Officinals of the Hill

All our cultivation lands on the Turin hills are 100% Organic Certified (CONTROLLED OPERATOR N.847W), but for us this is only the starting point. In fact, our agriculture is also 100% Biodynamic , an important and determining factor in choosing a product healthy and of the highest quality .

As confirmation and proof of our daily commitment, our agricultural cooperative society is currently DEMETER certified , the most important biodynamic certification body in Europe (Certificate No. 20 Prot. No. 275)

VIEW THE CERTIFICATE DEMETER
VIEW THE CERTIFICATE ORGANIC

What is biodynamic agriculture?

Biodynamic agriculture. Two words that imply a way of working, observing, of live the land . A philosophy of life to appreciate all the harmony of a cultivated field, the succession of seasons and time.

With the biodynamic method, agriculture is in harmony with nature , with Earth and with them men .

Fertilization, cultivation and breeding are implemented in ways that they respect and promote the fertility and vitality of the soil and at the same time the typical qualities of plant and animal species.

The deep connection with nature and the suit respect for its rhythms lead, with biodynamic agriculture, to abolish the use of synthetic mineral fertilizers and chemical pesticides , and manage the soil following cosmic and lunar cycles.

The ideal basis for creating a biodynamic unit is a farm with a livestock farm. In fact, animals constitute an important element of this organism, providing precious fertilizer, to be used after composting to increase the vitality of the soil.

According to the biodynamic method, the fertility and the vitality of the land must be obtained with natural means : compost produced from solid farmyard manure, plant material as fertilizer, crop rotations, mechanical pest control and pesticides based on mineral and vegetal substances.

By making the earth vital and increasing its biological activity, plants grow in a way natural , nourished from the ecosystem of the soil.

Fertilization and soil care are therefore aimed at obtaining and maintaining this equilibrium .

Source Demeter.it. For more in-depth information you can consult the national biodynamic agriculture website and the website of the Association for Biodynamic Agriculture .

Why DEMETER?

The history of the brand Demeter dates back to 1927, when some farmers who cultivated their land following the principles of biodynamics decided to protect their products and their companies. That's how they thought about it Demeter , goddess of fertility and the earth. First with the flower brand, then with the word brand, Demeter appeared on all products obtained from biodynamic cultivations.

Today Demeter is present with its certification bodies in many countries 43 states , coordinated by Demeter International, the federation with based in Germany (Darmstadt) founded in 1997 with the aim of ensuring close cooperation in the legal, economic and ethical fields.

Through his headquarters in Parma , the Association carries out careful control over the production, transformation and marketing of biodynamic products, following every stage of the supply chain up to the issuing of certification and labelling, thus defending the brand from possible abuse and denigration .

The rules to be respected to obtain the certification and the Demeter brand establish the methods for plant production (use of compost and preparations, ban on genetically modified materials, etc.), but also directives for the processing of meat, dairy products, bakery products , fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs, and non-food products such as cosmetics and textiles.

What is ORGANIC?

And to find out more... an article that Picchiovederde magazine wrote for us:

In the first days of June a soft pale purple expanse envelops the sides of the Pecetto hill: a spectacle that brings to mind sunny Provence. An image confirmed by the enveloping, almost stunning, captivating yet at times harsh scent that inebriates millions of bees and other pollinating insects, active and buzzing in an incessant motion. LAVENDER!

Immediately, however, after the first words exchanged with Mr. Nils Klaass who is the creator of so much wonder, it turns out that Provence doesn't interest him at all. He has never visited that French region and - on the contrary - he claims to have no intention of going to Valensol and its surroundings. Even less so in the flowering season, when his work requires maximum commitment, since it is the time of harvesting and distilling the lavender flowers to obtain the highly prized essential oil.

His activity takes place in an organic and biodynamic company certified by Ecogruppo and Demeter (international certification for biodynamic agriculture) which boasts the organic logo of the European Union and, to the specific question asked about Provençal production methods, he he simply replies with a smile, shaking his head slightly. He therefore lets us understand that in this sector, in his opinion, the French make excessive use of chemical fertilizers and systems that are not in harmony with nature and the earth, unlike what happens with the biodynamic method.

By following the latter, in fact, a profound bond is created with nature in total respect of its rhythms: the use of synthetic chemical fertilizers and agrochemicals is abolished.

The land is cultivated according to the rhythms of which nature is the sovereign.

The fertility and vitality of the soil are obtained with natural means: compost produced from waste from land cleaning work and distillation residues.

this is how compost was born: a perfect but now almost forgotten solid fertilizer.

Furthermore, crop rotations, mechanical anti-parasitic control and pesticides based on mineral and vegetal substances bring vitality back to the land and by increasing its biological activity, the plants grow naturally, nourished by the soil ecosystem.

Mr. Klaass is energetic and friendly: he has lived in Italy for 43 years where he arrived as a child; He raised a beautiful family here and doesn't miss his hometown, Hamburg. At the age of 10 he received a greenhouse as a gift with which he began to experiment with his first crops. Later, he graduated as an agrotechnician and began working as a gardener, soon setting up his own business, heading a company for the design and regeneration of gardens and green spaces. Committed to satisfying a demanding Piedmontese and extra-regional clientele who asked him not to leave even "a weed" in the garden, he learned to know and use all the chemical products offered by the industry to defeat parasites and increase flowering. After 20 years, however, the big turning point: he reconverted the business by acquiring approximately 22 hectares of land in marginal areas of the Turin hills between Pino Torinese, Pecetto, Moncalieri and Revigliasco and in 2015 he created Officinali della Collina, a small company deals with the organic cultivation of medicinal herbs (hyssop, lemon balm, damask rose, marigold, mallow, laurel, marjoram and helichrysum but in particular medicinal and hybrid lavender) in full rigor of the dictates of biodynamics.

In Nils' opinion, biodynamics is a cultivation method of "Good old basic agronomy", a respectful agriculture that follows the lunar calendar, to be implemented without excesses or superstitions.

“Common Sense” agriculture, which is now rare to find in all fields..........

Biodynamic agriculture is a holistic approach to farming, where the health and well-being of the animals, the farmers, the farm and the land are all conceived as integral parts of the same self-sustaining ecosystem. The whole system is in relation with the surrounding environment, with the Earth, with the cosmos, the planets and the constellations. Everything is interconnected, the plant is a living organism, as is the soil, the animal and the farm.

Biodynamic agriculture uses the same techniques as organic agriculture plus others, defined by Rudolf Steiner (1861-1902) and consolidated in the following decades which make it much more than clean and healthy but above all good.

Nils believes that allocating large monoculture surfaces to corn to produce biogas is senseless, as it is an energy-intensive crop that requires heavy irrigation: lavender (Lavandula officinalis or angustifolia), on the other hand, requires little water at the time of planting but subsequently it no longer needs to be irrigated: an aspect that should not be underestimated in light of the dramatic climatic phase we are facing. The plant can remain productive for over 25 years, but is generally replaced after 20 years. On the Nils farm, the weed species are mowed , weeded or uprooted manually. The main weed is represented by the so-called "canet" or Sorghetta (Sorghumhalepense) or wild sorghum which has become very popular especially in recent years due to the predominance of monocultures and not very harsh winters.

After the harvest, the lavender is delivered within a maximum of three hours to the distillery (located in Spigno Monferrato) to extract the precious essential oil with the sole use of steam. Lavender essential oil has multiple uses: calming/relaxing, antiseptic and healing, antirheumatic, insecticide, deodorant and perfumer, adjuvant in the treatment of flu symptoms. It can also be used in the kitchen and in industry, to produce cosmetics.

In his laboratory/company shop, in the Pino Torinese headquarters, Nils continuously carries out distillation tests to improve and refine research on numerous essential oils, which are in great demand especially abroad (France, Germany, Japan).

The company also has an important educational value, as it is visited every year by many people, school classes (25 people per group) or just the curious who want to enjoy a moment of relaxation and immortalize the charm of the moment with a few selfies.

Events are organized periodically (guided tours, workshops, snacks, aperitifs).

One of the most popular workshops is that of olfactory tests, yoga and the last one is the aperitif with pizza on the pitch.

Encountering the world of lavender thus becomes a pleasant and fragrant way to discover the Chieri and Turin hills.