Horn manure (500)
Biodynamics’ signature soil preparation.
Horn manure (preparation 500) is the central soil preparation of biodynamics. Cow manure is fermented inside a horn buried over winter, producing a dark humus that is then dynamised in water and sprayed onto the soil.
It is applied in small quantity, typically at the end of the day and on root days, to stimulate biological activity, structure and rooting. In biodynamic practice it is the founding gesture of soil work and a requirement of Demeter certification.
Effort
Medium — dynamising and applying a few times a year.
Cost
Low — small quantities; can be made on the farm.
Time to result
Gradual soil effect over several seasons.
What it advances
Contribution by goal — click through for detail and metrics.
Soil vitality
It is biodynamics’ central soil preparation, applied to stimulate biological activity, structure and rooting.
Time horizon: Several seasons
What to measure for this pairing
Demeter certification
Using 500 is mandatory under Demeter; each application must be logged and traceable for the audit.
Time horizon: Ongoing
What to measure for this pairing
Plant vitality & resilience
By favouring rooting and a living soil, practitioners associate 500 with more balanced vines.
Time horizon: Several seasons
What to measure for this pairing
Biodiversity & farm organism
Making 500 on the farm ties into the animal cycle and the self-sufficient farm-organism concept.
Time horizon: 1–3 seasons
What to measure for this pairing
How it works
The preparation is dynamised in water (alternating stirring) and sprayed in coarse droplets onto the soil; practitioners use it to stimulate biology and rooting.
How to apply
- 1Dynamise the preparation in warm water for an hour.
- 2Spray onto the soil at day’s end, in coarse droplets.
- 3Favour root days and the descending calendar phase.
- 4Log rate, plot and date for certification.
What to measure
Frequently asked
When is 500 applied?
Typically in the late afternoon/evening, on root days and descending-sap phases, over moist soil — a few times a year.
Can I make 500 on my own farm?
Yes — many growers bury the horns and make the preparation, which reinforces the self-sufficiency Demeter values. Ready-made preparation can also be bought.
Related reading
Related practices
How GrapeFlow helps
Plan and document this practice by plot, with an audit-ready history for Demeter certification.
Phenology & field observations
Budbreak, flowering, veraison and everyday occurrences logged by plot and date — the vineyard’s real calendar, the one any work programme is read against.
Weather & spray windows
A 7-day per-plot forecast with the windows where applying makes sense — wind, rain and humidity decide the hour as much as the calendar does.
Electronic field notebook (Portugal)
In Portugal, every operation — compost, cover, animals, treatments — logged by plot, with the DGADR notebook filling itself and staying certification-ready.
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