The way farmers kept fields fertile in Steiner's youth sheds light on the Agriculture Course. Crop and animal rotations, composting, legume cover crops, remineralizing, and proper tillage, the foundation upon which biodynamics works, were so well understood by the late 19th century that Steiner felt he need not spend much time describing how you should prepare manure and compost. Literature from that era indicates a profound awareness of natural laws and describes intelligent designs for self-sufficient farms. Reviewing texts from then has really helped improve our farming practices.