Maria Thun´s biodynamic calendar of the cosmos and agriculture

A German woman, Maria Thun, (1922 – 2012) devoted her life to the study of the effects of the cosmos on farming practice.

Her father owned a small farm and she was involved in caring for it from childhood.”

In the early 1940s she met her future husband, Walter Thun, who introduced her to various farmers who were trying to put into practice Steiner’s ideas on biodynamic farming. 

Fascinated by these deep insights into agriculture, she attended an introductory course at the Biodynamic Research Institute of Darmstadt.

Maria Thun´s calendar is one of the guidelines used by biodynamic farmers today”.

“On the basis of this knowledge, she decided to perpetuate Rudolf Steiner´s approach to Biodynamic farming

In 1924 the Austrian philosopher proposed the principles for this farming practice, based on a holistic, systemic and pure vision of agriculture, which, takes into account among other factors, the moon, stars and planets.

Thus, decisions about when to plant, prune, and harvest should be made according to patterns of lunar and cosmic rhythms.

Maria Thun´s Biodynamic Calendar classifies the days according to the root, leaf, flower and fruit.”

Rudolf Steiner had pointed out the connection between cosmic influence and plant growth. From this clue, Maria Thun began to study the astrological calendar of the Goetheanum (at the centre of Steiner´s philosophy) and discovered that every two or three days the moon passed into a different constellation of the zodiac. This led her to study whether the crop cycle could be affected by the astrological calendar.

On this basis, from the beginning of 1950, Maria Thun decided to submit biodynamic principles to controlled trials on her farm on the outskirts of Darmstadt, Germany.

She experimented empirically by planting various plant species when the moon was in different constellations. The result of these variables was different crop shapes and sizes depending on the influence of the cosmos.

Thun discovered that every two or three days the moon passed into a different constellation of the zodiac.”

Over years of research, Thun concluded that:

• Root crops are optimal if sown when the moon is passing through constellations associated with the earth element.
• Leaf crops, such as Moringa, thrive better when the moon is associated with water signs.
• Flowering plants combine especially well with air signs
• Fruits grew better with fire signs

In 1962, Maria Thun began producing a series of annual sowing and planting calendars, and later established the principles of her methods in Gardening for Life: the Biodynamic Way.

Maria Thun´s Biodynamic Calendar classifies the days according to root, leaf, flower and fruit. It advises carrying out a specific farming practice on each date, depending on the farmer´s objective and in which part of the Earth´s hemisphere the Farm is located.

Maria’s son, Matthias Thun, gives continuity to his mother´s work.