As DeLoach Vineyards celebrates 30 years of winemaking in the Russian River Valley, we look to the future with a new focus on sustainable farming practices.  The winery has committed itself to the application of biodynamics, beginning with the conversion of 22 acres of estate vineyards from sustainable to biodynamic farming methods. The complete program will involve the use of cover crops, the application of biodynamic specific preparations and composts, and the maintenance of biodiversity within the estate. In the holistic spirit of biodynamics, we will also continue to cultivate a sense of community with our neighbors, growers, and natural surroundings. 

Biodynamic farming is the world's oldest system of alternative agriculture.  It was developed in Germany in the early twentieth century as a reaction to the invention and implementation of the Haber process, which allows ammonia to be produced from atmospheric nitrogen.  The ammonia can then be used to manufacture synthetic fertilizer.  Prior to the Haber process and the resultant invention of synthetic fertilizer, farms needed animals to provide the nitrogen-rich compost that fertilized their crops.  As the use of synthetic fertilizer became more and more widespread throughout Germany, and animal husbandry became decoupled from the agricultural process, some farmers started to recognize a decline in food quality and asked Rudolph Steiner for guidance.

A philosopher, theologian, educator and agricultural expert, among other things, Austrian Rudolph Steiner responded to the farmer's request for guidance with a series of eight lectures, delivered in 1924, that became the basis of today's biodynamic farming movement.  While it embraces many of the same principles as organic farming, such as eliminating the use of chemicals, biodynamics is a more holistic approach.  The overall approach behind biodynamics is to treat the farm as a self-sustaining, living entity that avoids the cycle of dependence on fertilizers and pesticides by maintaining a balanced, diverse ecology.  It differs from organic farming in three distinct ways:  it treats the farm as a closed, self-contained eco-system and minimizes the use of any external inputs; it recognizes that cosmic rhythms influence life and utilizes the lunar calendar to guide practices from the vineyard to the cellar; and it utilizes specific natural preparations to improve the health and vitality of the soil.

Converting 22 acres of vineyards to biodynamic farming methods requires time and patience. Before planting the new vineyard at DeLoach, we are enriching the soil by letting the land lay fallow through two cover crop successions and applying specific biodynamic compost and preparations.

We will apply horn manure and barrel compost in the fall in order to introduce more beneficial microorganisms into the soil. Horn manure is the most widely-recognized symbol of biodynamics; Steiner named it prep 500 in his original lecture.  To make it, we bury a cow horn filled with cow manure into the vineyards and let it remain over winter.  The horn provides nutrients to microorganisms in the soil that turn the manure into compost.  The finished compost is essentially a "bug in a jug", or soil inoculum, that contains microorganisms naturally adapted to the farm's soil since that is where the compost is made.  The barrel compost we will use was started in March 2005, and is a mixture of organic barley straw and clean cow manure, containing no hormones or other chemicals.  Ideally, the manure would have come from cows grazing on our own land.  However, since we do not have enough land to support both cows and grapevines, we acquire manure from local dairies, which recycles the nutrients from the manure back into the local eco-system rather than allowing it to contaminate local water sources.  After the 100 tons of manure and straw were mixed up and placed in a large windrow, the pile was tiled with straw to hold in moisture.  Each week, the temperature was monitored using a 3-foot-long thermometer.  After the temperature peaked, the biodynamic preparations were added and the composting process allowed to finish.

The first cover crop we planted is safflower. While safflower is a monoculture, which does not seem very biodynamic, it helps to dry the very sticky clay soil that surrounds the winery.  The safflower roots will penetrate deep within the soil and draw water up, effectively drying the soil and creating a perfect level of moisture.  This will allow us to "rip" the soil, a process that mixes and lightens the soil.  Once this is complete, we will mix a combination of rock phosphate (a natural slow release form of phosphorus), lime (to raise the soil pH and adjust the calcium to magnesium ratio), and biodynamically-made compost into the soil in order to create a balanced, well-aerated soil that will stimulate microbial diversity and help our cover crops and grapevines thrive.

In the fall, we will once again apply the horn manure preparation - this time to the bare soil - to inoculate it with a host of beneficial microorganisms that will allow nutrients to cycle and encourage the formation of good soil structure.  Then we will plant a winter cover crop, which is a blend that will include barley, some nitrogen fixers such as vetch, and indicator plants.  The indicator plants are plants that either thrive or die under different ecological conditions.  Like a canary in a coal mine, the indicator plants will help us understand what is going on in the underlying soil.  For example, perennial ryegrass thrives under wet conditions - thus, areas of the vineyard where this is the predominant plant may indicate poor drainage.  Taking our time and following these biodynamic precepts will allow us to correct any potential soil problems before we plant the vines.

Finally, after 2 different cover crop successions over the course of a year and a  half, we will replant the vineyard with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay vines - in accordance with the biodynamic calendar, of course. In the future, we will continue to plant a variety of cover crops alongside the vines to encourage beneficial insects and microbial diversity, and enhance soil fertility and structure.

Per the guidelines of biodynamics, we are as attentive to the other aspects of our property and the community as we are to our vines. We maintain and encourage biodiversity on the winery estate with chickens, koi fish, a thriving bee hive, and a diverse vegetable and herb garden that includes the medicinal plants we use in the compost preparations such as yarrow, chamomile and dandelion.  Additionally, our organic garden produces food for our friends and employees year round.  During harvest, the entire harvest team takes time to share in a lunch prepared by our chef using fresh produce from the winery's garden.  Once a month friends, growers, fellow winemakers and their families are invited to the winery guesthouse to share dinner and taste wine from all over the Russian River Valley.  At the end of the day, biodynamics is about quality of life.