Apprenticeship – Growing Vegetables with Oxen, Pensylvania

Seeking Farm Apprentice for 2012 – Growing Vegetables with Oxen Spring Meadows Farm, Millerton, PA; https://www.buylocalpa.org/source/view/spring-meadows-farm General Description: Marketing vegetables at 2 farmers markets, two restaurants, and weekly orders to farm supporters. Over a dozen farmers markets within an hour's drive. A 50 minute drive to Ithaca and the Finger Lakes. Most of the farm is in actively managed forest, pasture, and hay. Oxen supply traction power on the farm. Vegetable production is the first of a series of enterprises that will fit together like parts of an ecosystem, financing each other and spacing work throughout the year. A number of product I produce for myself are potential enterprises. With 350 years of family tradition farming in the NE I adapt my dairy/forestry degree, sustainable farming theories, modern and traditional materials and technologies to local marketing in a practical way.   Internship Starts/Ends: Mid February to Early April 2012 - Early Nov. 2012 (still open)

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App Deadline: Best to apply in August or September for the next year with applicants required to visit in the Fall and a selection made well before Thanksgiving.

Minimum Length of Stay: I really need an apprentice that is going to see the season through which compels me to make sure the person selected really wants to be here and enjoys being here. Even when I have an apprentice I enjoy visits by interested persons for a few days.

 

Meals: Food provided; eggs, butter, whole grains, beef, game, pork, and seasonal vegetables.

 

Skills Desired: Farmers’ market experience.

A team approach to work.

Mindful of excellence.

Able to deal with all difficulties in a way that creates positivity.

View apprenticeship as a serious career path.

 

Educational Opportunities: Organic vegetable production, grass-fed dairying, grass-fed beef, pastured pork and poultry, Ox driving, low stress animal handling, effective health care with nutrition, homeopathics, and herbal. Also as time allows wild crafting, hunting, Full Vigor Forestry, how to apply management tools to troubleshoot sustainablity and health problem.

 

Stipend: $100/wk or 15% of sales which ever is higher. Trial month is unpaid or at a reduced rate of pay with room and board provided.

 

Housing: Provided room, shared kitchen.

 

Preferred method Of Contact: Phone or email

 

Internship Details: This apprenticeship is 1/2 time market manager in training 1/2 time hands on skills assisting with production, construction, and maintenance. Those with some experience in vegetable growing and marketing who want a position with more responsibility but are not ready to farm on their own are most desired. The management training includes being coached into the following responsibilities; updating the marketing plan, plan and lead the harvests, weekly meeting about marketing, mid season and end of season evaluation of marketing contributing to the information used in the next year’s marketing plan. Trial period one month-learn basic skills; low stress animal handling, milking, basic garden & livestock chores, marksmanship/gun safety. The possibility exists for marketing manager to continue the next year as production manager in training. The second year apprentice will apply the hands on skill, knowledge about what the customers want, and planning/evaluation skill learned the first year to lead the production work. This will free me up for more resource budgeting and land monitoring work as well as make it possible to share the chores and over all work load between three people.

 

Also time off for earned vacation days and educational events.

 

If interested, please contact Andy Lyon at (570) 537-2128 or do.what.works@gmail.com.