Fall Biodynamic Workshop, October 15–18, 2026 · Accomac, Virginia

Dear Friends,

When we make biodynamic preparations together, our participation inaugurates something new.

We begin with humble beginnings: manure from cows, but through the devotional work of our hands and their incubation within the earth over winter, something new arises.

Externally, these original substances are transformed, but inwardly, our imaginations take on a new shape. Nowhere in nature would manure accidentally find its way into a horn, bury itself over winter, or dig itself up and distribute its contents over large acreages.

The biodynamic preparations express an entirely human way of being in the world; the essence of Geisteswissenschaft ("spiritual-science") is not merely the progress of science, but the creative, participatory life of the humanities. Not a set of beliefs, anthroposophy is an experience: namely, the growing consciousness of one's own humanity. What, beyond the arts and humanities, brings us to the encounter with our humanity? The developing craft of the preparations is still in its relative infancy -- barely a century old -- and yet embodies an impulse towards the further humanization (or re-humanization) of agriculture.

How many times in my life will I grow tomatoes? A few dozen seasons if I'm fortunate. What a preciously fleeting thing! Who could become an expert in such a timeline?

Making the biodynamic preparations takes lifetimes to perfect, and we have had only a few generations since their inception. We follow giants, but must also act in ways that will inspire greater development. I am confident that within my lifetime I will see bright beacons of biodynamics arise that exceed all my own efforts, using them as a point of departure. It will be an honor to be part of the past of such an impulse. Imagine the vast tradition that goes into making cheese or wine in many countries. For biodynamics, we are still on the frontier of its development.

A biodynamic tradition as such is still forming, but any living version of biodynamics will incorporate certain qualities. What it will be will grow not merely out of loyalty to the first (or the latest), but along the lines of those who can maintain continuity with the past and remain open to future developments. This is why, for me, so much of what I do is always extremely cautious innovation, seeking to preserve all the best of the previous generation of pioneering research without excluding anything. Innovations that grow organically should almost be imperceptible, like each growth ring in a tree.

As Henry David Thoreau writes,

“Their conservative heartwood, in which no sap longer flows, does not impoverish their growth, but is a firm column to support it; and when their expanding trunks no longer require it, it utterly decays. Their conservatism is a dead but solid heart-wood, which is the pivot and firm column of support to all this growth, appropriating nothing to itself, but forever by its support assisting to extend the area of their radicalism.” (January 24, 1856)

I'd like to invite you to join us at Perennial Roots Farm in Accomac, Virginia, for JPI's Fall Biodynamic Workshop this October. The main workshop runs Friday–Sunday, October 16–18, 2026, with an optional pre-conference workday on Thursday, October 15.

We will tour the farm, make barrel compound, fill cow horns with manure, and explore biodynamics through practical work and conversation. I'll be sharing a few esoteric lectures as we work, and there will be meals together, an evening cookout, and time to get to know the people whose hands are working beside yours.

One of JPI's primary purposes is to help you make these preparations for yourself, in your own community. In the regenerated future, of which JPI is but a small contributor, these special remedies are being made across the world where fewer animals are needed to grow healthier food for more people on less land.

I hope you can join us.

Warmly,

Stewart Lundy

Executive Director,
The Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, Inc.