An Evening with Allen Gorthy (June 14th, 2023)

'Evenings with Allen'

A chance to talk through your process using biodynamic practices in your garden. 

Join me, Katrina Wolff (Blue Borage) and Allen Gorthy (independent biodynamic consultant) to work through a series of questions relating to applying biodynamic principles in a garden setting. 

Allen will share his perspectives of what's interesting in the night sky right now in New Zealand - what's easily visible, and what to look out for in the month ahead. 

About Allen:

I'd really rather you just met Allen for yourself! 

Here's a video introduction we recorded on Wednesday 15th March 2023, where Allen introduces himself, talks a little about the night sky, and then Katrina asks her current questions about a batch of BD500 she's just dug up:

Allen has been my go-to mentor since starting Blue Borage in 2018, and these Zoom calls will include lots of questions about the projects I'm working on as I continue to make and use more and more of the biodynamic preparations from scratch. The way I work as Blue Borage is very reflective, and I enjoy bouncing ideas around as I reach my own interpretations of how the remedies work, and how to adapt things to specific situations. 

In general, we'll be using the Weleda 'Biodynamic Gardening' book as a reference, mostly because it has such clear photography with step-by-step instructions for all the preparations. 

This is for you if: 

• you don't have a local biodynamic mentor and would like to dig a little deeper into understanding how it all works. 
• you have niggly questions but aren't sure what the best approach is to resolving the issues, be they pests, diseases, or something else relating to your soil, plants, or ecosystem. 
• you enjoy discussing biodynamics and particularly like the way observation plays into our approach as gardeners, growers and farmers. 
• you'll particularly enjoy Allen's perspectives if you have an interest in Astrology or Astronomy and want to put that star wisdom into your gardening. 

This is not for you if: 

• you don't enjoy talking about the subtle nuances of your garden. It's can be hard to put our thoughts into language - this is a space to have a go, even if it's a bit clumsy. 
• you want instant solutions. Biodynamics is pretty miraculous, but the best results are those that come about from patient observation, experimentation, and a certain degree of intuition. Both Katrina and Allen work as consultants to help people overcome challenges with their gardens, but the Zoom calls are not set up for the 'quick fix' approach. 
• you expect 1:1 attention for the full hour. Whatever the size of the group, the time will be divided between everyone's questions, and there could be common challenges that get merged into one discussion. Your question may not get the full amount of time you expect at each Zoom call, but there's an intention that everyone will listen to other people's questions with interest.