Company description

Sun Love Farm is a diverse certified naturally grown vegetable located in Oregon City, OR, just 20 minutes from Portland. We grow about 3 acres and have been growing food out here since 2015. We primarily tend the land by hand with the help of our two BCS walk behind tractors and some innovative small farm tools (flame weeder, paper pot planter, electric sprayer). We sell produce through our 120 member home delivery CSA program and two Farmer’s Markets ( Oregon City and Milwaukie). We have a small crew of approximately 7 employees during peak season, some part time and some full time. We love growing good food and are always trying to grow the highest quality crop possible while caring for the soil as best we can. We try to have a positive and cohesive working environment, and enjoy chatting with one another as we work and always try to eat lunch together. The farm owner (Melissa) has young children, so the culture of the farm is built up around being flexible to people’s needs in their personal life.

Job description

Job Summary

The propagation house and greenhouse manager will be responsible for all the plants in the propagation house and our four 20x96 greenhouses. They will help to create the propagation house plan, and then will follow that plan, making weekly lists of the necessary plants to seed that week and then leading the crew in making sure that those crops are seeded appropriately. They will use a germination chamber, heat mats, an emergency heater, fans, and shade cloth to make sure that plants are kept at appropriate temperatures. They will be responsible for making sure that plants are receiving the necessary fertility to thrive. They will be responsible for making sure the plants are watered an appropriate amount. They will regularly communicate with the field manager and farm owner to make sure that all necessary farm tasks are completed. In addition to managing the propagation and greenhouses, they will participate in all the other tasks of a small diverse vegetable farm, including weeding, planting, field prep, harvesting, and packing.

Responsibilities

Propagation House Manager (25%)

• Communicating with farm manager and propagation/greenhouse manager about the weekly tasks and coming up with weekly propagation and greenhouse task lists in google docs to be sent to the crew on Mondays.
• Walking the greenhouses each week with farm owner and field manager to look for pest, disease, fertility, or weeding issues that need to be mitigated
• Will always function as point person for propagation house tasks and greenhouse tasks and will be the point person for the farm in general if the field manager and owner are unavailable.
• Co-Leading morning crew meetings on Wednesday and Thursday where we discuss the tasks of the day. Assigning crew members to propagation house and greenhouse tasks and training them in those tasks.
• Keeping a positive and constructive work environment where all crew members can thrive in their position
• Leading crew in correctly seeding each crop through specific instructions and check ins
• Making sure that crops are put in the correct place for best germination (germ chamber vs heat mats vs shade )
• Make sure that plants are watered and fertilized appropriately
• Support owner and farm manager in creating annual planting plan for the farm’s crops and for plant starts for farmer’s market sales

Greenhouse Manager (15%)

• Make weekly lists of tasks to do in the greenhouses in order to stay up to date on the planting plan
• Lead crew in completing these tasks, which might include weeding with hand tools, seeding with jang seeders, using the bcs, weed whacking, planting, pest and disease management , irrigation and trellising

Field and Harvest Crew (55%)

• Harvest and pack crops to exceptional standards 2 days a week for CSA and Farmer’s Market
• Follow the field manager’s lead to complete necessary field tasks which might include moving ground cover, weeding with hand tools, seeding with jang seeders, using the bcs, weed whacking, planting, pest and disease management , irrigation and trellising

Infrastructure (5%)

• Supporting in repairing and building necessary farm infrastructure

Job Requirements

• • 2 -3 full seasons working on a diverse vegetable farm.
  • Ample experience in the propagation house- including packing trays, seeding different crops, regulating air flow and temperature, and disease management
  • Experience with drip irrigation, long handled tools, small motorized equipment, pest and disease management
  • Experience managing people
  • Able to work in adverse weather conditions (cold, rain, heat) for a full 8 hour work day and keep a positive attitude.
  • Great attention to detail
  • Reliable
  • Excellent communication- will communicate clearly about scheduling changes and any conflict that needs to be worked through.
  • A positive and constructive attitude
  • Able to lift 50 lbs many times throughout the day
  • Able to work efficiently for long periods during the cold, heat, wind, and rain
  • Commitment to working the full farm season (through November 20)
  • Because our business is located in an area without access to reliable public transportation, we only recommend that applicants with access to a vehicle apply.
  • Flexible (hours can change due to heat, smoke, and cold.)
  • Able to work independently and as a team

Compensation

this position is: hourly, $20/hr +

Application instructions

Deadline

no deadline