Homeopathy for Farm and Garden
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Vaikunthanath Das Kaviraj
Homeopathy
for Farm and Garden
Plant and Soil Problems
and their Remedies
Vaikunthanath Das Kaviraj
Homeopathy for Farm and Garden
Second revised edition 2011
Third revised edition 2012
Fourth revised edition 2015
ISBN 978-3-95582-194-4
Cover picture © Carlos Beseke
Narayana Verlag, Blumenplatz 2, 79400 Kandern, Germany
Tel.: +49 7626 974970-0
E-Mail: info@narayana-verlag.com www.narayana-verlag.com
© 2012 Narayana Verlag GmbH
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording, nor may it be stored in any retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise be copied for private or public use without the written permission of the publisher.
The publisher makes no representation, expressed or implied, with regard to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and cannot accept any legal responsibility or liability for any errors or omissions that may be made.
“This supreme science was thus received through
the chain of disciplic succession and the saintly kings
understood it that way.”
(K. D. Vyasa, Bhagavad Gita 4/2)
“Oh good soul, does not a thing,
when applied therapeutically, cure a disease
which was caused by the very same thing?”
(K.D. Vyasa, Bhagavad Purana 1/5/33)
“A crank is a man with a new idea – until it catches on.”
(Mark Twain)
Preface
1. Foreword
Agribusiness and Toxicity
A Quantum Leap
Consciousness: the Missing Link
2. Introduction to the Second Edition
3. Foundation
Easily Understandable Homeopathic Principles
A. The Cause and Cure of Disease
B. The Law of Similars
C. The Single Remedy
D. The Minimum Dose
E. Approach to Diagnosis
F. The Totality of Symptoms
G. Summary of the Homeopathic Treatment Method
New Remedies for Homeopathic Plant Treatment
A. Remedies Prepared from Agricultural Chemicals
B. Parasite, Pest and Companion Plant Remedies
C. Special Remedy Preparation Methods
Suppression and New Plant Diseases
The Role of Experiments and Experience
A. Homeopathy and the Experimental Approach
B. Gaining Experience in Homeopathic Treatment
C. Types of Experience
D. Old Wisdom and a New Future
Small is Beautiful
Genes and Feedback Loops
The Powerful Placebo
Rules of Repetition
4. Agriculture
The Commercial Method
The Natural Method
The Chemical Method
Genetic Engineering and Biological Control
Modern Farming Methods
A Real Alternative
5. Soil Structure
Soil Horizons
Elimination
Organic Matter
Ecosystems
Deposition
Nutrients
Nutrients in Agriculture
6. Plant Structure and Tissues
7. Using Homeopathic Remedies
8. Treatment of Plant Diseases Arising from Nutrient Imbalances
Ammonium carbonicum
Borax
Calcarea carbonica
Calcarea fluorica
Calcarea phosphorica
Cuprum metallicum
Cuprum sulphuricum
Ferrum metallicum
Ferrum phosphoricum
Ferrum sulphuricum
Kalium carbonicum
Kalium muriaticum
Kalium nitricum
Kalium permanganatum
Kalium phosphoricum
Kalium sulphuricum
Magnesium carbonicum
Magnesium muriaticum
Magnesium phosphoricum
Magnesium sulphuricum
Manganum
Molybdenium
Natrium carbonicum
Natrium muriaticum
Natrium phosphoricum
Natrium sulphuricum
Nitricum acidum
Phosphorus
Silicea
Sulphur
Urea
Zincum metallicum
9. Companion Plants as Homeopathic Remedies
Allium cepa
Hyssopus officinalis
Mentha viridis/piperita/sativa spp.
Tropaeolum majus
Ocimum spp. minimum/basilicum
Ricinus communis
Salvia officinalis
Sambucus nigra
Satureia hortensis
10. Plant Pests
10.1 General Insect Remedies
General Remedies
A. Latrodectus spp. katipo/hasselti/mactans
B. Porcellio and Oniscus spp.
C. Tarentula hispanica/cubensis
D. Theridion
Treatment of Crucifers (Cruciferae/Brassicaceae)
A. Mentha viridis/piperita and similar spp.
B. Bacillus thuringiensis
C. Pyrethrum
D. Salvia officinalis
E. Hyssopus officinalis
Treatment of Cucurbits (Cucurbitaceae)
A. Thuja occidentalis
B. Bufo
Treatment of True Grasses (Gramineae/Poaceae)
Viburnum opulus
Treatment of Pulses (Leguminosae/Fabaceae)
Satureia hortensis
Treatment of Nightshades (Solanaceae)
Sambucus nigra
10.2 Remedies for Aphids and Scale Insects
Treatment of Crucifers (Cruciferae/Brassicaceae)
A. Aphidius spp.
B. Chrysopidae spp.
C. Syrphid larva
Treatment of Cucurbits (Cucurbitaceae)
A. Coccinella septempunctata
B. Coccus cacti
Treatment of Nightshades (Solanaceae)
Tropaeolum majus
10.3 Remedies for Beetles
Treatment of Nightshades (Solanaceae)
Cantharis
10.4 Remedies for Whitefly and Flies
General Remedies
Encarsia formosa
10.5 Remedies for Caterpillars
Treatment of Crucifers (Cruciferae/Brassicaceae)
Bombyx processionea
Treatment of Pulses (Leguminosae/Fabaceae)
Camphora
10.6 Remedies for Nematodes and other Worms
Treatment of Roses (Rosaceae)
Tanacetum vulgare
Treatment of Mints (Labiatae/Lamiaceae)
Teucrium marum
10.7 Remedies for Mites
Treatment of Crucifers (Cruceiferae/Brassicaceae)
A. Amblyseius spp. cucumeris/californicus/mackenzie
B. Bovista
C. Ricinus communis
D. Trombidium muscae domesticae
10.8 Remedies for Snails and Slugs
Treatment of All Plant Types
A. Helix tosta
B. Rumina decollata
C. Hyposmocoma molluscivora
D. Leucochloridium paradoxum
E. Absinthium
F. Quassia
11. Bacterial, Viral and Fungal Diseases
A. Nutrition and Fertilisers and Organic Practices
B. Germ theory
C. Fungi
Treatment of Asters, Daisies, Sunflowers (Asteraceae/Compositae)
Ferrum sulphuricum
Treatment of Cucurbits (Cucurbitaceae)
A. Ferrum metallicum
B. Ferrum phosphoricum
Treatment of True Grasses (Gramineae/Poaceae)
A. Aconitum napellus
B. Secale cornutum
C. Ustilago maydis
D. Berberis vulgaris
E. Belladonna
Treatment of Mints (Labiatae/Lamiaceae)
Lacticum acidum
Treatment of Nightshades (Solanaceae)
Ocimum minimum/basilicum
Treatment of Pulses (Leguminosae/Poaceae)
A. Aconitum napellus
B. Chamomilla
Treatment of Roses (Rosaceae)
A. Lapis albus
B. Belladonna
C. Natrium salicylicum
D. Salicylicum acidum
E. Allium cepa
Treatment of Grapevines (Vitaceae)
A. Hyssopus officinalis
B. Valeriana officinalis
12. Injuries
Arnica montana
Calendula
Cantharis
Carbo vegetabilis
Magnesium carbonicum
Silicea
13. Weeds & Allelopathy
14. Weed Remedies
Athyrium filix-femina
Foeniculum sativum
Ruta graveolens
Silicea
Tingis cardui
Vaccinium myrtillus
Publisher´s Note
15. The Repertory
Index of Remedies and Nutrients
Index of Pests and Diseases
List of Abbreviations
Bibliography
Images
Preface
With this book Vaikunthanath Das Kaviraj has pioneered a radically new method of pest control for plants. Making use of his extensive experience as a homeopath, he has been able to draw parallels between humans and plants, so enabling him to transfer his knowledge to the treatment of plants. The results have been astonishing, encouraging him to undertake further studies and research in this area: this book is the fruit of his exciting and innovative work. He has been able to find suitable remedies for many problems in agriculture, so making it feasible for farmers to use considerably reduced or even zero input of herbicides and insecticides.
The result is that the health of the plant organisms is evidently strengthened and the plants become “immune” to the disease agent, as shown by numerous experiments in South America. The harvest is increased so that the input of artificial fertilisers can be correspondingly reduced or even omitted altogether. Further remedies have been arrived at from observations and from the successful use of similar remedies. It has not yet been possible to confirm all these results with large-scale field studies, but a very encouraging start has been made, with further research sure to follow. So we encourage you to verify the efficacy of the remedies for yourselves, to start your own experiments, try out new remedies, and report back to us with your results. This will help us to update and improve this book, so adding to the sum of knowledge on homeopathic pest control in plants. In other words, the book is itself a living and expanding thing that we are sure will generate novel ideas and provide fresh impetus as the community of homeopathic plant users and experts grows ever larger. You can obtain the homeopathic preparations for the treatment of plants and soil described in the book either individually or as a set from Narayana Publishers.
Against a backdrop of increasing pesticide contamination of our foodstuffs and drinking water, and in view of the increasing impoverishment of our soil, this timely book on the use of homeopathy for fields and gardens inspires us with hope for a “velvet” green revolution and a viable alternative to the use and abuse of conventional pesticides and fertilisers in modern agriculture. For plant disease caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi, through pest infestation to injury (due to replanting, for example), treatment with homeopathic remedies is a realistic alternative. This novel approach can be used not only by large-scale agricultural operations to effectively husband their plants while saving costs and deploying an environmentally friendly treatment strategy, it is also eminently suitable for the hobby gardener, who is certain to find an astonishingly wide range of useful homeopathic plant treatments for those annoying problems nature throws up, from aphid infestation to an attack of fungus in fruit trees.
We wholeheartedly encourage you to contribute your ideas and experiences on the use of the homeopathic preparations described in the book by visiting our forum at www.narayana-publishers.com.
The Publishers
1. Foreword
Homeopathy for agriculture has advantages over any other method that may not be apparent at first sight. Switching to homeopathy in agriculture entails, however, a big farewell to a large amount of fossil-fuel consumption. We may therefore view such a switch as a conscious ecological choice. We are living in a time in which ecological awareness is slowly growing in the consumer community, although it has not yet penetrated the consciousness of the primary producers; and where it has, wide-ranging solutions have not yet been implemented. The logistics involved are seemingly insurmountable because it requires a change so radical that the idea alone sends shivers down the spine. It will entail a fairly rapid transition back to animal traction and smaller farms, the return of the farmhand and a slower pace of life. Some countries will have little difficulty with such a transition, simply because they have not yet emerged from such an economy. Other countries with greater dependence on fossil fuels will have a far greater problem to deal with. Their pool of working animals is far too small and the knowledge to handle animal traction is scarce. As examples we will take India, the countries of Europe and the USA.
In India, 80% of transport still goes by animal traction over the short haul. Farms are small and provide food for a local market. They often use animal traction for heavy work like ploughing and harvesting or transport. Such a society can adapt relatively easily to a life without fossil fuels, because it has not yet fully emerged from such a state.
Europe will have greater difficulty, because Western society is heavily dependent on fossil fuels. On the other hand, the new EU members are just emerging from an animal traction farming system and have both the animals and the knowledge to teach their brothers from the West. While such a transition will be harsh for the West in the first 15 to 20 years, they will soon enough catch up.
The USA is in the worst position, because her entire agriculture is completely dependent on fossil fuels. They have no animals useful for traction, no knowledge of how to run a farm with animals and their farms are far too big to enable efficient farming without fossil fuels. Of all the countries in the world they will be the worst affected.
Agribusiness and Toxicity
Fossil fuel dependency is the greatest bane of agriculture as we know it. As geologist Dale Allen Pfeiffer points out in his article “Eating Fossil Fuels”, approximately 10 calories of fossil fuels are required to produce every 1 calorie of food eaten in the US. This ratio stems from the fact that every step in modern food production is fossil-fuel and petrochemical-powered: pesticides are made from oil and commercial fertilisers are made from ammonia, which is made from natural gas, production of which will peak about 10 years after oil.
With the exception of a few experimental prototypes, all farming implements such as tractors and trailers are constructed and powered using oil. Food storage systems such as refrigerators are manufactured in oil-powered plants, distributed across oil-powered transportation networks and usually run on electricity, which most often comes from natural gas or coal.
In the USA, the average piece of food is transported almost 1,500 miles before it gets to your plate. In Canada, the average piece of food is transported 5,000 miles from where it is produced to where it is consumed. A truck driver in the UK transports fish, which has arrived by plane from Pakistan, from London to Cornwall, where it is cleaned and packed in crates. Then it is transported to Scotland, where it is processed and canned, after which it is transported to London to be sold in supermarkets. Today, you buy noodles produced in Western China, transported to Shanghai, from where they are shipped to the EU or the USA. Those noodles have been halfway around the world before they even appear on your plate.
According to the Organic Trade Association, the production of one pair of regular cotton jeans takes three-quarters of a pound of fertilisers and pesticides. In short, people gobble up oil like two-legged SUVs.
Agriculture is possibly the most important industry mankind possesses, since it provides the food we all need in sufficient quantities. Yet agribusiness neglects agriculture and farmers, treating them as if they were commodities themselves that can be dealt with however it pleases them. Agribusiness is interested not in feeding the people but in making huge profits and satisfying the shareholders on the backs of the farmers. Agriculture needs to be taken out of the hands of agribusiness and given back to the farmers. Otherwise, they will decide what farmers grow and the consumer eats. They will decide which crops make profit and are worth growing. To give an example:
Growing corn, canola or some other oil-producing crop to artificially make diesel cars “environmentally friendly”, “carbon-neutral”, “sustainable” or whatever you want to call it, is both a misnomer and an oxymoron. The pollution remains the same, while taking arable land for growing food and driving up the price of food grains to levels the poor can no longer afford. This is an anti-social move, against the Declaration of Human Rights, and we must condemn it in the strongest possible terms. Therefore, agriculture is also in dire straits and for more than the reasons mentioned above, since it is extremely wasteful with fossil fuels and water, pollutes the groundwater and the wider environment and is therefore in need of a drastic overhaul.
Agriculture pollutes possibly more than industry, and the products used on the land are highly toxic in themselves. Moreover, to produce a kilo of meat, 10 litres of fossil fuels, 100,000 litres of water, and 16 kilos of grains are needed. Besides using chemicals instead of organic matter as fertiliser, the farmer uses toxic herbicides, pesticides and fungicides to grow and protect his crop against countless insect pests, diseases and fungi that attack his weak and obese plants. These fertilisers, herbicides, pesticides and fungicides are all made from fossil fuels and cause severe pollution in their own right. They all leach into the groundwater and rivers, which wash them into the seas, where they kill coral reefs, fish, amphibians and crustaceans, or make them dangerous to eat.
The poisoned insects are in turn poisoning the birds and small animals that eat them: the toxins enter the food chain in this way. The number of diseases derived from excess poisons on our food has not even been considered, let alone studied in any systematic manner. Yet some researchers have made the first steps in identifying which poison belongs to which disease. If we carry on in this manner, soon we will be flooded with new diseases and modern medicine will chase the accompanying germ as the culprit, leading to nothing but more suffering.
The modern push for genetic engineering is wishful thinking based on folly, since the “pesticide plant” already kills the greatest pollinators of all – the bees. Evidently, the pollen produced by such plants is toxic for bees too. Other genetically modified plants not modified with a pesticide generator restrict butterflies by poisoning the caterpillars that feed on them, which no longer reach the pupa stage. Butterflies are also important pollinators. It appears that such practices will rapidly lead to widespread famine, since we need the pollinators for most of our crops.
Diseased and pest-infested crops cannot absorb the full amount of CO2 because diseased and infested tissues reduce their uptake by at least 50%. There is another 30% reduction in plants treated with pesticides and fungicides. When we consider that 30% of all crops worldwide are lost and more are affected, we see that this also adds to the atmosphere’s woes. From IPM (Integrated Pest Management) it has become evident that plants treated with non-toxic control measures grow faster and more vigorously than their chemically treated cousins.
Moreover, if we are to reduce greenhouse gases, we need to reduce the use of fossil fuels. An agriculture that uses the Similicure method described in this book uses 50% less fossil fuels, now used to make pesticides, fungicides and herbicides, fertiliser and other substances worked into the soil. Such a reduction is phenomenal, and contributes to the reduction in CO2. Hence the switch to the Similicure method will reduce greenhouse gases in more than one way. The final amount of CO2 reduction will be in the order of 200%, when all things are considered.
A Quantum Leap
What is required is a revolution in our thinking. We have to remove the blinkers of linear tunnel vision and make the quantum leap to lateral vision. We have to learn that everything is part of a whole and therefore connected. We are as much part of it as everything else and what we do to each part we do to ourselves. We must realise that when we pollute our food, we can no longer have right thoughts – what you eat is what you are. This is not just a simple slogan without meaning but a profound insight. What do you want to be? Clean or poisoned? For that is the choice you have, as a consumer. You are the largest group and can enforce legislation, as the example from California – where 200 dangerous pesticides were banned by public demand – has shown.
Nature works through harmony – the so-called struggle for life is a hoax. While nature also entails the principle “eat or be eaten”, food is never in excess, except in our food crops. They are by their very nature unnatural. Nature does not like excess and will redress the situation by creating sudden death – disease or pests. Hence to grow them without any damage we have to imitate nature to the point where she believes everything is in balance. Therefore, plants that help each other have been grown together since ancient times, like tomatoes and basil, beans and potatoes, corn and potato and other plants and herbs. The same can be achieved by using these plants as remedies, since they have the same effects.