painting energy in the moonlight

The eve of the November full moon. Moonlight pouring down over the hillside. Silhouetted figures against verdant fields of shaggy kale, bright basil, fennel tops. Painting energy in the moonlight.

Ngeringa Biodynamic Farm is situated directly opposite Mount Barker summit, on land which has been certified biodynamic for more than 20 years. The founders, Erinn and Janet Klein, are one of Australia’s original biodynamic winegrowing pioneers, as well as the driving force behind the ecologically-minded, flavourful and robust vegetables that are at the heart of Ngeringa’s farm which will be having a rest shortly. 

As part of our regular Simple Market team events, we though it would be great to bring our team up to Ngeringa so they could see the magnificent farm. We were fortunate enough to be invited to Ngeringa to help Erinn apply the biodynamic Prep 500 solution to all the vegetable fields at Ngeringa’s property. 

Prep 500 is one of Rudolf Steiner’s original biodynamic preparations, and it involves using cow manure which has been placed in a cow horn, buried under a field at Autumn Equinox and left over winter. The cow horn is retrieved, and the manure is added to a large drum of water, which is stirred vigorously for 30 seconds at a time in each direction to create a vortex, which mimics the natural wave form of water and charges the water with potency. After an hour of vigorous stirring, the team helped to apply the mixture to the field, when the moisture content of the leaves is at its greatest to allow for maximum foliage absorption. 

So it came to be that the team found themselves applying the Prep 500 in fields under moonlight in broad, swinging motions which mimicked the brushstrokes of a paint brush on canvas. This ritual was so much more than fertiliser application - it was intended to imbue the growing fields with life force, as they were met with the combination of cosmic energy from the full moon and human energy from the intention which flowed out of each of us. In this timeless ritual, we were re-syncing our bodies with the natural biorhythms of the Earth all around us - the diurnal rhythm of day fading into night, the lunar cycle of the full moon waxing to its zenith, and the seasonal rhythm of late spring. 

It is this human-meets-cosmos element that makes biodynamic farming so unique, and supercharges biodynamic produce with vitality and life force. Check out this video that captured the evening.

This week from Ngeringa we have:

Sweet Pink Sémillon Grapes

Summer Mixed Salad Bags

Sugarloaf Cabbage

Chicory Bunches

Rainbow Chard

Tuscan & Curly Kale

Leek Bunches

Pak Choi

Cos Lettuce

Celery

Eggplants

Heirloom Tomatoes

Loose Cherry Tomatoes

Parsley

Red Kuri Pumpkins

Red Onions