Biodynamic wines are those made from grapes that have been biodynamically-harvested. Biodynamic farming is very similar to organic farming, but with very specific methods and preparations to foster soil health. Like organic wines, choosing a biodynamic wine really comes down to personal philosophy. Although, biodynamic wines may be more expensive. (Friday May 17th, 2019 — Real Simple - New York, New York USA)

Basking sharks are being spotted off the coast of Southern California in numbers not seen for decades. ... A hundred years ago, basking sharks were a frequent sight in California’s oceans, but around 1960 they all but disappeared. (Thursday May 16th, 2019 — Care2.com - USA)

The owner of Château d’Yquem, Bernard Arnault, announced this week that the benchmark Sauternes property was to undergo conversion to biodynamic viticulture and St Emilion property Cheval Blanc may follow suit. (Wednesday May 15th, 2019 — The Drinks Business )

A recent exhibition of the works of Swedish artist Hilma af Klint at the Guggenheim Museum in New York is re-calibrating the ladders of abstract expressionism in the art world. (Saturday May 11th, 2019 — The Hindu )

Few people would want to document one of the most stressful and humbling periods of their life, but over the last eight years, Chester and a crew of interns and professional movie makers, captured the journey in gorgeous, unflinching detail in “The Biggest Little Farm,” the award-winning documentary opening in theaters May 10. (Friday May 10th, 2019 — Los Angeles Times - Los Angeles, California USA)

Coal power’s share of British electricity generation has been dropping sharply in recent years — from nearly 40% in 2012 to a mere 5% last year. Two years ago, the country committed to stop generating electricity with coal entirely by 2025. (Wednesday May 8th, 2019 — Think Progress - USA)

California's Healthy Soils initiative is now in its third year, and it's designed to be part of the state's climate strategy. A state report finds that farms and forests could absorb as much as 20 percent of California's current level of emissions. "I think there's great potential for agriculture to play a really important role" in reaching the state's climate goals, says Kate Scow, professor of soil microbial ecology at the University of California, Davis. (Thursday May 2nd, 2019 — NPR.org - USA)

Over the next several years, the Salgados and the Instituto Terra team slowly but surely rebuilt the 1,754-acre forest, transforming it from a barren plot of land to a tropical paradise. (Tuesday April 23rd, 2019 — mymodernmet.com )

In Matamorisca, they intervened in 17 barren hectares owned by the regional government and peppered them with their signature device: a biodegradable cardboard donut they call the cocoon which can hold 25 litres of water underground to aid a seedling’s first year. Around 16,000 oaks, ashes, walnuts, rowans, and whitebeams were planted in May 2018, and the company reports that 96% of them survived that year’s scorching summer without extra irrigation, a critical milestone for a young tree. (Wednesday March 20th, 2019 — BBC Online - UK)

Alois Lageder is a 54 hectare (135 acre) family winery in the stunning Alto Adige region of Italy. Here, every function is carried out biodynamically. "Quality is the fruit of many individual, mostly small, often unpredictable details. By paying close attention we can recognize these hidden connections," says a video produced by the family. (Friday March 15th, 2019 — Forbes - New York, New York USA)

On the occasion of the exhibition Hilma af Klint: Paintings for the Future, see the U.S. Premiere of an opera about Swedish artist Hilma af Klint, inspired by her unique body of spiritual works. (Friday March 15th, 2019 — Broadway World - New York, New York USA)

Bonterra Organic Vineyards, the US’ leading organically farmed wine, has completed a landmark soil study highlighting the benefits of organic and Biodynamic® farming on soil health. ... Organic and Biodynamic vineyards store 9-12% more organic carbon. (Thursday March 14th, 2019 — Sustainable Brands - )

Voelkel tells me that in northern Germany during a recent year, a severe drought and heat wave from April to September devastated crops that were conventionally farmed. The organic and the biodynamic farms survived. (Wednesday March 13th, 2019 — San Diego Reader - San Diego, California USA)

Biodynamic Wine 101: How It’s Made and How to Buy It Biodynamic wine uses what’s called bio-diverse farming principles, little human intervention into the winemaking process, and a distinct set of traditions and superstitions that aim to tell the story of the region using the wine itself as the medium. Similar to organic wine, biodynamic wine is better for the environment. (Monday March 11th, 2019 — AskMen - )

He had been farming conventionally using pesticides, herbicides and fertilisers, but the course taught him how to partner with nature instead of trying to control it. It has turned around his farm's capacity to deal with drought and he currently has plenty of water and grass for his livestock even as the drought in NSW intensifies. "We haven't fed for 15 years [because] we measure how much grass we have, we know how many animals we have to eat that grass and a very simple calculation gives us the amount of time that that grass is available before it runs out," Mr Arnott said. (Saturday March 9th, 2019 — ABC Rural - Australia)

80 companies out of the 215 wineries who attended Buy Wine were organic or biodynamic wine producers. That’s almost 40 per cent, which shows that we are extremely aware of the environmental impact of our production. (Thursday March 7th, 2019 — The Florentine - Florence, Italy)

One of the week’s cool discoveries was in Edna Valley, a coastal region in San Luis Obispo, which I visited with winemaker Gina Hildebrand. Her brand-new label, launched in 2017, is called Lady of the Sunshine. Unlike most upstart California winemakers, who buy fruit from vineyards that they don’t farm, Hildebrand is now the caretaker of a small, 6.5-acre Edna Valley parcel, essentially a backyard vineyard, called Chene. (Thursday March 7th, 2019 — San Francisco Chronicle - San Francisco, California USA)

In an area of 200 acres, Jayachandran’s Demeter-certified (one of the leading organic agriculture certifiers) farm fuses conventional natural farming methods, biodynamic cultivation and new technologies to make farming sustainable and profitable. (Tuesday March 5th, 2019 — The Better India )

NOTHING on the Baker family’s 60-hectare farm at Numurkah is done conventionally. Take Gary and Sue’s farming method: biodynamic, a system developed in the 1920s by Austrian Rudolph Steiner, which emphasises the relationship between soil, plants, animals and the lunar and solar systems. (Tuesday March 5th, 2019 — The Weekly Times - Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)

Beginning in the fall of eighth grade, the soon-to-be graduates are given a challenge to pick a topic, find a mentor, arrange their own weekly meetings and give periodic updates to their peers and teachers. The private South Whidbey school has 125 students in grades K-8. (Tuesday March 5th, 2019 — South Whidbey Record - Whidbey Island, Washington USA)