*You can also read this post here on foodwork.ca
Position: Market Garden Assistant/Organic Farm Worker
Type: summer / age 30 & under
Farm: Knuckle Down Farm
Location: Quinte West / near Belleville & Trenton, Ontario
Housing: rentals available in nearby towns (see below)
Knuckle Down Farm is a small Organic Market Garden and CSA farm near the towns of Stirling and Frankford, Ontario. The one acre garden is planted intensively and most work is done using hand tools with a little help from a walk-behind BCS tractor. We attend a Farmers’ Market in Toronto as well as running a 40 member CSA in both Toronto and on the Farm.
Job Description
Knuckle Down Farm is primarily a one woman operation, I grow a wide variety of vegetables as well as some herbs and flowers in between entertaining two small children. The successful candidate would work both alongside the farmer and often independently during the season with tasks such as weeding, bed prep, transplanting, seeding, harvesting, market and CSA preparations and any other jobs that arise around the busy farm!
Desired Attributes
Ideally, we’re looking for an employee who has some previous experience with organic farming, but candidates with an interest in market gardening and a willingness to work hard and learn will also be considered.
Because this is a small operation (most days it will only be the two of us), ability to complete tasks even when left to work alone is crucial. The position also requires the candidate to be:
- Physically fit and show a willingness to work hard
- Enjoy working outdoors
- Attentive to detail
- Efficient
- Highly motivated
- Independent and self-directed (enjoy working alone)
- Keen willingness to learn and improve at skills and tasks
- Passionate about organic agriculture and food systems
- Ability to take direction
- Ability to maintain a positive attitude despite the adverse conditions that outdoor work often involves
- Comfortable around small children
Access to your own transportation to and from the farm is required as there is no housing available on the farm, it may be possible to find short term housing in a nearby town (Belleville/Trenton/Stirling/Frankford/Campbellford). Camping on the farm is a possibility, but you would need to provide your own Trailer.
This position is dependent on Canada Summer Jobs funding so applicants must meet the funding criteria:
To be eligible, candidates must:
- be between 15 and 30 years of age at the start of the employment
- be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or person to whom refugee protection has been conferred under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act for the duration of the employment
- have a valid Social Insurance Number at the start of employment and be legally entitled to work in Canada in accordance with relevant provincial or territorial legislation and regulations
How to Apply
Please send a resume and cover letter outlining your interest and experience to Jenny Cook at:
Wages: $15/hour, 30 hours/week (Monday to Thursday, with some flexibility)
Benefits: Food from the farm
Duration: May to September (precise dates dependent on funding, with possibility of part-time in the fall)