Barrel compost (Maria Thun)
A concentrate of the preparations to kick-start soil life.
Barrel compost, or Maria Thun’s concentrated compost preparation (CPP), combines manure, ground eggshell and basalt, fermented with the 502–507 compost preparations.
It serves as a practical concentrate that gathers the effect of the preparations into a form that is easy to dynamise and spray on the soil. It is widely used to “seed” soil life in conversions and as a complement to compost and 500.
Effort
Medium — production and occasional applications.
Cost
Low — small quantities.
Time to result
Gradual complement to soil life.
What it advances
Contribution by goal — click through for detail and metrics.
It distributes the compost preparations in concentrated form on the soil, to stimulate biology — useful especially in conversions.
It gathers the Demeter-required preparations into a documentable, traceable application.
It ties into on-farm preparation-making and the farm’s fertility cycle.
How it works
Dynamised in water and sprayed on the soil, it distributes the compost preparations in concentrated form to stimulate biology.
How to apply
- 1Make or obtain the barrel compost (CPP).
- 2Dynamise in water.
- 3Spray on the soil, useful in conversions.
- 4Log the applications.
What to measure
Frequently asked
How is it different from 500?
500 is horn manure; barrel compost concentrates the compost preparations (502–507) into a sprayable form, used as a complement.
Is it useful in conversion?
Yes — it is widely used to speed up the establishment of soil life at the start of a biodynamic conversion.
Related reading
Related practices
How GrapeFlow helps
Plan and document this practice by plot, with an audit-ready history for Demeter certification.
Preparations & application log
Every application of 500, 501 and the other preparations logged by plot, date and rate — the history the Demeter audit asks for.
Electronic field notebook
All operations — compost, cover, animals, dynamisation — logged by plot, ready for certification.
Biodynamic calendar
Root, leaf, flower and fruit days and the lunar phases in GrapeFlow, to plan preparation applications and work in step with the calendar.