Biodynamic Farming At Horn Creek Hemp Farms
- Paul Murdoch
- October 8, 2020
- No Comments
Our passion for the hemp plant runs deep. We believe in the health benefits it can provide. The goal is to grow the best hemp flower possible so we’re able to extract the best possible CBD. This means we embrace biodynamic farming with our plants, creating a sustainable and organic farm yielding the best crops possible.
This all sounds great when you talk about it, but there is a lot more than meets the eye with this approach to farming. It takes tremendous dedication, time, and resources to make sure the best crops possible are harvested.
So what exactly does it take to have a farm that is self-sustaining and that yields organic crops?
What Is Biodynamic Farming?
At its core, the idea behind biodynamic farming is a sustainable approach. This happens by looking at the entire farm as a single organism, working together to grow organic crops, where everything is interconnected and plays a role in the success of the plants.
This is not a new idea. In fact, it was nearly 100 years ago in Europe when this theory of farming really started to take hold.
People across Europe were growing crops at a higher rate than ever before. And to keep up with the increase they were using chemicals to help sustain those crops. After a few years, those farmers started to see the effects chemicals can have on the sustainability and lifespan of a farm. They needed a more sustainable solution.
Enter, Rudolf Steiner.
In a nutshell, Steiner’s philosophy was to treat the farm as a living organism, allowing for the soil, plants, animals, and humans to work together to create sustainable, organic crops. The idea being, all four of those elements play a role in the health and vitality of the farm. By cutting out chemicals and using natural alternatives, the farm can thrive.
This is an idea and practice still in place today. In fact, more than ever, people are interested in where the products they buy are coming from and how they are created. Sustainable practices are becoming more prominent because of this way of thinking.
A major tenet of biodynamic farming is to use the resources on your farm as a priority. We try not to bring new elements to the farm if we can avoid it. The natural elements thrived here for a reason and to replace them or add new items may be upsetting a natural balance.
How We Put Biodynamic Farming Into Practice
Okay, so what does this look like when it’s put into place on a farm?
The soil is one of the first things we want to make sure is taken care of. The soil is the foundation of everything on the farm. If you care for the soil your plants will naturally benefit. If you focus only on the plants, you may not be providing your soil what it needs for longevity. Hemp plants extract a great deal from the soil so one must take care to be sure the soil rejuvenates.
We are lucky to be located in a former lake bed, here in the beautiful Rogue Valley of Southern Oregon. Whitney is our plant whisperer. She has an extraordinary talent in knowing what they need. She is able to provide the hemp plants with some of the best natural nutrition they could possibly have.
And because we want to make sure that we are keeping the plants alive sustainably, we also use bugs to make sure our hemp plants stay safe. Yep!—by nurturing a resident population of predator bugs we are able to keep down the population of other problem bugs that are natural predators to the hemp.
And on top of all of that, we make sure we’re using natural suppressants to take down any other predators the plants may face. We use a kelp and subtilis mixture to fight off any harmful fungus and prevent rotting.
All of it’s done in an effort to make sure the farm stays sustainable and healthy.
As the caretakers of the land, we make sure to do our part to be sustainable. What we do is our passion. It’s a part of who we are and we take great pride in making sure we’re doing our part to keep the farm healthy for years to come.
