Abstract

Ilmar Randuja, the pioneering figure in biodynamic plant breeding and biodynamic vegetable seeds, who passed away in 2024 at the age of 98, laid the foundation for the impulse that Sativa embodies today. He recognised early on that fruitful biodynamic cultivation could only be sustained in the long term if biodynamic seeds and biodynamically bred varieties were also available. After World War II, he encountered anthroposophy and biodynamic agriculture at Schloss Hamborn. The development of biodynamic horticulture became his life’s work. With unwavering dedication, he first trained in seed production and plant breeding, which at the time could still largely be described as a craft. Later, as a gardener at the Ita Wegman Clinic in Arlesheim, he harvested his own vegetable seeds and began selecting his first varieties. As early as 1963, he published his first list of biodynamic vegetable seeds, which he distributed to other farms and growers.