, in an age where everything seems to be going to ‘hell in a handbasket’, as my mom used to say, we’re faced with situations that may present themselves as hurdles or challenges - which they are - but simultaneously as opportunities for growth and (r)evolution.

As a country that is a mere 250 years old. And as a conquered continent with a white male patriarchal government/society, it is by far the most infuriating and frustrating country I can think of. Sure, there are countries that might be more oppressive, repressive, and violent, yet America is by far the most infuriating and frustrating not because of what it is, but because of what it could be.

Prior to America becoming America, it was a continent that - until the late 15th century - was largely intact. Not that there weren’t native human impacts both negative and positive, but by comparison to today it was largely intact ecologically and environmentally. It has been roughly 10,000 years since the last glacial period fully retreated from what I’ll call America (anything between Canada and Mexico). The glaciers certainly reset the environment of North America, even where they weren’t fully present. New geologies were exposed. New ecosystems appeared. New species evolved. Native American societies and cultures flourished as far as we can tell. I know that I gloss over the nuanced realities of the last 10,000 years post-glacial period, so please bear with me.

In the 534 years since 1492, we have invaded, overrun, ruined, and unwittingly sentenced to death an environment and all that came with it to a slow, torturous death. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution - which wrought both good and bad - that slow torturous death has only accelerated. In the roughly last 100 years - the unwinding has increased further, beginning with, I will contend, the discovery of oil and the development of the Haber-Bosch process. I hopefully don’t need to spell out the massive destruction that we have brought to entire ecosystems and species populations in this timeframe. Out current political system is only adding fuel to the fire by ignoring the impacts of climate change, ecosystem destruction, poisoning of our planet, and destruction of one of the most production regions of the world. What to do?

The real problem is not the problems we have created, but the opportunities we have squandered to be more; to be better; to be human. William Shakespeare wrote of this in Hamlet: “Lord, we know what we are, but know not what we may be.”

Recent policies1, court decisions2, academic pandering3, and consumer expectations twisted by industry-fed marketing (il)logic4 only exacerbate the situation.

Regenerative farming (as a movement) is really just getting underway, even though as a practice (sans any terminology) it had been practiced for centuries5. and its already being co-opted and used to greenwash food and food products that are anything but regenerative6. At the same time our governments - state and federal - are encouraging destructive, industrial agricultural practices by protecting companies and farmers that don’t give a s*it, through legislative actions, court decisions, and simply ignoring the problems. You can only s*hit in your bed for so long before the whole thing collapses from the weight of your own excrement.

For better or worse, our inability to trust in and depend on our governmental bodies for the support we’ve had for decades may really be an opportunity in disguise. Not that we can turn back time - not that we would even want to - and not that we don’t need that support now more than ever - but as we look inward instead of outward for support and guidance, we’ll be able to recognize what is good and right. Hopefully, we’ll realize en masse that we can’t decimate old-growth forests, pollute rivers, spray toxic pesticides, manufacture food out thin air, or rely heavily on small tweaks to a broken economic system to fix things if we want to not just survive but thrive as a species. There is a revolution at hand.

Too many countries around the world have already lost their natural world. But as a country America is young and still has the promise of becoming what it should be. We have razed native ecosystems for farming, industry, and civilization, yet there is still lots of wild, untamed nature left to protect - and in ways that will only benefit all beings. We have something both real and conceptual to protect - true freedom. Not the freedom that gets bandied about so someone can own all the AK-47s that they want, but a freedom that fulfills the dreams of this country’s founders7. A freedom that allows us to grow food without using poisons, polluting the air and water, decimating species and ecosystems, or depending on multinational corporations for our every need.

I know I may be a bit pie-in-the-sky, a bit too Don Quixote, tilting at windmills and such, always hoping for the best in us to finally show up. In fact, I don’t know, as farmers, how much longer we can say “there’s always next year.” But optimism dies hard with farmers. And that’s a good thing. So I’ll keep trying, pushing, anticipating, and seeing past the reality that we are being fed. And I know I am in good company. Farming naturally (yes, I don’t like that word either) in concert with nature for the benefit of nature will always be the ultimate goal, with a few great apples and some cider along the way.

One very good example is late summer pruning apple trees. Summer pruning is something that’s been practiced for decades, and is recommended to improve fruit, color, sizing, and brix levels. It can even improve fruit bud initiation. But its biggest use is to prepare fruit for commercial harvest, packing and sales. However, when it’s too hot, humid, the sun intensity is too high, or the variety is particularly sensitive to rapid exposure to full sunlight, disaster looms. Honeycrisp - among others - is a great example of this.

One of the great attributes of Honeycrisp is that it has a thin skin. Sure, it can probably take an insult with the best of them. But there comes a point where enough is enough.

In above picture, we see Honeycrisp that are exhibiting signs of sunburn and fruit rot due to late summer pruning. The earlier the pruning, the less the impact. If you are going to summer prune late, then you need to allow the trees and fruit time to adjust to conditions that have rapidly changed. Or you can adjust when you summer prune - pick a string of cooler, cloudier days - or how you follow up - spray kaolin clay or other UV protectants to reduce the potential for sunburn. You can also leave a few more shoots and branches to provide some shade.

Unfortunately, these fruit are now no longer marketable or edible, and will probably rot or fall off the tree before they become ripe anyway. If the timing of the activity had changed, or it had not been so severely pruned, the outcome might’ve been different.

Another example are these Herefordshire red streaks that are showing signs of stem and splitting, water, core and internal breakdown. Bear in mind that it’s only 21 August And these trees were never summer pruned.

Yet they are dropping because of the additional stress from the summer, and the fruit quality is rapidly deteriorating, even though based on seed color these fruits are still weeks away from becoming ripe for proper Harvest for hard cider.

If nitrogen is the bearer of sensitivity, what is carbon (esoterically speaking)? And what is it physiologically and practically?

Rudolf Steiner described the carbon as “the physical carrier of all forms in the living world" and called it the "Philosopher's Stone" in his 1924 Agricultural Course.

By physical carrier of all forms of life, I interpret that he meant the physical structure, or skeleton, of any life form. For humans or other animals, this is your skeleton. For trees, it is the trunk and other tissues. For herbaceous plants and grasses, it is the fibrous, often rigid, nature of the stem. But where does carbon fit in? To be sure, it is not the only constituent of a healthy structure or skeleton. And carbon is part and parcel with the living and the dead. Only when other elements such as oxygen and nitrogen enter the picture does the skeleton become alive. Likewise, without the carbon framework, the living components do not have anything to “carry” them.

Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis is perhaps the most important of the basic physiological processes in plants. Not the only important process, but definitely near if not at the top. So what is photosynthesis (Pn)? Simply put Pn is when the plant “combines” CO2 and water, powered by light energy (photons), into carbohydrates that are partitioned throughout the plant where the carbs are used as building blocks for most of the plant’s physical structure. In return, the plant gives off oxygen that it so necessary for life (as we will see in the next installment of this series). But carbon is found in many other places of the farm’s ecosystem - not just the obvious plant structure - the provides food and subsequent building blocks for other organisms2.

The Philosopher’s Stone

Historically, the concept of the Philosopher’s Stone stretches back millennia with original thinkers believing is had mystical qualities that could transmute certain substances into valuable metals - principally lead and mercury into gold or silver. It was also envisioned as the Elixir of Life, a substance capable of curing all ills, but also as a symbol of spiritual enlightenment and evolution of the consciousness.

The 16th-century Swiss alchemist Paracelsus (Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim) believed in the existence of alkahest, which he thought to be an undiscovered element from which all other elements (earth, fire, water, air) were simply derivative forms. Paracelsus believed that this element was, in fact, the philosopher’s stone.3

The Philosopher’s Stone as historically envisioned was never “discovered",” though it may have been sitting squarely in front of us throughout history. If carbon is to be considered the Philosopher’s Stone, even though it doesn’t change lead or mercury into gold or silver, it does certainly provide the physical foundation for life, changing4 otherwise unorganized elements into life by providing the backbone upon which they become organized.

What Is Carbon In Living Organisms?

In animals, carbon makes up about 15% of the living skeleton, 50% of its dry weight, while the remaining weight is made up of other minerals including, principally, calcium and phosphorus.

In woody plants:

The carbon content of dry wood is generally assumed to be approximately 50%, though this varies by species and tissue type, with lignin being the strongest predictor of carbon concentration due to its high carbon density (63.1–72.5% C) compared to cellulose (44.4% C) and hemicellulose (40.9–49.3% C).5

But what about non-woody plants?

Non-woody (herbaceous) plants contain carbon primarily as non-structural carbohydrates (NSCs), specifically soluble sugars (glucose, fructose, sucrose) and starch, alongside structural components like cellulose and lignin, though they possess lower carbon content than woody species. Global synthesis data indicates that herbaceous plants generally exhibit lower overall carbon content compared to woody plants across all organs.6

Obviously apple and other fruit trees are woody plants and therefore have a higher structural carbon content that non-woody, herbaceous plants. We learned last time that nitrogen is all around us, but where does the carbon comes from?

The principle source of carbon for plants comes from the atmosphere - just like nitrogen - and is absorbed by plants during photosynthesis (see above). The normal levels of carbon in the atmosphere (historically speaking) have been around 0.03% whereas today they are currently at 0.04% because of global warming - due to the tragic consumption of fossil fuels that pump carbon into the atmosphere when they are released naturally or burned7.

But carbon comes from the earth as well. When organic matter decomposes, if it is not sequestered, it is released into the atmosphere as CO2 to be reabsorbed by plants or to float off towards the heavens. This is where excessive plowing and disking, in fact the excessiveness of industrial agriculture overall, can cause serious issues - they accelerate the breakdown of organic matter in the soil - and when coupled with excessive nitrogen fertilizers (that accentuates OM breakdown) and deforestation, we find ourselves in dire climactic straits, not to mention a loss of arable farmland around the world.

Bottom line problem: too much carbon release, not enough plants to take it up, and not enough places to put it have left us with a curious conundrum of what to do to reverse the issue and put that carbon to better use.

• Sequestration - we do this by putting and keeping more carbon in the ground as organic matter, unextracted fossil fuels, and in standing plants, such old growth forests. Wood chips, compost, hügelkultur, cover crops, perennial fruit farms, biochar and more can all serve this higher purpose. The more we burn, the more we burn - literally and figuratively.

• More plants, and especially more woody plants. Aboveground sequestration, as mentioned above, involves the ability of plants to extract CO2 from the air, remove it before it escapes, incorporate it into their structure (or non-structure) , and to remain there until that plant dies and slowly decomposes.

• Reduce fossil fuel use. This one is so obvious is doesn’t seem to bear mentioning, except that it does since we can’t seem to reduce our addiction to oil and an oil-based economy. A recent study suggested that while plants are great at sequestering carbon, they may not be so good at holding on to it.8 And so may not be as helpful as stemming global warming as previously though - which brings us back to the need to reduce fossil fuel consumption.

• Enhance soil health and soil biological activity. As soil-borne macro- and micro-microbes consume carbon as a food source, they also die. The carbon can then be released into the atmosphere as CO2 or it can be sequestered in various forms including cellular residues (i.e., necromass, detritus). Healthy soils tend to contain more C while unhealthy soils do quite the opposite. If soil biological activity is too high, then the C is burned off at too rapid rate resulting in low fertility soils and higher atmospheric C content.

What does this mean practically?

The more carbon that is brought into the Earth’s living systems via photosynthesis and carbon inputs (aka sequestration, via amendments like compost and ramial mulch), reducing/eliminating damaging agricultural activities, and reducing fossil fuel use - but appropriately balanced with N and other constituents - not only means a healthier environment and truly sustainable farming (and more nutritious food) for humans, but also stabilized soils, forests, atmosphere, and oceans so all life can thrive on this planet we call Home.

FIREBLIGHT - Erwinia Amylovora

Fireblight, Erwinia amylovora, is without a doubt the bane of many an apple and pear grower. Fireblight is a bacterial disease that once systemic (inside of) the tree, it is nearly impossible to eradicate without radical tree surgery. It also affects quince and to a lesser extent many species in the rose family (Roseaceae spp.), such sa hawthorn (Crataegus spp.) But, to be fair, it doesn’t affect all apple or pear cultivars equally. In fact there are numerous species and varieties of each that are highly resistant and even immune. But to anyone growing traditional and especially late blooming apple or pear varieties, fireblight can make growing those fruit a pointless adventure. Yet there are varieties, practices, and treatments that can be used to outsmart and outfight this nefarious disease.

Today, fireblight is a disease that affects apple, pear and quince growers worldwide, but it was not always the case - at least not to the degree it is today. It was first reported in North America in at least 17801, but did not become a major problem until the 20th century. Outside of North America it was not first reported until the 20th century, suggesting that it is native to North America and why many native Malus spp. are not susceptible to this disease2. As apple and pear production spread from east to west, so did the disease, creating widespread susceptible hosts areas (e.g., orchards) throughout the continent, especially in major production regions like Michigan and Washington State.

In the 1960s the Hudson Valley NY pear industry was practically wiped out by fireblight, prompting many growers to switch to less susceptible apple cultivars. In the 2000s, as hard cider starting growing in popularity, many started planting popular French and English cider varieties that for better and worse3 can be extremely susceptible to fireblight. Infections can happen throughout the year but are most likely to happen during bloom and after traumatic summer weather events (e.g., hail).

Fireblight’s Life Cycle. Once in a host plant (tree), fireblight inoculum overwinters in cankers on infected trees. When the sap starts to rise in the spring, the inoculum-laden sap oozes from the margins of these cankers to be splashed around by wind and rain onto the trees. These epiphytic bacteria then grow and spread as warmer, moister spring weather prevails. Yet they do not create new infections unless there is susceptible tissue and conducive conditions. Cold weather doesn’t necessarily kill the bacterium, but may slow down its growth. Warmer weather and spring rains are all it needs to grow. As the trees approach bloom, the temperatures are getting warmer still and rainfall (even dew) becoming more frequent. A combination of receptive tissue (e.g., flowers), warm temperatures (60-85F) that lead to an adequate accumulation of degree days, rain or dew, and active inoculum are all that are needed for a lethal fireblight outbreak. If any one of those conditions is not right, it is very unlikely a fireblight outbreak will occur.

What to do? Choosing less susceptible varieties, if you have that option, are without a doubt the first best route to take. But if you already have an orchard of susceptible in the ground, then your options are limited to cultural/sanitation and treatments.

Cultural/Sanitation. If you have or suspect you have an infected tree, cutting or pruning out the infected tissue and burning or throwing it away is necessary. Do not leave infected prunings in the orchard as they can be a source of inoculum. And always cut at least 12” below any visibly infected area to make sure you capture as much of the infection as possible. This, of course, is nearly impossible if the infections are already in the trunk or major scaffolds. In these instances you need to actually carve away the infected tissue and remove it as you would infected prunings. Always carve down to clean greenish-white tissue. Any off color or brown tissue suggests it is still infected.

I like to paint or spray on a dilute copper solution to help kill any residual bacteria when possible. Do this when the weather is dry and warm so it will seal over more effectively. Leave the wound open to dry out for at least 24-48 hours before applying any tree paste4. There are other compounds that could potentially reduce the potential for fireblight spread following pruning.

NOTE: I have attempted using garlic injections to systemically move a natural antibiotic (garlic’s allicin) into infected trees. From the ground up rather than top down was the theory; catch it before it gets any further. The results were not promising, but the trees themselves were severely infected before we started the project.

Reducing Epiphytic Infection Potential. The first major period where fireblight infections can occur is during bloom - assuming no hail or wind damage to leaves. As soon as blossoms (flowers) begin to open, they are susceptible to infection under the appropriate conditions. When flowers open, the pistil or female part of the flower is where the inoculum can enter the tree. The bacteria lands on the pistil, grows down into the ovary5, and expands its presence from there by moving into the vascular system and then throughout the trees. You still need appropriate temperatures, moisture, and inoculum levels for infection, but as long there are open flowers, assume that your orchard is at risk.

I recommend treating the pre-bloom period as the period where you can knock down the epiphytic populations (inoculum load), since you can’t of course do much about temperature or moisture that follows. Pre-bloom protection starts in the dormant season with copper sprays and/or sprays with other materials that can knock down the inoculum-laden ooze mentioned above. Then, as the buds first start show a little green all the way until pink, regular applications of Double Nickel, Cueva, and Regalia go a long way to keeping the ever-growing epiphytic populations at bay so there is less active inoculum when bloom finally gets there.

Blossom Protection. Your pre-bloom activities, while effective, were probably not a complete eradicant, meaning there is still some active inoculum on your trees as well as in the untreated surrounding untreated areas.

Figure 1. Some novel biological sprays for fireblight control (but not eradication). Know Your Roots LLC, 2020 - this needs some serious updating!

One product that is not in the above chart is Howler EVO (Pseudomonas chlororaphis strain AFS009). Howler can be tank mixed with other products such as Cueva or Double Nickel without haring the microbial activity of the product.

Another that I haven’t used before is Theia (Certis). Theia is promoted as a good alternative or complement to Howler. It is a Bacillus subtilus subspecies. B. subtilus is a natural soil-borne organism that has been used for years as a biofungicide. However, this particular subspecies is new to me and opens up another line of thought about how important the phyllo-biome is to crop protection - whether you apply it or it develops naturally.

Lastly, Oxidate 5.0 has also been recommended as a way to “clean up” the pathogens that are possibly in your crop plant. It does have its limitations (can’t be easily tank mixed, kills good and bad), but it can eradicate high populations of E. amylovora and allow the other products to be more effective.

PROTECT the FLOWERS

Protecting the flowers as they open is critical to fireblight protection during the entire bloom period. Each of the materials listed in the chart above (Figure 1) are effective against fireblight. Some are effective differently, meaning their modes of action are different and they may not have the same level of effectiveness. That’s why it is important for organic growers especially to employ multiple strategies starting with not growing susceptible varieties if you can help it. But we want to stay away from materials that might damage the flower and negatively impact fruit set (e.g., don’t apply any oils during bloom).

• SAR - Systemic Acquired Resistant: these products stimulate the plants primary acute immune response systems. They increase the plant’s ability to fight off infections. These products may also have some level of anti-fungal or anti-bacterial activity, but this isn’t how they primarily benefit the tree.

• CC - Competitive Colonization: by putting beneficial microorganisms onto the surface of the flower before the fireblight bacteria arrive, the beneficials out-compete the fireblight before they have a chance to take hold. There is also likely biological biochemical competitive activity going on, but primarily it is competitive colonization. The same effect can be achieved - though not as effectively - by boosting the plant’s existing microbiome and/or boosting its population fitness through nutrition or other means.

• Stigma - this product creates an inhospitable environment on the stigma (the top part of the pistil) of the flower meaning that even if the fireblight bacteria get that far, they’ll be taking a literal acid bath.

• Antibiotics (Antib) - these products have a more traditional antibiotic effect, meaning they kill the bacteria as opposed to a more novel mode of action such as competition. They are not the same as say streptomycin or kasugamycin, both commonly used to fight fireblight in conventional agriculture because they work through different sometimes multiple pathways, but not entirely dissimilar.

• Phage - Phage products are still relatively new in the market. How do they work?

  From Omnilytics own web site: “AgriPhage uses naturally occurring bacteriophages to selectively infect and destroy Erwinia amylovora, reducing disease impact and crop damage. This targeted approach minimizes the need for chemical treatments, aligning with sustainable agricultural practices.” You can go to their web site to learn more about this promising new approach to fighting fireblight.

Most of these products need to be applied before or at least during an infection. Only the conventional streptomycin has any retroactive control potential, and even then only 24-48 hours after an infection. Of the organic materials listed, Agriphage might have some post-infection control, but the reality is that you need to be on top of things before an infection happens to prevent an infection.

NOTE: Always consider your own conditions and threat levels. Read the label (Always - its the law) before using any product. And be both prudent and realistic in your approaches.

Prediction Models. There are several prediction models out there, all of which work from the same general foundation but differ in the nuance of the algorithm. NEWA, or Network for Environment and Weather Applications, is a FREE web site with a wide range of weather and situational based protocols that can help any grower. By tracking weather, crunching numbers, and running tested models, NEWA can help you to predict when an infection is headed your way. Here is a direct link to the NEWA fireblight model page - HERE.

In essence, you, the grower, input some variables or information based on your conditions. Always use the weather station closest to your location if you don’t already have one on site.

• Choose a weather station

• Choose a first blossom open date

• Indicate whether there was fireblight in your neighborhood last year

• Choose whether you sprayed streptomycin

Once you’ve done this, then the model will tell you whether or not there is fireblight infection event upcoming and how bad it may be. The data you enter will need to be updated each time you run the model - its only as accurate as the input - especially if you are treating varieties that are opening at different bloom times.

The other model I like is RIMpro. RIMpro is a paid subscription service, but it can run off of your weather station. See graph below. The top (green) graph shows the endophytic population growth. The middle shows the infection threat threshold. The bottom (orange) shows the epiphytic population growth which illustrates how fast E. amylovora is growing on the surface of your trees. And the bottom blue area illustrates the wetness periods. You can see how when conditions prevail fireblight goes from an existential threat to a very real on as it crosses into the orange zone. Here is a link to RIMpro’s web site - HERE.

In both RIMpro and NEWA you can indicate when you’ve applied a treatment. However, this is usually synced to how strep sprays would impact bacterial populations; it won’t be the same for biologicals. Nonetheless, you know that once you’ve applied a treatment it will have a positive effect on the susceptibility of your trees. However, and even with strep, that effect wears off in time so you need to remain ever-vigilant. What these programs don’t do it is enter the relative varietal susceptibility of your trees.

Figure 2. RIMpro Fireblight model illustration (example).

Biodynamic Treatments. Biodynamic treatments by their very definition are not designed to “treat” a problem. They are intended to influence the conditions in the orchard, in effect creating an environment where fireblight becomes less of a problem. So what are those conditions? As we’ve already discussed, temperature, moisture, receptive tissue, varietal susceptibility, and inoculum are the five variables affecting fireblight potential. Given that we have little control over inoculum levels in an untreated orchard of susceptible varieties, how do we affect temperature and moisture biodynamically?

• Sequential Sprays - There is a sequence of sprays one can use to alter the weather patterns leading up to bloom. These are the sequential sprays. These can be used in any instance to help change the conditions that may lead to infections. I will post these in detail in another newsletter very soon. But suffice it to say that the intention is to slow the accumulation of degree days via cooling and reduce the potential for moisture via drying. The use of barrel compound, BD500 (horn manure), BD501 (horn silica), and BD508 (Equisetum arvense) are all used in varying sequences to influence cooling or drying conditions. The use of milk and honey (for their respective lime and silica influence) are also used by some as the final sprays in sequential spraying. The sequential sprays ideally happen over a 3 day period that coincide with the proper biodynamic calendar days, but can be condensed into two days (again more on this in another newsletter). The sequential sprays have been shown to work in many situations, though there isn’t any proof they’ll work specifically for fireblight - so just be aware.

  NOTE: the barrel compound and BD500 while used for their earthly esoteric influences in these sprays also bring very real biological elements into play, meaning that the practical benefit of the sequential sprays leading up to bloom is to also build populations of beneficial organisms on your plant before an infection occurs.

• In the sequential sprays I mentioned the need for drying conditions. This is largely associated biodynamically with light and warmth on flower or fruit calendar days. These elements come from the BD501, BD508, and honey compounds - each of which can also be used individually prior to and leading up to an infection event. In esoteric terms we refer to these as having an astral or warming/drying influence.

• Other biodynamic preparations having astral influences would be dandelion (BD506) and valerian (BD507) because of their association with an outer planet (Jupiter and Saturn respectively).

• As well, BD505 (oak bark) may be used to counteract the watery influences of the moon. And while not bringing an astral influence per se, its influence on moisture in this case could be beneficial.

• There are some that have used colloidal silver as preventative and have claimed it is better than copper. I haven’t explored this option but there is some potential supported by its use in homeopathic medicine for humans. That said, this is new territory and requires some more thought and practice6.

Ideally, you are using these biodynamic treatments in conjunction with a more traditional holistic approach. Starting with resistant genetics, then creating resiliency (strong immune system) through nutrition and fertility, a robust biology above and below ground, and finally relying on effective holistic, albeit allopathic, controls should bring you the control you are looking for. This way you are not relying on any one path of treatment, but instead using a robust approach.

Suggested Fireblight Management Program

1. Dormant Season. Remove any infected tissue – this includes fruit – from the orchard and destroy or compost it. If you have fireblight strikes during the summer you can cut them out and leave them on the ground to dry. Just be sure you don’t drag them through the tree and infected other parts. In severe situations it is best to just leave the tree alone until the dormant season or remove it entirely from the orchard. Blossom blight strikes can be removed immediately when you see them. And in the winter, carve out any cankers you see on trunks or limbs and burn them in a very hot fire. All material should be thrown away or burned in a very hot fire.

2. Silver Tip. Apply Copper to kill overwintering inoculum in cankers.

3. Greentip -> Pink. Apply biofungicides, nutrition, and biology every 5-10 days to increase protection and enhance self-defense mechanisms. The use of the biodynamic preparations and the sequential sprays can start to be used in the lead up to bloom and depending on the weather conditions7.

4. Pink. Beginning at Pink or at the latest 10% full bloom, you can begin application of a biological (such as Blossom Protect) to begin the process of protecting the floral surfaces as the bloom period begins. These sprays should continue through bloom and until petal fall as long as there is susceptible tissue available to the pathogen. Continue to use the biodynamic sprays, but be mindful of the effect the stronger silica sprays can have on flower and pollen viability if applied under the wrong conditions8.

5. Bloom. This is the critical time to protect against any fireblight infections. Monitor infection periods, maintain coverage especially during high risk periods, and if using a biological – don’t let it dissipate. Here is where the biologicals as competitive colonizers and other biologicals are indispensible. But they only work if they are on the tree and covering the flower surfaces BEFORE an infection.

6. Summer. When you get into summer and if your orchard suffers a trauma blight situation, the application of Double Nickle and Cueva may be effective in reducing infections by reducing inoculum, especially ahead of a storm but also after, reducing its spread afterwards, and just providing general disease protection. Summer fireblight infections can turn traumatic quickly if not dealt with right away. Be ahead of the game here. Because of the summertime heat and moisture, bacteria grow faster than when it is cooler, such as during bloom time. It is uncertain how the biodynamic sprays would perform with trauma blight (as it is called) but certainly using 501, 508, and perhaps even 507 to usher in warming and drying conditions couldn’t hurt. Just mind the precautions of applying these preparations (esp 501) at the wrong times.

FIERBLIGHT IS NOT THE END

Fireblight doesn’t need to be a death knell for your trees or your dreams. Simply be smart and act accordingly. Understand the science. Choose your products and orchard activities wisely. Read the label and understand how what you’re using or doing is appropriate to your situation. Doing the wrong thing or applying something inappropriately may do more damage than doing nothing at all. And don’t use the kitchen sink approach, you’ll clog the drain!!

Weed Control for the Organic Grower

Let me start by saying that conventional herbicides work, and they work well. Nobody would use them if they didn’t. A combination of pre- and post-emergent herbicides can go a long way to controlling weeds, improving production (think volume, not quality), and keeping down costs. But they come at a huge cost to the environment, soil fertility, biodiversity, tree health, human health, food quality, and, as we’re seeing with glyphosate, they eventually fail. That said, weeds (wild plants) do provide a huge challenge for organic growers of perennial crops.

Not All Weeds Are Created Equal

While most organic growers strive for low maintenance, high biodiversity, optimal productivity and quality - and are therefore accustomed to some weeds - not all weeds are created equal. Some can be very detrimental (e.g., bittersweet, wild snapdragon, poison ivy), while other can be very beneficial (e.g., yarrow, valerian, dandelion). So the trick is find a place with your weed management that balances, cost, productivity, aesthetics, and ecosystem health.

Weed Control Options - a Brief Introduction

Here are weed control options that we have in front of us. While the vines and trees are so young, they are limited, so no damage is done. But as the trees and vines mature, more options open up to us.

• Conventional herbicides - not an option since they do not comply with organic management practices.

• Organic Herbicides - an option, but not effective except in a very intensive application program. Meaning that early and repeat applications are needed. Once weeds get too tall and tough, the materials are ineffective. Plus they will burn any new tissue, so for the grapes or trees at an early stage of their life, herbicides are not an option. Homeplate is the ONLY material I’ve had any luck with. Its basically a strong, fancy, and $$ vinegar.

• Burndown - using a flame weeder can work, but presents certain hazards such as injuring the plants, melting irrigation tubing or other plastic, and setting the farm on fire. Plus there is a HUGE carbon footprint involved.

• Mechanical cultivation - there are several tools here, but all involve $$ (the implements are expensive), tractors and technical machinery skills. In some cases the vineyard or orchard need to have been designed with this kind of cultivation in mind, which was not the case for most organic plantings. Klemens and Rinieri are the two companies that make widely used equipment - all of it is expensive, and it would take establishing appropriately from the start or involve a retooling of an vineyard and orchard to make this work without damaging the plants.

• Livestock - sheep can provide some level of weed control but can also eat the crop plants, and they require a different level of care and attention. Meaning, in large part, they can’t be left on their own, need to be field rotated, fed, and require other care (e.g., vets). Plus the vines and trees are too young to consider this option right now, but in 3-5 years it could be an option. They are great for soil fertility and biodiversity. Some breeds are better than others, but that’s a discussion for another time. NOTE: I am an advocate for livestock in orchards and vineyards, but I am by no means an expert. Plus I like to take my winters off.1

• Woodchips - woodchips provide decent weed suppression, but as they break down, they turn into soil and provide a rich growing environment for all plants. That said, the benefits of woodchips far outweigh the disadvantages (advantages: moisture retention, soil fertility, carbon sequestration, weed suppression, biodiversity; disadvantages: need reapplication every 2-3 years, cost of application machinery, do not control weeds 100%, sourcing of appropriate mixes of woods).

• Weedwhackers - They are effective in knocking down weeds, though they do regrow. Requires machinery (there are effective electric models), they’re noisy, leave plastic string bits all over the place, and can damage plants (I’ve seen more of this in my lifetime than I would care to remember).

• Cover crops/Companion plants - this has been studied over the years and has shown “some” promise. But the correct non-competitive seed mix, ratios, planting, and management all mean this is not 100% effective, takes time and money, and still hasn’t been widely adopted by grape growers in the US (there is more of this practice in Europe than anywhere else). Try a small planting of buckwheat underneath some vines this year (1 - on soil prior to woodchips, 2 - on woodchips) using the “seed ball” approach where the seeds are soaked overnight in a moistened, clayey soil or compost, then spread evenly but by hand. Then you wait. There are other plant species options, but start here. BW is not overly competitive, doesn’t get too tall, flowers and seeds quite easily, is great for bees, and it can reestablish itself. That said, it doesn’t like hot weather and needs moisture to establish and grow (like all plants).

• Intracropping - a variation on the theme of intercropping and companion plants is the idea of intracropping, or growing a second crop in the same rows as your trees or vines. In fact, growing vines in your tree rows (or trees in your vine rows) is a unique, and ancient, cropping concept called married vines (or trees), or Vita Maritata.2 Personally, I find the idea of growing vines in my apple trees a little unsettling. as grape vines (Vitus spp.) can take over like few other plant species. Proper species and varietal selection for modest to low vigor is needed for system like this to work for both crops. More interesting is intracropping with plant species that support both regenerative and food objectives. Plants like grains, herbs, sprawling cucurbits, and berries (e.g., currants, gooseberries, raspberries, blackberries, etc.). There are others I am sure. However, no matter which direction you take, it requires proper planning and execution to ensure that everything thrives, produces, and supports your regenerative objectives. And an intracrop doesn’t necessarily require it to be a food plant for humans, it could be a food plant for pollinators or other beneficials insects, even the phyllobiome benefits!!

• Hand weeding - time consuming, expensive, never-ending, never fully effective (you always leave roots behind that simply regrow many weeds).

Fukuoka’s Do Nothing - While this is very much an option, it is not preferable because the wild plants/weeds that may be coming in are very competitive and could quickly take over a planting, as we are already seeing in some plantings. As plantings mature, then a transition could take place. Masanobu Fukuoka, author of One Straw Revolution, is revered for his ‘do nothing’ approach, but was actually quoted as saying: “don’t do nothing, do as little as needed.” Let nature guide the way.

Fukuoka believed that “the earth cultivates itself naturally” and that the ultimate goal of farming was not just crop production, but “the cultivation and perfection of human beings” through harmony with nature.

What to Do?

In the end, almost all of the above weed control practices are options. In reality, and in practice, it will take a combination of them to achieve effective, yet not perfect, organic weed control. And which ones you choose and how you use them depends on the variables in your life and operations that are largely out of anyone’s control but your own. So, don’t despise the weeds; enjoy the dandelions and flowers, the birds and the bees, the beneficials you can barely see. Do what’s needed to make sure your crop plants are providing what you need for both productivity, profitability, quality and peace of mind.

“Don’t Do Nothing, Do As Little As Possible - then write some haiku.”

Know Your Roots has been in the process of prepping a site for planting for over a year. Last year, we had to install field drainage to help move water off of the site. Yet even that is proving to be somewhat inadequate. Even though the drainage is doing everything it was supposed to, it can’t keep up with constant rain we’ve been getting. A colleague that is doing the heavy equipment work told me yesterday that he wished growers would start thinking about planting season starting 3-4 weeks later than what we might consider to be a historical average.

The following article was published almost a year ago when we were in a similar patterns. Early 2026 is turning out to be wetter and cooler than 2025, but we can’t sit around and wait forever. Whether you’re a believer or not, doing something is better than doing nothing. This is where Sequential Sprays become a logical consideration.

Republished from April 22 2025

One of the beautiful elements of biodynamic farming is that is allows one to contemplate the magic behind the physical substance. Sure, BD500 is “just” composted manure stuffed into a cow horn, buried over the winter, unearthed, stirred and then applied at homeopathic levels. But what is it about BD500, or any other biodynamic prep, that makes it so special, so magical? If it is not the substance per se, then it must be the force or influence, right? Capturing and concentrating the cosmic energy into a physical substance is akin to capturing lightning in a bottle.

Imagine now that you could apply these forces not just to your plants or your farm or even your entire property, but to the entire bioregion, affecting all four primary elements - fire, air, water, earth - in a way that shifts the way they come together and affects climate - not just weather - patterns1. Some may call it wishful thinking, others lucky timing, others just normal shifts in weather patterns. But the reality is that we have always had an affect on the climate and weather patterns through our actions on Earth. Why not then through the use of biodynamic preparations, even if it just brings us closer to the world around us and the work that we do?

Biodynamic sequential sprays are not something new, but they aren’t particularly old either. What they are is not used as much as they should be especially in our current turbulent climate-chaos2 times. The practice of sequential sprays was discovered by Hugh J. Courtney back in 1988 when, facing a third year of drought in Virginia, he put his deep knowledge of the biodynamic preparations into action3. Nearly 40 years on sequential spraying still seems to be one of lesser used biodynamic practices involving the preparations. I myself have used the sequential sprays numerous times over the years with, I shall say, pretty good success.

There is a huge El Nino building in the Pacific Ocean right now with some indications that it could be the biggest ever on record - bigger than the El Nino of 1877. Some are terming it as the ‘Godzilla El Nino’. Of course, only time will tell but the indications are not promising. What that means to farmers everywhere around the globe and the people that depend on them for food could catastrophic4. That’s the Pacific. Meanwhile we have the stalling of the AMOC and how the two work together is above my paygrade to comment on. However, when I queried Claude, the feedback (I won’t say answer) I was given is that the models, as they are, point to a warmer, wetter, more variable 2026 growing season, while the winter (2026-27) will be milder with less snow. How it actual plays out only time will tell. So, we must change our thinking and perceptions and practices to match the new reality. Bottom line: resilience is key and Sequential Sprays are a valuable tool to consider!

While actually changing the weather itself is probably not in the cards - ergo effecting longer-term climate patterns and not whether its going to rain today is the objective - the use of biodynamic sequential sprays (BSS) do seem to help influence near-term weather patterns, with the plant fundamentally attracting what it needs best for health and vitality. And whether it is just fortuitous timing or there is something else going on, I do believe connecting with and being a part of what’s going on around us in nature and the cosmos (is there any difference?) is a critical part of successful farming. No one has really spoken about the role of the farmer in the success (or failure) of sequential sprays, but no doubt a positive mental attitude goes a long way.

The Biodynamic Calendar

Its important that everyone/anyone considering spraying any biodynamic preparations, and especially when applying the sequential sprays, have at least a basic understanding of the biodynamic calendar. The time of spraying preparations is perhaps but not as important as the actual spraying (many people will tell you its better to spray than not) and to guide you there are three biodynamic calendars.

Maria Thun - this is probably the one that has the most history and research behind it. Not that it differs from the others, but the work that Maria et al. did in the field of biodynamic research is unparalleled. As it relates to the calendar you can rest assured that it is based solidly on good research.

Stella Natura - I like this one since it is easy to understand, but also has the best essays! Now published by Spikenard Honeybee Sanctuary5 in Floyd, VA, Stella Natura gives you the same basic information as Maria Thun with deep anthroposophical articles and amazing graphics.

Celestial Planting calendar6 - this one is the most astrologically based of the three. Gary Caton, astrologer extraordinaire, does the research to provide the indications and nuance of the calendar.

If the truth be told, I use each of them, usually checking one against the other. Sometimes I prefer more research and other times some more gentle reading. They each provide a unique, but similar, point of view into the workings of the cosmos from here on earth - so from a practical perspective there is little difference in my view. For the user, just being able to know when there is a root, leaf, flower, or fruit day is critical when considering the sequential sprays. Please refer to each calendar for more guidance on how to use them.

The following sections were borrowed liberally from Josephine Porter Institute’s old Applied Biodynamic newsletters as noted in the footnote references. When something is written so well that it doesn’t need to be rewritten, go with it.

Sequential Spraying When It Is Too Wet

• Identify three fire/warmth days in a row, when the moon stands in front of a “fire/fruit” constellation: Aries, Leo or Sagittarius. The preferred position of the moon may be waning, ascending and near perigee (the reverse of when you want to attract moisture).

  • The evening of the first day, barrel compound would be sprayed.

  • The following morning at dawn, equisetum would be sprayed and in the

  • The evening of that day, horn manure (BD #500) would be sprayed.

  • The last day, at sunrise, horn silica (BD #501) is sprayed.

• If only two fire days are available, the abbreviated sequence may be used by again combining BC and BD #500 the first evening and combining BD #501 and BD #508 the following morning. One could also spray on air/flower days as a second choice.

Sequential Spraying When It Is Too Dry

• Identify three consecutive “leaf/water” days that are not in a “black out” or unfavorable period. Leaf/water days occur when the moon sits in front of a “water” constellation: Cancer, Scorpio or Pisces. It is also good to consider ascending and descending positions of the moon. A descending position would be favorable to call in moisture. A waxing or full moon is also preferable

  • In the evening of the first day, spray Barrel Compost (BC) out over your property.

  • In the morning of the second day, at dawn, spray out BD #501 (horn silica) over the same area. In the evening, spray out BD #500 (horn manure).

  • On the morning of the third day, spray out BD #508 Horsetail (Equisetum arvense) either as fresh tea or the fermented version that has been stirred for 20 minutes.

• If only two leaf/water days are available, the abbreviated sequence may be used by again combining BC and BD #500 the first evening and combining BD #501 and BD #508 the following morning. One could also spray on earth/root days as a second choice.

Using Milk and Honey

The late Hugh Lovel wrote in Quantum Agriculture about using Milk and Honey as the final sequence in the sequential spray process. Milk being earthly, calcium, and lime based, having a similar influence as the 500 or BC sprays, is sprayed the third evening. While honey, being cosmic and silica related would have a similar influence as 501 or 508, and is applied the third morning.

Hugh Lovel quotes/paraphrases Hugh Courtney on the use of milk and honey thusly:

A land flowing with milk and honey implies a countryside rich in nourishment for the whole human being, both physically and spiritually. …. Not many farms flow with milk and honey, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea. Milk supports growth and development of the whole human being, while honey supports maturity and refinement. …. Honey strengthens the will and gives the ego a well-adjusted sense of security, especially when the etheric and astral bodies already have a good start. Courtney suggests spraying homeopathic milk and honey to establish these patterns in the landscape as an adjunct to sequential spraying. Quantum Agriculture: Biodynamics and Beyond, Lovel, H. p168.

These is little doubt in my mind that sequential spraying works, just not in the way that secular scientists operate. Fundamentally as nourishment for the human soul connected to the land and the work that we do, but practically by helping balance and shift the climatic energies that dictate the weather patterns we experience. Utilizing the practice of sequential spraying does take time and commitment, but what doesn’t these days? Sequential spraying will bring what is needed - with the guidance of the farmer - to the farm organism. In a time of imbalance on the planet, there is little in the utilization of sequential spraying that can’t benefit humanity and all living creatures.

3

The Josephine Porter Institute - Applied Biodynamics

Sequential Spraying: Illusion, Remarkable Coincidence, or Reality?

Hugh J. Courtney…

Read more

2 years ago · 10 likes · 1 comment · JPI Biodynamics

Insurance companies are run by actuaries, professionals that assess the risks of anything and everything and assign a value to it. Then they sell you insurance to protect against that risk. If the risk is low, the premium is low. If the risk is high, then the premium is high. As an example, if you are bad driver - by any definition - your auto insurance premium is higher than it will be for someone who’s never been in an accident. Yet, it is rare to see fruit growers invest in the kind of insurance that can actually protect against a disaster; instead they all to often rely on crop insurance and political leverage to make a difficult situation slightly more palatable. Many times they simply accept what’s happening (i.e., climate chaos) as inevitable or not happening at all (the are so-called ‘climate deniers’). To be fair, many fruit growers do do what they can when they with the resources they have available; but going the full nine yards is simply out of reach - financially or otherwise.

Frost and Freeze Reality - the science

As well know, water freezes at 32F (0C), or does it? Only still, pure water freezes at 32F, while other water bodies such as oceans, rivers, streams, ponds, and lakes - and yes, that puddle in your front yard - and bodies of water in motion do not; or at least not as easily. Why? Because most bodies of water have dissolved solids in them. These dissolved solids act like an antifreeze and reduce the freezing point of water. There are also other biochemical and microbial elements at play, too. These plus physical motion and air do not easily allow for the nucleation of ice crystals. If the ice crystals are not allowed to form, then frost can’t occur. Once ice nucleation begins, then freezing (in all its forms including frost) begins and the game is pretty much over.

Freezing can occur both internally and externally in the plant. When there is frost this is surface freezing, but internal freezing is not always apparent unless we look very closely by cutting open flowers, fruits, or other plant parts - then you will see the ice crystals. Why is this important? Two major reasons: 1) the temperature dropped below the freezing point of the plant fluids and 2) not all plant parts are equally susceptible. Its ironic that the most susceptible parts of any fruit plant are the ones we count on to provide a crop. For apples and other tree fruit, this is the flower. But not all floral parts are equally susceptible.

I’ve witnessed the past few days how the pedicel and sepals are the most resilient, while the petals and anthers are less so, and the pistil is the least. Of course, it is the pistil - the female parts of the flower - that succumb first to cold temperatures. We have some orchards right now that are in full bloom, but nearly devoid of any fruit-bearing potential - all signs point to 2027!

It bears saying that floral buds (fruiting spurs) become less resilient to cold temperatures as they get closer to bloom, being most susceptible when they are in full bloom.

We can reduce and even prevent the amount of freezing and frost by keeping the temperature above the freezing point and/or preventing ice nucleation. But what happens if it gets too cold and ice nucleation begins? First of all, don’t let it get that far. There are tools (see below) that can be used and should be explored. That said, the academic institutions really need to become more creative in their thinking about problems and expansive in their research initiatives.

Right now, it seems like we’re still relying on frost prevention technology that’s at least 75 years old. We’re living and farming in chaotic times, and we need solutions that match our challenges. Sure, crop insurance and political help matter, but they are always after the fact and always a little too late; like a band-aid on a bullet wound.

But I digress. Within a very narrow temperature range, frost can be our friend in the same way that continually coating trees and plants in ice can be a tool to consider. You see, according to the laws of thermodynamics, energy is neither made nor destroyed - it simply changes form. Warm water contains heat or energy. How much depends on its temperature, but let’s assume that water out of the ground is 55F, so there is a differential of roughly 25 degrees F between when it came out of the ground and what it starts to freeze. When this water is applied to a plant that is around 32F, it slowly cools and releases that stored heat1 and eventually freezes. For that frozen water (e.g., frost) to melt, it takes energy input before releasing that energy again as it freezes. This is known as the freeze/thaw cycle and within a narrow temperature range is why some growers - as an example - apply irrigation water all night long; to maintain the freeze/thaw cycle until ambient temperatures get above freezing again. However, if the temperatures gets too low or if you turn off the water, then your plants turn into large blocks of ice and its probably game over.

What if we were to apply these basic physical concepts to different technologies and use warmth where it abounds and do what we can to reduce the freezing point of water and prevent/reduce ice nucleation. This is where we have not been very creative or innovative with our research or practices2. We are still living in the dark ages and wishing and hoping that this freeze was an anomaly. Hint: it is not. This is the world we live in now and if we wish to be successful fruit growers, then we need to meet today’s challenges head on.

Lest I unnecessarily remind everyone of how bad the 21 April freeze was, remember that we had a devastating freeze three years ago on May 18. We are still weeks away from that calendar marker and at least a month away from truly being in the clear. Typically, we (growers) say that Mother’s Day is the last frost date for many part of NY; May 18th is one week after that date this year; and many growers are now using Memorial Day (May 30) as the first date where they can say we are truly out of the frost ‘kill zone’. We have miles to go yet this year!

What’s to be done?

Its unlikely that anyone can do too much this year to prevent any further damage unless you have the infrastructure already in place. Unfortunately, in many cases the damage is already done and so any further expensive efforts will only be marginally effective, if at all. Some growers are already out of the game. And while the situation is dire for this year’s crops, this situation doesn’t prevent growers and academics from starting today to develop, test, and implement old and new technologies. Fruit growing isn’t for the faint of heart, and yet it doesn’t have to be paralyzing.

Tools of the Trade for Fruit Growers

Since farming is fundamentally about risk management, what are some of the tools that growers have to consider as they prepare for the very predictable climate turbulent years ahead? In essence, what to do?

• Site Selection. Elevation, aspect and slope are the most important characteristics of any orchard or vineyard. Within limits, the higher up, the more east facing, and the steeper the slope, the more protection you’ll have from frost or freeze events. Always remember that heat rises and cold sinks, and with slope and aspect you can reliably count on temperature inversions.

• Genetics. Pick varieties that are either cold resilient through either later bloom times or simple background genetics. Any varietal selection has its plusses and minuses, there are no ‘perfect’ varieties out there. Choose wisely.

• Weather station (or at the very least weather sensors). I’ve become a strong advocate that every orchard and vineyard should have its own weather monitoring equipment. Microclimates are a real thing and relying on the local weather news for either the forecast or for historical data can be incredibly misleading.

• Orchard Fans. Expensive but they work under the appropriate conditions - that is when there is or you can create a temperature inversion. Orchard-Rite is one manufacturer out there with a proven track record. Each fan is sufficient for 10-12 acres when properly placed and operated. But again, if it gets too cold or there isn’t the possibility of an inversion, wind machines are not going to work.

• Helicopters and Drones. Also expensive, not everyone has access to one (or two), and they have the same limitations as wind machines. Plus, they are dangerous when flown at night. And you need a heat source.

• Heat. Heat is where the above wind machines and helicopters become more useful. Warmth trapped either below a layer of clouds or generated on the ground helps create that inversion effect that makes mixing the air effective at keeping the temperatures above damaging thresholds in the orchard or vineyard.

  • Frost Candles3

  • Fires

  • Propane heaters

  • Frolights. A new technology that seems to have some potential in vineyards. I am not familiar with it being used in orchards. “Frolight harnesses the power of infrared light tubes to deliver targeted radiation heat directly to your valuable vines. Say goodbye to the threat of frost damaging your harvest. Our innovative system ensures optimal conditions, safeguarding your vineyard and maximizing yields.”

• CryoBio. Another new technology by a company based right here in Ithaca, NY. “CryoBio……takes its inspiration from antifreeze proteins found in animals that have adapted to survive in subzero temperatures. It then engineers microbes to produce these molecules in a fermentation tank, extracts them, and supplies them to farmers as a powder that can be mixed with water and sprayed on crops just prior to a frost event using standard equipment.”

• Valerian. Typically used by biodynamic growers to provide a sheath of warmth around delicate fruiting buds, research into Valerian’s active compounds is an active area of research by Dr Sherif Sherif’s lab of Virginia Tech. More investigation into novel practices to prevent or reduce freeze damage is more of what’s needed by all ag-focused research institutions.

• Nutrient Charging. Here' we’re using the plant’s own cytoplasm to protect against freeze but supercharging it with minerals and other nutrients to lower the freezing point. Still unproven and probably marginally helpful in any case, there is still work to be done as empirical field reports continue to suggest that proper product choice and timing do help.

• Physical cover. Sure, you could put everything into a greenhouse of high tunnel, but that’s not very efficient or inexpensive. However, for growers that may have access to hail or bird netting might limit the amount of frost settling on the trees and/or retain some heat within the canopy.4

• Overhead misters. Coat the tree in ice. But it takes the continuous freeze/thaw cycle to ensure that any heat energy that’s used in the process keeps the temperatures at an appropriate level. This requires overhead sprinklers and an ample water source, plus there is always the risk of freezing pipes and clogged nozzles. You have to keep it pumping until its above freezing. It can also be very damaging to trees (ice weighs a lot!).

• Under tree misters. Here we’re using the heat of the water to rise from beneath the canopy into the trees to envelope the buds not with ice but with warmth (though I am sure some frost may develop) due to settling moisture. That said, some citrus growers have used this approach to reduce the potential for damage to the trees.

• Using the earth’s heat. How about using a subsoiler to create long fissures in the earth at just the right time to release any heat that’s there? Its a long shot, as you’d need to go pretty deep to get to any reasonable temperatures, but for soil that may have captures a lot heat in the days leading up to the freeze this may have some merit (think geothermal heating and cooling).

• Compost. Here we can use both moisture and dark compost to capture heat during the day that is then released at night. Another long shot, but it beats a soil surface with no cover or ability to retain and then release stored energy. In other words, the ability of the soil to act as a capacitor of sorts is what’s a play here. Cover also reduces heat and moisture loss, as opposed to bare soil

The reality is that a multi-faceted approach to contending with climate chaos is what’s needed. Relying on any one tool, or nothing at all, is not a wise practice for someone who’s livelihood relies on the fruit. Times are getting riskier and less predictable, we have to meet those risks head on - proactively - and not with hopes and prayers - though good intentions and positive thoughts never hurt!!

What do you do to protect or prepare your fruit crops for frosts and freezes?

The fact is that massive acreages of tree fruit and grapes were lost from New York to Virginia, even into North Carolina, and as far west as Ohio. These events are no longer anomalies; they are becoming way too frequent and devastating for may growers to withstand - financially and psychologically. The question then arises: why do we even do this?

Farming is in our hearts, souls, and minds. We do it not out of love of money, but as a passion to commune with Mother Nature and grow good food. But Mother Nature, as we are learning the hard way, can be fickle.

Tuesday morning’s lows ranged from the mid- to high-20s to the high teens. 17F was the lowest temperature I heard, but mostly it was low 20s, temperatures low ensure 90% bud kill on most tree fruit and complete devastation on primary grape shoots. There was little anyone could do about it. The conditions were perfect in all the wrong ways - cold, clear, and calm. Unless a grower could generate heat and keep it at more or less ground level, most efforts were futile unfortunately. This is what farming in the age of climate chaos looks like1.

Meanwhile, the imbecilic administration in DC is doing everything it can to undo efforts to stem climate change and support farmers. Farmers are still relatively free to take measures on their own, but without government support those efforts are muted. What’s a farmer to do?

First, every farmer has to take seriously the roles climate chaos is going to play in the coming years. There are still far too many climate deniers in the agricultural sectors.

Second, steps need to be taken today! And these steps2 will require investment. Investment the government used to help out with through various programs, such as EQIP. Don’t wait until the next year to make plans when we’re again faced with a devastating situation. And to be sure, not all potential scenarios can be prevented no matter what you do - but lack of preparedness will definitely ensure Mother Nature has her way once again.

From this (above)…..

to this in just a few hours……

Some growers in the Hudson Valley did fire up their frost fans and even hire helicopters, others just set fires or turned on large propane heaters. But one without the other probably only did half the job, if that. As we all know, heat rises and cold sinks. And on a clear, calm night any ground level warmth is lost to the heavens if nothing is done. Fans of helicopters can help keep warmth at ground level by pushing it down and mixing it with colder air3. But fans or helicopters without heat don’t have anywhere to pull it from. And heat without a mixing process is a colossal waste of energy.

There are some indications that under milder conditions that certain plant nutrients and some protectant sprays can provide a modicum of protection. There is also genetics - choosing crops or varieties that are more resilient to cold temperatures and frost or simply bloom later, outside of the kill zone.

But this article is less about “what you can do",” and more about “what you should be doing today.” Its also to point out - and I know I am both preaching to choir and tilting at windmills here - that we need huge policy changes at the national, continental, and global scale to reduce and mitigate the effects of climate chaos on farming and food. These events will become more frequent and less predictable as things get worse. The lack of Arctic ice and the stalling of Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is not moderating the jet stream and ocean currents that way it used to. This is allowing for these formerly anomalous events to happen more frequently - and at the wrong times - with less predictability. Yes, we knew it was going to get cold Tuesday morning, but even the best forecasts were off by several degrees. And not that anyone could have done anything differently than what they did, but there was a brief moment that things would be ok.

The crop losses that growers suffered the other morning were in many cases devastating, end-of-the-season types of losses. For tree fruit growers, not everyone, but many - now there is only 2027. For grape growers they will count on lower yields and quality to continue making the wines their customers expect. And everyone down the line loses, too. Consumers will pay more for fruit and associated products. Farm supply vendors, equipment dealers, etc. will also see less business. Everyone suffers!

Farming is not for the faint of heart! Many farmers will not survive this year, or they may just decide its not worth it. But for those that do stick it out, start using this year as a platform for making the smart investments to help quell the effects of climate chaos on your farm and in your communities. It’s the only way!

A Quick Review. Nitrogen (N2) makes up approximately 78% of the breathable atmosphere. This means you are breathing in more nitrogen than oxygen (O2, 21%) with every breath. Nitrogen is fundamental to life on this planet. It is a primary constituent for the development of proteins, enzymes, and, for plants, chlorophyll. This is why plants yellow or don’t grow well when there are N deficiencies1. Nitrogen is critical to the porphyrin ring in chlorophyll that coordinates the magnesium atom that allows for photosynthesis to even take place. Nitrogen, as you can see, is fundamental. Without it, life stops dead in its tracks.

Haber-Bosch. Prior to the 20th century, all nitrogen sources were either from plants or animals. Well, technically its all from the atmosphere, but without plants or animals, that N2 remains a gas - a dead element. But as it passes through a plant or a plant through an animal - or in some cases a microbe, but in all cases a living organism - it is enlivened and can bring life to our crops and livestock. Think about a world with protein or chlorophyll?

That was all pre-20th century. In the early 20th century, a process was developed called the Haber-Bosch process that allowed for the production of nitrogen fertilizers by extracting N2 from the air.2 This process requires natural gas to work; you know, natural gas, that fossil fuel derived energy source that’s so much in the news these days? The world has become so dependent on artificial nitrogen fertilizers that it may not know what to do without it3. And the problem is here, right now. Last week I compared actual a grower’s fertilizer pricing from 2025 and 2026, and the prices had literally doubled! Can you imagine trying to farm where you are reliant on artificial fertilizers and your prices just doubled year over year? I can’t.

This craziness isn’t just limited to nitrogen fertilizers either, or the production of fertilizers in general (but that’s for another time). The fact is, we do not produce the majority of the world’s fertilizers in the US or even in North America). The majority are produced in (wanna take a guess?) - China (28M tonnes), Russia (9.4M tonnes), Middle East (20M tonnes), other countries (20M tonnes), while the US and Canada combined to produce only 17M tonnes. That was in 2018. Think about as well where the natural gas is produced as well as where fertilizers are produced. Then think about the transport costs of getting it from there to here once its even made. Yikes!

Fortunately, this isn’t intended to be a detailed review of global fertilizer production, but rather to illustrate that with the impending global fuel crisis - and the gas that’s needed to make fertilizers and diesel needed to transport it - we’re headed for a food crisis if we don’t pivot fast. If China, Russia and the Middle East decide to stop producing or sending fertilizer to the rest of the world - well, you can see where I am going with this.

Funny thing is that we can “gasp again” make nitrogen fertilizers all on our own, without fossil fuels, just like “we” did for millennia before Haber or Bosch ever came up with their confounded process. Well, we need the plants and the microbes and the atmosphere, but otherwise we’re ready to rock.

Nitrogen: The Mediator of Life

As I mentioned earlier, without nitrogen, life on earth ceases. But it must first move through a living organism in order to become “usable” by our crops and livestock to grow food - i.e., biomass, organic matter, compost, poop. Plants do this through a variety of processes including nitrogen fixation; animals do this by eating plants. And through their extraordinary digestive systems (cows especially) animals poop out the most fertile fertilizer one could ever hope for. And its full circle too, all without straining or depleting the world’s resources.

Plants - we cover crop for a variety of reasons, but we should be cover cropping using primarily nitrogen fixing plants (legumes etc) - and there are many. They in turn need nitrogen not just for proteins but for healthy chlorophyll in order to optimize photosynthesis (Pn) that produces carbohydrates that feed the entire food web, including you!

Animals - animals, of course, do not photosynthesize, but they do need protein. And whether you are a meat-eater or not, the value of protein is undeniable in your diet. Anyway, animals eat plants to get the nutrition they need - yes, some animal seat other animals, but somewhere along the line plants are the basis of all diets.

The Circle of Life - So you can begin to see the circle of life here. Nitrogen gas in our atmosphere is consumed by nitrogen fixing plants and turned into usable nitrogen4. These plants are then eaten by animals or they degrade and compost into organic matter to be recycled and consumed again by plants and other organisms. The animals themselves then excrete nitrogen (to wit, here is the value of manure and urine for fertility), and as they die they also compost and release their nutritive components back into the living world, only to be consumed again.

Rudolf Steiner made the distinction between living nitrogen and dead nitrogen. N2 is dead though once it passes through a living organism it becomes living, and usable by most other life forms. He also made the distinction that nitrogen was the “primary mediator between the life force (etheric) and the spiritual element (astral), guiding life into the forms embodied in carbon.” Where’s the carbon? Well, that comes from CO2 primarily5 and cellulose from other life forms (that started at CO2). CO2 is needed for photosynthesis. This is where the C becomes dependent on the N to produce O2 that we all need to breathe. Without N there is no chlorophyll, no photosynthesis, no proteins, no O2, no life, and no spirit.

As we go through this global energy and soon-to-be global food crisis, we need to get back to the basics and realize that we can make practically all of the nitrogen fertilizers we need, heck we can make all of the fertilizers we need. But we have to unthink how we grow food and get back to the basics. It won’t happen overnight and will be much much harder for anyone who farms on large scale or in tropical areas to make this shift overnight. But at smaller scale and for those already in the know, this can happen starting today.

How Does this All Work?

Start by realizing that you need both carbon and nitrogen (the infamous carbon to nitrogen ratio) to make a natural fertilizer. Oh, and the biology. Without microbes, none of this works - did I mention that? Oops! So we need C and N and fungi and bacteria (sounds like you gut, right?) and then we’ve got something work with. Properly balanced compost - at any scale - require about a 30:1 ratio of C to N to feed and fuel the microbes that break down the organic matter (C) and turn it into rich, fertile natural fertilizer. Think grass clippings (N), leaves and twigs (C), and earthworms (soil food web) to start. But it goes beyond that in recognizing that - as I’ve heard - there is more nitrogen in the protozoans in the soil than in anything else. So cycling protozoa should really be at the top of our list when it comes optimizing the nitrogen cycles in the soil to the benefit of plants, animals, and humans (yes, we’re animals). And by working with and using living nitrogen rather than dead nitrogen fertilizers we are creating a farm ecosystem that is spiritually, biologically, minerally, and chemically alive! Then so too will be your food! and YOU!

I wish I had a proper ending for this article, but alas I don’t It started out on a bummer note for industrial ag, but hopefully reinforced, no matter where you are in the food or farming spectrum, that you have options. Fossil fuels may be dwindle because or price of scarcity, but the N2 we all breathe is here to stay.

Please know that the whole process is way more complicated than I made it here - this was about nitrogen. Plants have many many mineral nutrients in them that are also fundamental to life. All minerals came from the cosmos - at least initially - then rocks, then plants, then animals. Life is complicated and complex. The fact that it is all cosmic, beautiful and right at our fingertips is really the point!

All farming decisions are fundamentally risk management. - Mike Biltonen

We all love participating in the growing of plants. Yet we have to see that however we are participating in that dynamic interrelated process of plant growth is simultaneously about influencing something positive while preventing something negative. We may be participating in the growing of fruit while also working to prevent an infection or pest outbreak. All farming is about risk management. The more we work to diversify and energetically enhance our farms, orchards, and vineyards, the healthier and more resilient they become, almost - but not quite - taking care of themselves.

Danger Averted for Now. Last night (4/8/26) we flirted with our first cold temperatures of the growing season1. No, it didn’t snow or frost to any detriment, but it was cold and reminded us that we have a long way to go. In most areas, the cold temperatures dipped onto the cusp of where damage could be done to emerging flowers2. After what one might call a relatively ‘normal’ year in 2025, what will 2026 bring? We still have weeks to go, and with the consistent uncertainty from year to year, its anyone’s bet where things will go this year. Cold temperatures and frosts in April and May are almost a given anymore - so what is one to do?

Image. Snow covered apple blossoms. Portland Fruit Tree Project.

Obviously there is nothing that any single grower can do to avert severely low temperatures3 or wild fluctuations4 at the wrong time of year. Any time we discuss strategies for averting problems with low temperatures or late frosts, its within a narrow range of potentially damaging temperatures. So what is grower to do?

There are several things to remember about cold and frost. First, only pure water freezes at 32F. Second, internal plant parts are not comprised of pure water and therefore do not freeze at 32F. 32F is the point where ice nucleation on the surface of the plant can occur - this is what we call frost. Third, internal freezing usually happens as we approach the high 20sF and depends on plant phenology. In some cases plant phenology is very important when or if a frost occurs, whereas in some plants like grapes or chestnuts any exposed leaf tissue is subject to burning5. Last, a cold night or frosty morning are not necessarily a death knell for your crops, there are many variables involved.6

What To Do? There are seven (7) general areas a grower can consider for possible solutions, each dependent on their specific situation.

Site Selection. The first best decision any fruit grower can make is to NOT plant trees where severely cold temperatures or frost are guaranteed. This includes bioregional choices as well as site specific areas such as frost pockets. Elevation, slope, aspect, and surrounding environment are all considerations one needs to consider before planting a fruit orchard. Sometimes what you have is what you have - but plan wisely before investing too much time, energy or money into a marginal site, or trying to ameliorate the conditions with fancy machines or heating equipment.

Genetics. DO NOT plant fruit crops in areas where they are guaranteed to suffer from cold or frosts. When I managed Red Jacket Orchards in Geneva, NY, we were the largest growers of apricots in the northeast, probably east of the Rockies. We had 34 acres of apricots on the northeast side of Seneca Lake - perfect (or nearly so) conditions for growing a crop so sensitive to early spring warmups and therefore frosts. Still we only had full crops every four out 10 years (or so). Choosing cold tolerant crops, species, and varieties appropriate for YOUR conditions is critical to the long-term success of any fruit grower. Certain cherry varieties, peaches, plums, late-blooming apples, pears, and even grapes are available for marginal sites. Chris Negronida, Perry City Orchard and Nursery, made observations in 2025 about crab apples being resilient even under heavy frost conditions7 - there’s more to uncover there, but it is a consideration to keep in mind. Once again, choose wisely - but you may already have what you have. What to do?

Tree Health. Healthy trees are resilient trees. But do not confuse them with trees or varieties that are immune to cold or frost, because they are not. Nonetheless, keeping your trees in an optimal state of health can provide a buffer of protection in marginal cold or frost events. All too often growers let the nutritional status of trees flag during harvest and as they head into late fall and dormancy. Providing adequate irrigation, good nutrition, and even late season fertilization can improve the status of trees before they go dormant and setting the stage for a healthy reawakening the following spring.

Crop Load. The previous and even the current year’s crop load play a huge role in tree health and therefore in its resiliency in the face of cold winters and the inevitable spring frosts. Heavy crops and late harvests can pull down the overall health of the tree since the crop is a huge drag on resources. If there isn’t enough time for the tree to recover, then it goes into winter in a deficient state resulting in higher susceptibility to winter cold and spring frosts. Multiple years of heavy crops exacerbate the situation. Thin early, harvest wisely, and if its a late variety, feed it well before it goes dormant.

Nutrition. Again, keeping trees and vines in a high state of health should be of paramount concern for growers. Adequate nitrogen, potassium, calcium, and silica for sure to help with plant tissue, but also micronutrients that play micro- (get it?) roles in the overall plant physiology and phytochemistry. Probably a better way to think of it is that nutrients and minerals act as cellular anti-freeze, while micronutrients contribute to the production of other biochemical compounds that may boost overall plant resiliency. While the effect may be marginal, keeping your trees in an optimal state of health through proper nutrition is critical for obvious reasons.

Bloom Retardants. There are certain treatments that a grower can apply or actions a grower can take that may help retard bloom. Delaying pruning, delaying or splitting fertilizer applications, keeping the roots cool8, spraying Surround, lime, or other white material, and even some plant growth regulators can delay bloom somewhat. Pruning and fertilization can stimulate growth - so waiting can delay growth. Spraying a white material reflects sunlight and radiant heat from the tree structure thereby reducing any warming effect on the trees. Plant Growth Regulators9 can help, but there aren’t any organic alternatives that I know of.

Image. Overhead irrigation protected apple blossoms.

Mechanical, Water, and Heat. This is where most growers can act with more confidence and immediacy, but it still takes planning and focus. Wind machines, heaters, fires, and irrigation can all help reduce the impacts of frosts or cold temperatures. That said, wind machines are expensive (both to buy and operate), heaters don’t do much for your carbon footprint (except make it worse), fires are dangerous and pollute, and using overhead irrigation is tricky because of the amount of water required for effectiveness and the system you need to have in place that won’t freeze in the process. But each of these methods does work. Yet they each only work within a narrow spectrum of activity, meaning that very cold temperatures are not affected by them.

It bears mentioning that heat inversions - where warm air is pulled down to cold areas - are necessary for wind machines to work. This is why planting on sloping ground can insure that cold air drops and warm rises - assuming you’ve planted on higher-elevation areas and not in frost pockets. Inversions can be artificially induced through the use of smoky fires (the smoke traps the heat and keeps it from rising), while any clean heat needs a protective layer to keep it from going off into the heavens. A clear, cold night will result in your heat rising beyond where it is needed. The same is true for windy nights, the wind just blows the warm air out of the canopy zone where its needed. All of this requires temperatures between 27-32F to be successful. Below 27F during bloom and there are no guarantees. Bottom line is that heat rises and cold air falls, leveraging an inversion means being able to bring trapped warm air down to orchard level while mixing or pushing the cold air out.

Protectants. There is some anecdotal evidence that nutritional sprays leading up to bloom can supercharge plant cells and lower their freezing point, but this requires applications leading up to bloom, not the night before. Applying sugars and other materials that reduce the potential for ice nucleation on the plant surface can give a margin of benefit as well, though the science is still out on this approach. There are some new products being developed that would also be sprayed on the tree to provide a buffer of warmth.

Valerian. For the biodynamically minded grower, the use of valerian prep sprays the night before a frost and then again the morning after have purported warming effect around the plant. The light and warmth influence of valerian is what provides this protection - think of it as an aura of warmth around the tender plant parts. It helps if the overall “management” of the plants is also biodynamic, or at least solidly holistic. I’ll discuss this more in an upcoming newsletter.

Recovery. What if? Let’s say you do what you can leading into a cold or frost event during or near bloom. But if you see some singed petals, torched ovaries, dead flowers, etc - the situation doesn’t look good. Is there anything you can do? As long as the situation isn’t too dire, simply allowing nature to take its course can provide the healing the plant needs. I’ve often wondered about sub-lethal damage as the grey zone between life and death. The leaves may be burnt, the fruit may not be perfect, but there’s still a crop. How do you help your plants recover from sub-lethal damage? Well, slowly. Time is a critical factor, do not rush or push the plants too fast until you’ve got a sense of how bad the situation is. Spraying certain cytokinin and gibberellin PGR sprays10 can assist in repairing damaged tissue. Applying not vigor inducing nutrients may also help with healing damaged tissues. Lastly, using certain plant teas can boost healing due to the phytochemicals released during the tea-making part of the process.

This time of year can be fraught with stress and anxiety as we do what we can do to get the year off right. We participate and integrate ourselves into a process that is largely outside our control. But as active participants in the brilliance of nature, we need to recognize our limitations. There is also only so much we can do, and sometimes we just need to let nature take its course. That’s a part of being a farmer as well.

Stillness and Tranquility restore order to the Universe. - Tao te Ching

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Practically speaking we should only be planting trees when the site conditions are appropriate - frost is out the ground, soil is not too wet (preferably moist and friable), and the threat of severe cold is passed. More often than not, the fruit trees we plant have been grown over the previous two years, dug the previous fall, and stored over winter. Needless to say, it is stressful on the trees not being in the Earth. So we must ease them back into the world of the living, with tender loving care, compassion, and intention for a productive future. Lovingkindness is the word the best fits this approach.

Once the physical, environmental, and climactic conditions are appropriate - i.e., the orchard is ready to receive the trees - then we can slowly bring the trees out of their forced hibernation and nudge them back to consciousness.

First, we want to revive the trees by acclimating them to open air, sunlight and warm temperatures and to avoid sudden shock. I wouldn’t throw them onto the beach under a cabana, so we slowly introduce them to their new environment. If they were shipped in a box, then open the box and bag and expose the trees to the open air and dappled sunlight, but do not take them out or expose them to direct sunlight. Let them acclimate for 48-72 hours. If there is a freeze on the horizon, then bring them in overnight. Sometimes trees comes in bins surrounded by sawdust, but the acclimation procedure is basically the same - you just don’t have to open to box and plastic bag. This step can be done a few days before planting, but not too far in advance otherwise they will start to push leaves - and that would be bad. Make sure the roots do not dry out.

Second, once they are acclimated then you can begin to prep the roots by soaking in water inoculated with mycorrhizal fungi to rehydrate the trees. This is done 1-2 days before planting. But don’t leave them in the water too long as they could drown. If you have a lot of trees to plant, this method can be cumbersome, so there are other options: 1) saturate the sawdust with a water/mycorrhizal solution 1-2 days before planting, 2) water at planting with a tractor mounted watering tank, or 3) soil drench with 5-10 gallons of prepared solution once the trees are in the ground. Either option achieves more or less the same objective - rehydrated roots and inoculation with mycorrhizal fungi. You don’t want to add any fertilizer at this time though a light solution of hydrolyzed fish/kelp isn’t necessarily a bad idea. Just don’t overdo it!

Third, how do you time all of this? I mentioned the soil conditions as being paramount. I don’t care what the biodynamic calendar says, if the soil conditions aren’t appropriate - then don’t plant. But once the soil conditions are where we want them, then calibrate the above processes to the first biodynamic calendar root days. You’ll need a biodynamic calendar for this, so once you identified a root day, start the process of reviving and prepping the trees about a week beforehand. Why root? Because this is the cosmic influence you are trying to capture. We want the energetic influences to go into the growing of roots before they go into growing trees. If we plant on a fruit day for example, that’s simply the wrong influence to have at planting.

Fourth, plant trees with lovingkindness and attention to details. Before the trees go into the ground, please consider the following:

• The roots should be lightly pruned to stimulate root growth. Not too much, but enough - especially some of the larger denser roots - should be pruned off.

• Roots should be oriented and arranged in the ground so they won’t be compacted when soil is pulled back over.

• Some traditions orient the tree’s roots in particular direction, south is often mentioned the preferable direction.

• Plant tree with the graft union 3-4 inches above the soil line especially if you will be adding compost or wood chips later. We do not want to lose the effect of the rootstock - this could happen if the graft union is planted too low or if the soil and amendments exceeds the height of the graft union. If you are planting true seedlings, then this is not a relevant step.

• If you are planting in hole (either hand-dug or augured), first make sure the sides and bottom of the hole are not “glazed” but rather friable so the roots can easily penetrate. This is another reason to make sure soil conditions are appropriate before planting. Wetter soils tend to glaze, while dried soils are more friable - your shovel or auger can exacerbate poor conditions.

• If you are planting in a hole, make sure the hole is roughly 2x the size of root mass. The spread the roots out evenly, pointing any obvious tap root or fibrous root mass towards the south. Don’t force or over do it - again, lovingkindness.

• Then pull only clean friable soil onto and around the roots. Small rocks and pebbles are ok, but no grass or heavy organic materials, big rocks, or anything that can’t fall easily against the roots. Compact the soil slightly so there is good soil:root contact (this is VERY important, we don’t want air gaps around the roots). One you have filled the hole with good soil ensuring good root contact, compacted the soil, and are confident in the graft union placement, then I like to actually step on the soil fill while simultaneously pulling up softly on the tree. This doubly ensures good soil:root contact, there are no air gaps, the graft union won’t sink, and that tree is firmly in the ground.

• Yes, the above can be a laborious process, but it is critical if you want a well planted tree. That said, if you only have a few trees the time spent is not enormous - and it will be well-spent. If you have hundreds or thousands of trees, then it isn’t practical to do some of these things - especially root orientation - since you’re likely using a commercial tree planter, such as a Phil Brown planter.

  

  This is a picture of a Phil Brown tree planter that is pretty standard in the tree fruit industry. It is a single row tree planter, though there are double and quadruple row planters as well.

• Once the trees are in the ground there are number of steps you can take to ensure they grow efficiently and productively.

1. Prune them as soon as possible after planting. typically I try to head the trees at 36” or so to a lateral bud pointing into the prevailing wind. If the trees have any side branches (otherwise known as feathers) I try to head them slightly (maybe 50%) to a bud that is on the underside of the branch. If they are well-feathered trees, I may not do anything at all (or very little). Either way I prune them as quickly as possible after planting. I prune for consistency from tree to tree, while also approaching each tree as an individual.

2. Spray them with copper to prevent any pathogens or diseases from infecting the pruning wounds or any wounds that may have occurred during planting.

3. Paint the trunks white from the soil line to the lowest branches to prevent southwest injury. Do this using a dilute solution of white latex paint (2/3), water (1/3), and sand (enough to make the mix gritty). There is an organic paint called Milk Paint, that you can use - but its NOT cheap. Or you can use a standard latex paint from anywhere, just make sure it is as basic as possible and doesn’t contain any oils.

4. Put on trunk guards to prevent vole or rabbit damage. There are vinyl spiral guards that can work, but do break down over time. Or, I prefer, using hardware cloth (1/2” mesh) cut into 18” x 24” rectangles, wrapped to form a cylinder 18” high and approximately 7” in diameter. These “cages” can be closed any number of ways, but I prefer using hog-ring clips, though simply threading wire and twisting will work too. Just be sure to close them tight. They should be buried at least 1” in the ground to prevent critters from burrowing under.

5. Finally, support. A trellis can be expensive, but a single tree support in the form of a 3/4” x 10’ EMT conduit works well driven 2’ in the ground. Wooden stakes, T-posts, and other forms have been devised by other growers. Just make that whatever you use that it is sufficient to support the tree for a few years as it grows. This support not only gives the tree above ground support but also it reduces the potential for wallowing - resulting in root breakage - due to wind or other severe weather events. Remember the first few years we want to grow a tree and to get that it needs roots. Know Your Roots!!

There is a lot of nuance and personal opinions the embrace the topic of tree planting, and many growers have found a system they prefer. Nonetheless, the basics - scientific, horticultural, and cosmic concepts - should supersede any personal preferences.

Be nice to your trees and they’ll be nice to you. Happy planting!

Trees generally grow slowly when allowed to do naturally, and according to their own rhythms. Sure, they may grow quickly in tropical areas and more slowly in colder regions, but in general they grow slow and to the beat of their own drum. This means they mature and come to fruition when they’re ready. Grow the tree, then grow some fruit.

As the old saying goes, “one should plant trees that you may not have the pleasure of sitting under.”

In commercial tree fruit production, high-density cropping systems are used to circumvent the natural cycles of trees. The use of dwarfing rootstocks, soil fumigation, intense fertilizer (not fertility) programs, expensive fertigation, and toxic sprays tend to push the trees along faster than they would prefer. This certainly leads to quicker production, but it also leads to unhealthy trees, orchard, and soils.

The lifespan of a high-density orchard is on the order of 25 years or so; the life span of an apple tree can be on the order of 150-200 years, and for pears even longer. Stone fruit not so much, but that’s a story for another time. Vines (which are of course not trees) can also live centuries. These long-lived elders are long-lived because they are generally “allowed” to grow according to their own surroundings and rhythms, not the artificial dictates of impatient farmers.

Impatience is also not good for the farmer. When farming is conducted according to balance sheets and profits margins, it puts undo pressure on the farmer to produce produce produce, creating a scenario that leads to a dismal life. Impatient farming ignores the reality of life itself for the farmer, trees, vines and all living things.

“The River knows this: there is no hurry. We shall get there someday.” - attributed to AA Milne/Winnie the Pooh

Pushing growth and production does not end well - unless you are just looking for big returns on your investment. It leads to impermanence and a truncated story. And the story, the story of your orchard or vineyard or farm, is the backbone of culture, the real meaning behind terroir. Patience leads to happy healthy trees, nutritious fruit, and sane farmers. Plus you get to experience nature in motion, and to be a part of the process. Otherwise you’re just growing trees and fruit.

Invest in patience and compassion, as well as the trees and your orchard, eschew the possibility of being shot out of a cannon. It’ll come, it’ll come, and everything will be better off for it.

What would you say are your overarching, pie-in-the-sky objectives of pruning activities? Better sunlight or airflow? Influencing vegetative growth or fruiting potential? Revitalizing or rejuvenating older or neglected trees? Fun? And while all of these are legitimate and important objectives, for me the most important thing to do is becoming one with your trees. Understand them as individuals, as varieties, as a family working together with you in a mutually beneficial way - a true ecosystem. You may have planted those trees, but they are certainly individuals in their own right with “minds” of their own.

Rule #1 - Listen and Learn. Leave the tools in the truck and spend time simply walking through the orchard. Your trees have something to tell you and you (we) always have something to learn from them. Be at one with them. Sometimes these silent conversations can be very practical, other times very intimate. Listen and you shall learn before ever picking up a set of pruning shears or a saw.

Rule #2 - Look at your trees the way you should look at life - from all angles. Your trees grow in response to certain external stimuli (e.g., sunlight, gravity, wind) as well as internal stimuli (e.g., hormones, minerals, phytochemicals). But this doesn’t mean they grow in predetermined ways necessarily, nor in totally random patterns either. Consider your tree from all angles. - top, bottom, sides, etc. Think of your tree being embraced by a sphere of energy - energy coming from outside, as well as being emitted from inside. These forces are working together and may - hopefully, again - provide guidance to your pruning style. Lay on the ground and look up. Stand on a ladder (or use a drone) to look down. See how your trees are growing vertically (and not necessarily from the top down or vice versa). Do this from each of the cardinal directions. Walk around the tree looking at the invisible spiral of energy (its vortex) weave its way from top to bottom, and down again. Do this clockwise and then counterclockwise and the clockwise again. Relate this practice to the mixing of biodynamic preparations, the vortex created in a small pool or a running stream, or the torus surrounding the planet earth. It’s all energy, baby!

Rule #3 - Seek Balance. There are some very practical objectives we are trying to achieve once we put our pruning practice into motion - some of which I mentioned above. That said, fundamentally we are seeking to help our trees achieve balance as they mature; a balance between vegetative growth and fruiting. Early on we want to encourage tree growth, and as they mature we want them to settle down and start producing fruit. And they want to produce fruit, too, since the primary objective of almost all life is to procreate. How we help the trees achieve this balance is critical to how we prune. Too much pruning and we encourage too much vegetative growth. Too little and the trees never achieve their full physical stature and start producing fruit too soon.

Rule #4 - Be the Conduit. Pruning is of course a very pragmatic activity just as it is intimate and magical. When you are pruning you are trying to achieve some very practical results - namely either growing a tree or fruiting that tree in a consistent balanced way. There is a continuity between the cosmic energy flowing in and the life forces pushing out, and you are a conduit for this energy, very similar to a copper rod being a conduit for energy in an electroculture grid (more on this at another time). In an analogous way though you, the farmer, orchardist, pruner, is the conduit for energy and intentions into your orchard. You may be pruning, but you shouldn’t be pruning without intention, respect, or acknowledgment of your role in the process or for the trees or orchard. How you prune is more than just physical removal of limbs, it is a process of working with the nature, individuality, and community of the organisms you are working with. A little too woo-woo for you?

Rule #5 - Know What You Are Doing and Why. I’ve seen trees pruned as if there was no rhyme or reason. I’ve seen them overpruned and I’ve seen them under-pruned. I’ve seen orchardists prune too cautiously and others prune as if they were going to war. Pruning should not be done timidly, but with clarity and intention. Nor should it be a battle. It should be a relationship between you and the trees. Yes, there are objectives we are trying to achieve - and one of those is developing a good relationship with your orchard. Of course, this relationship building goes beyond just pruning, but we’ll stick to pruning for the time being. What are the practical reasons we prune?

• Better Sunlight - increases photosynthesis>more carbohydrates>healthier tree. It helps warm the tree, dries the tree off more quickly, reduces hibernacula, and allows for a flourishing of a microbial environment that may not otherwise exist in a shadier environment.

• Better Airflow - trees need to breathe. Yes, they consume CO2 and exhale O2, but without reasonable gas exchange the interior of the canopy becomes heavier. There is no proof that CO2 actually decreases or that O2 increases in a heavy closed canopy, but it seems reasonable that a tree needs to breathe rather than sit in a stale environment. It also helps the trees dry off more quickly which in concert with more sunlight reduces pathogen buildup.

• Balance Between Vegetative Growth and Fruiting Growth. Generally speaking apple and pear trees bear fruit on two-year old wood. This is NOT absolute, since not all varieties act this way, but it is a solid rule of thumb. And because of this when a tree is young - say between years 1-5 - we are trying to grow a tree and not fruit; so we want to encourage more vegetative growth. About year 4-5 we want to help shift the balance away from strict vegetative growth towards fruiting wood without going to fast or far in the other direction, so we back off how aggressive we may be pruning each year. Once the tree starts the develop fruiting wood, then we can start the work of balanced pruning so the tree is continually renewing vegetative wood from fruiting branches (to become fruiting wood once again). Ideally fruiting wood is healthiest and most productive between years 2-6. After year 6 we need a renewal pruning program to remove the older fruiting wood, to be replaced by new vegetative wood. We continue this cycle for the life of the orchard.

• Alternatives to Cutting. Sometimes the objectives we are trying to achieve by cutting off limbs and branches can be achieved through other means such as bending, spreading, braiding, and pretzel pruning. In many ways these are gentler and more effective at achieving balance and the ultimate goal of consistent yearly production. I’ll write about these in a future article.

• Nuances. Circle back to the top of the article where I said that getting to know your trees is a critical first step. This may not only mean sitting down and having a ‘conversation’ with it, or being one with it and all that’s around. It is also understanding the basic growth habits, bearing tendencies, fruiting tendencies, etc. Its beyond the scope of this article to do a variety by variety breakdown, but here are the things you should consider.

  • Vigor - high, low, medium. Vigor dictates whether to prune hard, soft or in between depending on the vigor response that you want.

  • Growth Habit - stout wood, wispy wood, or something in between.

  • Bearing habit - spur, tip, semi-tip, semi spur

  • Bearing Tendency - does it bear on two-year old wood, one-year old wood, or equally on both?

  • Floral Bud Induction (FBI) Period - this is the time-frame when vegetative buds are physiological triggered to become floral buds at a microscopic level. This is an important consideration because the amount of fruit set you have can dictate the amount of FBI occurring that has a direct correlation to the amount of fruiting potential you have the following year.

  • Bienniality - high, low, medium. This can also be influenced by thinning but has to occur before and definitely within the floral induction period if you want to influence the development of fruit potential for the following year.

  • Blind Wood - does your variety set fruiting spurs or buds easily or is there a tendency towards blind wood (i.e., wood with low fruiting potential such as Ashmead’s Kernel)?

  • Others - what else can you think of that you might want to consider or influence through your pruning practices?

Rule #6 - A Little More Woo (using the biodynamic calendar). I use the Stella Natura biodynamic calendar almost exclusively through the year to help guide my orchard practices. I don’t use it in a dogmatic way - sometimes the work just has to get done - but I do use it as much as possible for critical activities. If I am winter pruning for example I am seeking to encourage more vegetative growth and a healthy start to the season since the fruit buds were already formed last year, so I would want to prune on days (root and leaf) that encourage the etheric life forces. If I am summer pruning, I am trying to invoke more astral influences to encourage flowering and fruiting forces.

Once the tree matures I want to have a balance of this forces - not too much etheric, not too much astrality. But when the tree is young, I want more growth and therefore more etheric energy. When it enters reproductive maturity, then I want fewer etheric (root/leaf) and more astral (or flowering/fruiting) forces. But I also want to mediate (not manage) these forces through the growing season, too. With mature bearing trees, early season is all about vegetative growth and post-bloom is all about flowering and fruiting. Remember these relationships well - root/earth/gnomes, leaf/water/undines, flower/air/sylphs, fruit or seed/sun/salamander.

Illustration by Hugh Courtney from his book “What is Biodynamics?”

Pruning really is about balance and have a 360 degree sphere of influence!!

Build the skills to steward healthy, productive apple trees using holistic practices. Learn from expert orchardists, get hands-on experience and in depth instruction throughout the growing season. Our guest teachers embody holistic management in their own unique ways and share their perspectives and passions. Get the foundation you need to care for your trees as a homesteader, commercial grower, or aspiring orchardist.

One Friday monthly, March–October | Northumberland, NH

What you’ll learn:
✓ Pruning & grafting techniques
✓ Michael Phillips’ core holistic spray protocols
✓ Soil health & ecosystem diversity
✓ Pest & disease management
✓ Biodynamic practices
✓ Silvopasture integration
✓ Cider making

Plus: Farm lunches | Course materials | Community with fellow orchardists

Early Bird: $1,150 (Save $200!) – Limited spots available

Register now:

https://heartsongfarmlostnationorchard.com/holistic-orchard/#orchard-apprenticeship

Holistic Orchard Apprenticeship Course – 2026
Build the skills to steward your own orchard with expert orchardists at Lost Nation Orchard. Learn soil health, Michael Phillips’ holistic sprays, pruning, grafting, pest balance, biodynamics, silvopasture, cider making. Get hands-on experience and instruction, build community. This course is ideal for homesteaders, commercial growers, and aspiring orchardists. One Friday monthly, March–October at Heartsong Farm & Lost Nation Orchard in Northumberland, NH.

Early Bird: $1,150 (Save $200!) – Limited spots available

Register now:

https://heartsongfarmlostnationorchard.com/holistic-orchard/#orchard-apprenticeship

Here is a little write up about the Orchard Intensive as well. We will begin sending some more details out about the class soon, but want to focus on the 8 month course fist. We already have a few students signed up for the Intensive Weekend! :)

Holistic Orchard Intensive Weekend June 6-7

This “organic apple everything” weekend was originally envisioned as a holistic orcharding boot camp by Michael Phillips. This weekend-long intensive provides the foundation needed to pursue your own orchard, homestead, and fruit growing dreams. Since it is not part of the 8-month long Lost Nation apprenticeship program we will be covering some - but not all - of the same material, but with a special focus on a particular mind-expanding topic. Come gain the practical insights needed to establish your own fruit planting based on the biological systems approach used here at Lost Nation Orchard. Mike Biltonen of Know Your Roots is our guest teacher. Mike is an excellent orchardist and teacher who brings so much experience and passion about apples, we are honored to have him here.

This will be the 3rd year in a row I’ve taught the weekend intensive. It is an honor (and humbling) to teach at Lost Nation Orchard and expand on what took Michael decades to create and that provided the basis for his teaching and invaluable books, today it provides the in situ foundation for holistic orcharding as we know it today. As much as I “teach” the course, I learn something every year that helps me with my own orcharding and consulting. So, I am indebted to everyone that attends and engages. Plus, its a great time to boot, and not to be missed! - Mike Biltonen

Learn more and register: https://heartsongfarmlostnationorchard.com/holistic-orchard/#orchard-intensive

Heartsong Farm & Lost Nation Orchard

859 Lost Nation Rd.

Northumberland, NH 03582

802-473-6117

www.heartsongfarmwellness.com

The soil foodweb (e.g., the “thing” that makes a soil a living entity and not just ‘dirt’) is an incredibly complex, relatively unexplored, universe1. Its is comprised of myriad fungi, bacteria, actinomycetes, protozoa, nematodes, large and small insects, small mammals, and perhaps the most obvious - earthworms. Together these organisms are the basis for any living soil - because without them a soil is dead. When they are out of balance or compromised because of the use of toxic chemicals or fertilizers, a soil may not be dead, but it is likely hanging on by a life thread. At this point, a soil begins to degrade, unable to properly support itself, plant or animal growth, and much less able to grow healthy, nutrient-dense food. Fortunately, there is hope.

Whether a Know Your Roots client is new or longstanding I recommend routine comprehensive soil testing. Not to be reductionist or data-driven, but because numbers give me a starting point on how to approach soil revitalization for perennial crops. I start with very basic testing (i.e., minerals and basic chemistry) and dig in from there depending on what the numbers and visual observations tell us.

Typically, I’ll recommend a minimum of three tests: comprehensive soil chemistry and mineral test (standard and saturated paste) and a soil foodweb or biological activity test. For new clients or projects, I may recommend a comprehensive soil health test (Cornell University) and, depending on the site history, a heavy metal test as well. Though somewhat expensive these tests create a strong baseline from which to make solid management decisions. After the initial run, soil tests should be performed every three (3) years at a minimum2 or every year if there are significant changes that occurred in the past year - e.g., amendments, soil tillage, inoculants, planting, cover crops, etc.

Specific tests that quantify soil microorganism populations such as ciliates, protozoa, actinomycetes, mycorrhizae, etc. are much more expensive and though important not particularly relevant at the initial stages of a soil revitalization program.

In general, but very consistently, I find most soils to be bacterially sufficient in terms of gross numbers, but not very active; they are also low in both total and active fungal organisms. Overall, most soils I sample are bacterially dominant and fungally weak, but with very little overall microbial activity. To be sure, both bacteria and fungi are needed for healthy soils, yet perennial fruit crops function better where long-term soil structure and nutrient availability provided by fungi dominates and overrides the need for immediate returns in terms of vegetative growth and fruit productivity (e.g., as is the case for annual crops like tomatoes) provided by bacteria.

In this example, the fact that total bacteria are high, yet active bacteria low (with the exception of Field 4, which is barely sufficient in terms of activity), and total and active fungi are low suggest poor conditions (e.g., compaction) and a lack of foods for both, with more work needed to improve numbers and activity for the fungal populations. Fungi need high carbon food sources like woodchips, compost, and biochar to support healthy communities of fungal organisms (e.g., mycorrhizae). Once the fungal communities are active and strong they help improve overall soil structure that improve air, light, and water penetration into the soil profile, positively impacting overall crop health and productivity. In summary, fungi are critical to the long-term health of orchards and provide the basis not just for organic matter breakdown and nutrient uptake, but for long-term soil quality and stability necessary for perennial fruit crops.

Bacteria, on the other hand, can turn over organic matter and make plant nutrients available more quickly than fungi. They also play a role in soil structure by essentially breaking down and dissolving larger mineral and organic substances. Compared to fungi, bacteria provide more of the short-term needs of the crop plant, rather than supporting the long-term health and functioning of biologically rich soils.

To reiterate, bacteria and fungi are both necessary and play an interactive, almost cooperative role in the soil. Apart from the roles they play regarding soil structure and plant nutrient availability, they also work together to store nutrients in the soil and bring them to and into the plant, as well convert many elements into other compounds (e.g., proteins, carbohydrates) needed by the broad biodiversity of plants and animals found in soils, in addition to the crop plant.

Currently both populations (made up of multiple unidentified species) are basically dormant, again due to a lack of food and other supporting elements such as beneficial cover crops, soil microorganisms, air, and water - but also possibly due to the timing of the sampling and cold soil temperatures. The best way to kick start these populations (i.e., wake them up) is to feed them with high carbon, high organic matter inputs such as wood chips, compost and biochar followed by a soil drench or inoculation using microbial ferments to augment the low total fungal populations while waking up both categories of dormant microbes. Once the soil microbes are fed, augmented, and awoken, then the magic begins. It will take time, often years, but starting now ensures long-term soil health benefits and high-quality food production.

The Soil Health Recipe

- Avoid applying any fungicides, insecticides, or herbicides that may impact soil microbial health. Most organic and biological sprays are safe to use to help control insect pests and fungal and bacterial diseases of fruit trees and plants. The lack of conventional sprays and fertilizers over the past few years is a positive boost to improving the soils.

- Avoid intense frequent soil disturbance such as plowing, rototilling, and disking. There are other less disturbing mechanical methods, as well as the use of cover crops, that can be used to improve compacted or waterlogged soils. Existing orchards have not been plowed in a long time, but tractor use over the years could have resulted in soil compaction and lack of air and water penetration into the soil profile. Nonetheless, some mechanical soil work may be required to “loosen” up the soil and reduce compaction.

- Apply exogenous organic fertilizers based on previously analyzed soil mineral and chemistry reports.

- Feed the soil (topdress) with organic matter from various sources (as mentioned above) for both bacteria and fungi, as well as the other macrobes.

- Soil microbial drenches to simultaneously wake up the dormant microbial populations and augment deficiencies with appropriate species blends.

o There are numerous ways to augment deficient or less diverse populations. Tainio Biologicals Inc. is a company that has a wide range of blends and approaches all soil conditions. BioOrganics LLC is another but with fewer options. And then there are many more natural approaches, such as Indigenous Microbes and using the microbial populations found right on the property. Bottom line is there is no “one size fits” all approach.

o Given the low level of active microbes, doing anything is better than trying to discover the perfect blend of ingredients (at this point anyway). The first step is always the best when done with the right mind-set and intentions.

- Repeat annual testing is required to check progress and review protocol. Different and more detailed tests may be required depending on the progress made.

- Once the bacterial and fungal populations are alive and balanced then the soils begin providing nutrients from the microbial breakdown of organic and inorganic matters, reducing the need for fertilizers and other inputs, except every few years to replace that which is removed by crops.

- Repeat the above steps as needed.

There is more to the story than just the results above, but is sufficient for now to outline a reasonable approach to revitalizing perennial fruit crop soils. Additional testing to monitor progress - as well as your own observations - is invaluable. Monitoring crop quality and not just yields, as well. There are food nutrient density labs popping up though they are still rather rare. As you start to see improvements, additional more detailed testing is needed - for elements you haven’t tested for before - to help you fine tune your program and eventually - hopefully - eliminate the need for nothing more than occasional interventions.

In secular science, soil and plant scientists tend to talk about the the macro- and micro-nutrients “required” for plant growth and development. The macronutrients are comprised of the big six: nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium and sulfur. The micronutrients are considered to be primarily boron, iron, manganese, zinc, copper, and aluminum. There are another four I usually test for that are rarely discussed in plant nutrition talks: cobalt, molybdenum, selenium, and silicon. All together that brings us to a total of 12 elements considered to be essential for - depending on the plant or crop - healthy plant growth and development. They are also considered critical for all soil-borne organisms that support healthy plant growth and development. Why then does the vast majority of agriculture focus primarily on N-P-K and secondarily on Ca-Mg-K, and ignore the rest? Largely its because the ones just listed are needed in larger quantities and its easier to measure physiological responses following applications. ALL of the other nutrients have very specific yet more nuanced effects on plant growth and development which are, arguably, infinitely more important.

Claude Bourguignon in Regenerating the Soil: From Agronomy to Agrology discussed plant nutrients in an entirely different light: atmospheric and soil derived1. The elements of the soil are described as vital and secondary, non-constitutive and constitutive elements. According to Claude, 92-98% of a plant’s dry weight is derived from what he called constitutive elements. And these elements are the atmospheric elements of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen. Of these four, only carbon and nitrogen are regularly applied to orchards and vineyards in the form of amendments. Oxygen and hydrogen come more naturally - meaning they can’t be applied as elements but rather come from the air or water in the environment.

“….. the soil provides plants with two types of elements - non-constitutive elements which the plant borrows and returns at the end of period of cultivation, and constitutive elements, which enter the vegetative organic molecular composition.” Claude Bourguignon, Regenerating the Soil, p 62

The twelve vital soil elements (the soil elements make up the other 2-5% of plant dry weight) are potassium and chlorine (non-constitutive) and phosphorus, boron, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, iron, manganese, molybdenum, copper and zinc (constitutive). While the eighteen secondary soil elements are lithium, sodium, rubidium, and cesium (non-constitutive) and fluorine, silicon, selenium, cobalt, iodine, strontium, barium, aluminum, vanadium, tin, nickel, chromium, beryllium, and bromine (constitutive). That brings us to a total of 34 elements that are required in some fashion for optimal plant growth and development. So, is Claude off his rocker? Why don’t more agronomists and academics talk about the need for a full-spectrum nutritional approach to not just plant growth and development, but soil health as well?

Figure 1: Regenerating the Soil: From Agronomy to Agrology. Claude Bourguignon, p 62. Other India Press, 2005

Part of the answer lies in the fact that many of these elements are needed in very minute quantities and are generally already present in the air or soil environment. Still, we can’t ignore them - neither their presence/absence or their roles in agrology - nor can we practically measure them. This is the basis for an unproven - though widely adopted - strategy that requires farmers to take a holistic view of soils and plant nutrition, and not just focus on the so-called low hanging fruits of N-P-K, etc.

As I mentioned, I will occasionally schedule lab tests that include measuring cobalt, selenium, silicon, and molybdenum, all of which are secondary non-constitutive elements except for molybdenum (a secondary constitutive element), according to Bourguignon. These are all without any clear scientific direction or supporting data on what these elements do specifically for apples or grapes. In fact, the only crop for which there is any supportive data is for grasses - corn, wheat, rye, etc. So why consider much less measure them at all? Because they matter, and we know they do.

Jerry Brunetti in The Farm as Ecosystem wrote in a very concise yet extensive manner about the roles many elements play in basic plant physiology2. To be fair, he did not consider many elements that Bourguignon mentioned, probably because they haven’t been studied extensively in relation to plant growth and development, but he does cover a lot of ground, ground that often isn’t covered when we talk about soil or plant health.

Let’s talk copper. Copper has taken on a bad rap recently, one that stems more from misunderstanding, as well as its abuse and overuse, principally in the grape industry than anywhere else.3 Copper is considered a mere micronutrient by academicians, but is considered a vital constitutive element by Bourguignon. And Brunetti writes of copper thusly:

Copper is the protein trace element; that is, it has the role of increasing the uptake of the preferred form of nitrogen, namely ammonium (NH4). It is essential for the production of chlorophyll, root metabolism, sugar synthesis, stalk strength, and elasticity because it affects the production of structural carbohydrates…..and is vital to protection against fungal diseases. Jerry Brunetti, The Farm as Ecosystem, p. 67

So we can see that copper is not the demon is often made out to be, except when put in the hands of irresponsible farmers and agronomists. It is a necessary element in the soil, outside the plant, and inside the plant. Without it, plant growth and development - and productivity - stalls.

In all my years of soil and plant tissue testing, I’ve never seen a soil or plant tissue have excessive levels of copper. In fact they are usually deficient which, as you can see, can have deleterious effects on the entire agroecosystem.

Now, this is NOT a prescription to just apply copper willy-nilly. We know that many soils, especially in the old wine-growing regions of France, have toxic levels of copper in their soils due to decades of overuse. Why? Because it was all they had for disease control and - realities of realities - they didn’t know any better. But today we do. Its unlikely to happen in this day and age because we have many more options for disease control and we know so much more about plant nutrition - the good, the bad, and the ugly. Copper is and should continue to be a valuable part of the any farmers arsenal. But only if used within the context of a holistic understanding and approach. Not only can copper - along with most of the other elements - become toxic if abused, but it can also diminish even mask the effects/presence of other elements through various chemical reactions. For example, copper and zinc (like phosphorus and zinc, or calcium and phosphorus) have to be present in reasonably appropriate proportions, otherwise copper can cancel out zinc. In almost all nutritional programs, ratios matter, not just simple quantities of isolated. And this is where testing becomes critical.

We only ever don’t know what we don’t know. Testing is a critical tool we all have access to that gives us data-driven insights into knowing what our plants and soil have or don’t have to offer. Until we test we won’t know anything about the copper levels in our soils or plants, including how to manage other nutrients to avoid problems.

Though this is not a prescription to micromanage nutrient levels in crops, it is hopefully shining a light on a need for a nuanced conversation around elements like copper - it plays many roles in the soil and the plant as we have seen. Sulfur and silica are other elements that do not receive enough attention in my opinion - but that’s for another time.

To summarize: copper is an absolutely necessary element for healthy soils and plants. Soil and tissue tests often reveal deficient levels of copper. It plays a role not just in plant and soil physiological health, but in disease control and suppression - directly and indirectly. The negatives of copper often overshadow the positives (and necessities) because of human abuse and overuse the last 150 years. Within a comprehensive, holistic, ecologically-driven approach to farming, copper absolutely plays a critical role - of this there is no question. Many of the formulated copper products on the market are safer, and even have unique modes of action, with lower levels of copper that make it nearly impossible for copper to accumulate to any toxic level.

There’s more to this story than a single element, so can we think differently and more deeply about copper (and all the other elements) in order to have a deeper cosmic connection with our orchards, vineyards, and farms?

Barefoot Biodynamics by Jeff Poppen (A book review)

I first met Jeff in 2019 at the National Biodynamic Association Conference in Lake George, NY. Having read Jeff’s previous books, but never having met him or experienced his teaching, I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect - apart from his being a barefoot farmer with decades of biodynamic experience under his belt. During his 90-minute presentation, I learned more about making and using biodynamic preparations than I had in the previous decade of reading, researching, collaborating with others, or working directly with the preparations.

Jeff’s style of teaching is reflected in his writing. It is a mixture of storytelling and practical guidance, with a bit of magic carefully blended in along the way. All too often biodynamic teachers and farmers get lost in either the mysticism behind the preparations, their spiritual connections, or simply sticking dogmatically to the guidance that Steiner laid out in the Agriculture Course. Jeff, in his new book, relates the depth and beauty of practical biodynamic farming without losing its esoteric underpinnings, or the reader, in the process. It is a book of practical biodynamic guidance intertwined with enough mysticism and spirituality to reinforce that biodynamics is more than just “the doing” of something different than what you may have been doing before. Sound agronomic practices are the foundation of biodynamic agriculture to be sure, but the use of the preparations and some cosmic know-how make regenerative agriculture an entirely different universe.

His story starts out with him as a boy growing up on a farm with parent’s that subscribed to the Helen and Scott Nearing “Good Life.” The farming world opened up for him after moving to Tennessee to start his own farm in 1974. He had already been an organic farmer with a few years under his belt by the time he came to biodynamics. He read the Agriculture Course for the first time in the mid-70s and was impressed not only by Steiner’s approach but also by what he witnessed on neighboring organic and biodynamic farms. For his farm, to say it started with cattle would not be exactly correct, but there was a point where it became obvious that cattle were needed for many reasons, and especially to follow a biodynamic path. Jeff and his wife Debby have had more than their challenges over the years, each of which they learned from and also used biodynamic agriculture to improve what they were doing each season. All of which are described in a manner that doesn’t leave out some of the more obscure biodynamic practices such as ashing or peppering.

When he gets to the sections that are more specifically about biodynamics and its esoteric underpinnings – he explains the Agriculture Course in a manner that makes it understandable to the beginner, yet meaningful to the practiced biodynamic farmer. Here we are again treated to a presentation style that transforms topics that could be very murky into something that make absolute sense. He explains the four elements of earth, water, air and fire as they relate to root, leaf, flower and fruit/seed stages of plant growth. You begin to understand carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur and hydrogen not just in their scientific sense, but also the cosmic connections between them and how they relate to a science that many of us were taught over the years. Yet, the biodynamic preparations are described not in a pedantic “how to” style but rather with a digestible explanation of the substances, the sheaths, and the forces as they relate not just to the esoteric but to the practical side of farming. In doing so he allows one to first “look” and then “see” the full spectrum of biodynamic components in the light they are meant to be and relating them back to practical farming skills such as tillage and composting.

Barefoot Biodynamics is without a doubt, along with his other “barefoot” books, a must have for anyone interested in biodynamic farming. But more than that it brings biodynamics into a light that makes it both practical and approachable as well as magical and undeniably critical to any regenerative farm. Far from a practical “how-to” book, Barefoot Biodynamics opens the door for anyone looking for a “next level” farming, food production, and land conservation life.

This was an enjoyable and enlightening book to read. I encourage to buy a copy of this and all his books (if you haven’t already), no matter where you are in your biodynamic farming journey. And if you ever the opportunity to attend a workshop or seminar by Jeff, I strongly urge you to do so. Moreover, if you can ever attend the SE Biodynamic Conference - do it!

Lastly, MOFGA has been around a long time and they are a truly wonderful organization to be a part of (even though I am not in Maine). Join, contribute, attend, whatever it takes, they are only of the only organic organizations in the northeast that brings it all home! Thank you!

Order Jeff’s Book

Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association

Common Ground Country Fair

SE Biodynamic Conference

All soils start with a parent material that is the native geology of the bioregion where you live and farm. This geology is eons old, stretching back to the beginning of time (relatively speaking) to when the earth was formed. Over time this parent material (e.g., mountains, boulders, the earth’s mantle itself) is broken down via physical, chemical and biological means into smaller and smaller pieces we refer to as gravel, pebbles, sand, silt and clay, with a multitude of variation between each identifiable stage2 - and then eventually they combine into a soil matrix made up of various minerals, chemicals, organic matter, and life. Considered alone, these constituents are just dirt. But together these components are more than just the physical matrix of the soil, they are the magical mineral base that is the skeleton or architecture of a soil, with a future for myriad chemical, biological, and yes even more physical interactions.

While boulders and large rocks are certainly a part of our soil, they are not sufficiently broken down to grow agricultural crops; though they do support various plant, fungal and bacterial life (such as mosses and lichens). Even so, the physical forces of nature are already at work - rain, wind, heat, cold, gravity (i.e., tumbling down a hill or mountainside). These rocks and boulders won’t become soil as we know it any time soon, but they will be one day. There are myriad bacteria at work dissolving the parent material, creating fissures for rain to penetrate, cold/heat to further contract and expand the large minerals. The bacteria penetrate deeper into the rocks breaking them down into smaller constituent parts that eventually become plant available nutrients.

In time, they will become the gravel, sand, silt and clay that, depending on the parent material and its proportions, defines the physical skeleton3 of the soil to which we assign names and other attributes4. A soil’s skeleton is more than a dead substance - if you think about it soils are made up of minerals that eventually support life and our farming endeavors. When soils become deficient in certain mineral elements, then they lose some of their life-supporting capacity, while if certain elements are in excess then they may also lose some of their life-supporting capacity. In both cases, they can be damaging to the life the soil may be capable of supporting. Balance is the key!

Even though we can describe the physical characteristics of a soil, this doesn’t even begin to get into the physical nature of soil. If you think about it, those soil, components, sand, seal, clay, gravel, rocks, ledge are all made up of different minerals, which are just molecules which are just atoms that are constructed in an electronic way that can conduct energy. This is how semiconductors, batteries, cable, and fiber, optics work. And it’s because of the proper configuration of molecular mineral facilitates the conduction of energy. If this alignment doesn’t occur or occur properly, there is a disruption.

Simply put, the mineral matrix of the soil is analogous to an energy grid. Certain elements conduct electricity better than others. Iron is a good conductor of electricity, but not as good as copper, silver or gold. Yet, as an example, silver and gold are expensive so we use an amalgamation of metals along with silver to make it affordable but still effective. Meanwhile, fiber optics – which are made of glass (silica) are used for high-speed transmission of energy and information. Silica makes up most of the Earth’s crust, and you would think most of our soils, but it is present in rather minute quantities. Gold and silver as well. Copper however is much more present (at least based in soil test results). The composition of a soil is critical to its overall functioning but not the end of the story.

Consider cation exchange capacity (CEC), a very important characteristic of soils, as the ability of a soil to hang onto to certain mineral elements. If cations didn’t have a place to hang out, then they would be either lost or unavailable to the plant. And that place to hang out is on negatively charged soil particles. Cations (positively charged minerals such as calcium, potassium, and magnesium) compete with each other based on their valence – monovalent, divalent, trivalent5 are most common. And because roots, organic matter, and humus have negatively charged surfaces, they repel anions6 and attract cations. Trivalent cations can take up three spaces on a root surface, a monovalent cation can only take up one space. If you have a predominance or a disproportionate amount of high valence cations compared to low valence cations, it doesn’t allow for certain minerals to be to be retained in sufficient quantities. But valence/charge is only part of the issue. For example, cations compete with each other based on their molecular size strengthening the charge, or ability to adhere to negatively charged surfaces. All of this results in an electrical charge within the soil, known as electroconductivity7, that can be used to better understand and predict nutrient flow as well as energy flow. And energy, of course, is behind the fabric of all life, including that in our soils and that which flows into our crops, livestock, and food.

The reality is that farming requires a farmer’s involvement. And the physical nature of a soil is one place where, when working with the intrinsic nature of the soil, their involvement can be both damaging and enlivening. So understanding your soils in a manner beyond the numbers is critical. Just as too much plowing and disking can be damaging, too little can limit their improvement. The same goes for fertilizers, lime, biological inoculants, compost, and manure. To know your soil is to know your farm and grow the best crops possible. The single best tool a farmer or agronomist has is their eyes, nose, and hands. Well, maybe a good shovel, too.

This was a particularly difficult newsletter to wrap up since there is more to be said both in terms of width and depth of topics. The bottom line is that while we may look at the physical structure of a soil as a “dead” material - and from a biodynamic perspective it may be, especially abused and mismanaged soils - it is very much alive in the sense that there is an energy that flows through the soil the precedes the aliveness that is achieves when air, light, water, and life reach it. Minerals aspires to be plant life, which aspires to be animal life which aspires to be human life, reaching a zenith of spiritual evolution of sorts. Not that minerals sit around discussing their botanical future, but rather with each stage life achieves new level of awareness. As Steiner said, oxygen and nitrogen are dead elements until they pass through a living organism. And when these living elements enter the soil profile they combine with the ethereal energy (electrical conductivity) and biological life to enliven the whole system. So in effect, a soil without the charged physical structure can’t support life as we know it, which means we can’t grow nutrient-dense food. Life begets life.

Don’t ignore the numbers or the scientific descriptions, but don’t limit yourself there either. There’s a magic in soils that very few sciences ever truly explore.

Next up: Soil Chemistry