Farming Apprenticeship in West Virginia for 2014

Farming Apprenticeship in West Virginia for 2014

Round Right Farm is seeking Apprentices!

Are you searching for a job that helps you feel connected to the land, better food, and good living? Do you enjoy challenges, thinking on your feet, unpredictability and being outside? Work on a farm might be just what you're looking for. We've both worked behind desks, in academia, in the arts, and we're now entering our eighth season running Round Right Farm. Every day brings its own unique problems and solutions; there's always something new to learn. Come join our team and discover what real food tastes like and what real work feels like. You might just find that you're a farmer at heart. Round Right Farm raises vegetables and meats following organic practices. We attend weekly farmer's markets, have a 250 member CSA and sell to restaurants. We are also innovating new concepts in local food sales. For example, through our online CSA, our members have the option of choosing exactly what goes in their box (share) each week. This is a highly unique approach to the CSA model, one of which we are very proud. We are located near the tri-state intersection of MD, WV and PA, 10 miles NW of Oakland, MD. Apprenticeship Length: We are seeking full-season apprentices who begin mid-March and continue until mid or late October. We ask our apprentices to sign a commitment contract once they have completed the first month of the apprenticeship.

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Educational Opportunities: We believe the world needs more farmers, so our goal is to prepare you as best we can to start your own farm or market garden. The apprenticeship will introduce you to and prepare you for the practical realities of professional organic farming. You will get a thorough understanding of our approach which will serve as a spring-board to an overall understanding of the dynamics and issues of contemporary ecologically oriented farming.

It is important for apprentices to understand that this is not a typical school, but a place where you primarily learn by doing. Hands-on learning is supplemented by our bi-weekly lecture & discussion series, so there is an opportunity to learn and ask questions in a classroom setting. Farming covers a wide set of skills and disciplines. Being curious, engaged & full of questions is a must for a successful exchange of knowledge. And we require that you develop an attitude of humility towards the demands of daily farm life. Put another way, you must be willing to yoke your life to the farm’s for a season.

Some of the many things that apprentices can learn about include: bio-intensive vegetable production, animal husbandry, season planning, garden planning, rotational grazing, soil fertility, greenhouse and high tunnel production, crop rotations, cover crop management, equipment care/repair and operation, harvest and post-harvest handling, delivery to market, farmer’s market stand management and CSA relationship building.

Skills Required: Being inspired to farm; the stamina to keep up with the rigorous physical demands of farming; ability to prioritize activities and work efficiently with an eye to the overall needs of the farm; the ability to receive constructive criticism as a part of your everyday learning experience without taking it personally; persistence in the face of difficulty or adversity.

Stipend: $100/week (paid bi-weekly)

Housing: Housing is provided in our off-grid cabin with composting toilet, wood heat and propane gas stove/oven.

Meals: Food is included; We’ll provide basic staples for you to prepare your own breakfasts and other meals. On work days, we will prepare lunch and some dinners (depending on work schedule). For your days off, basic staples and veggies are available for your use.

Work Hours: 45 – 50 hrs/wk. Apprentices work 5 days a week, Monday through Friday, and are also required to farm-sit one weekend a month. We strive for an 8 hour day and are usually successful, but we will work as many as 12 when pressing situations arise. Flexibility and understanding of the farm’s needs are a must. Farming is not a 9-5 job.

Please visit our website for an application and more details: www.roundrightfarm.com/pages/jobs