Whole-Farm Apprenticeship Luna Bleu Farm
- Date Posted January 12, 2017
- Location South Royalton, VT
- Category Agriculture / Production
- Job type Internship/Apprentice
Luna Bleu Farm is a well-established diversified certified organic farm in central Vermont, growing food for our community for over 25 years. On our 42 acre farm, we grow 5 acres of vegetables, raise cattle, pigs, and chickens for egg and meat production, and have a small orchard with blueberries, apples, and plums. We grow and market year round through our CSA, Saturday farmers market, and a few local businesses. Season extension and winter growing in high tunnels is an expanding part of our operation. We work hands on with our employees to share the knowledge we have gained over our years of farming and encourage employees to take advantage of the rich agricultural opportunities in the Upper Valley of Vermont. We are relatively small in size but our diversity with crops and animals means we have lots of fun every day!
Luna Bleu Farm is seeking 2 full-time Whole-Farm Apprentices for the 2017 season. (See also our listing for Assistant Manager if you have 2+ seasons of farm production experience.)
The Whole-Farm Apprentice is exposed to all aspects of our farming operation, rotating through the various animal chores, working with many aspects of growing, harvesting, and marketing the field vegetables and fruits and helping with the CSA distribution and farmers market. They get a broad experience of the rhythms of the farming season and the many elements of our farming systems.
Much of the learning is hands-on during the day-to-day tasks required on our farm. Rather than sitting down to teach skills in a classroom type setting we prefer to work with our employees in the field, giving instructions before starting work and then working with them to help them complete tasks properly, work efficiently, and have fun. We also eat meals with our employees and encourage conversations about anything farm related. Apprentices participate in the Upper Valley CRAFT program to enhance their education on the farm. Apprentices play an integral role in running our farm. We hope to give them skills, experiences and even connections to further their work in this field.
Apprentices will be involved with:
Seeding, transplanting, weeding, and harvesting vegetable crops
Post-harvest washing and prepping for market
Animal chores and grazing rotations
Chicken processing
CSA and farmers market
Greenhouse watering and field irrigation
Record keeping
Mowing, BCS rototilling
Food safety
Season extension
Qualifications:
Because of the nature of the work, an apprentice should have some familiarity with the physical demands of farming, have spent some time working or volunteering on a farm (at least part of a season), be able to lift 50 pounds, work outdoors in a variety of weather Compensation this position is : stipend / non-monetary compensationWork visa This employer is willing to sponsor a work visa for international applicants Application instructions