Apprentices of the Maritimes, Unite!

Are you working on or managing a farm in the Maritime region of Canada this coming season? Do you want to help form a network of engaged, fantastic apprentices and their farmers who meet up to discover new techniques and swap black bean brownie recipes? Hoo, boy. Have we got a plan for you!

Here’s the rationale: apprenticeships are lovely, intense periods in every up-and-coming farmer’s education. You get an immense amount of knowledge from farmers, you work hard, you see the same four to six people every day for seven months, and you learn to love it.

For those very same reasons, though apprenticeships can feel difficult and insular. There aren’t many chances to get to know others in your position at other farms, chat about techniques, get reading recommendations, or eat some of those aforementioned brownies. You get cabin fever, you start talking to the worms. It’s a little crazy-making.

With that in mind—we’re starting an apprenticeship network in the Maritimes.

Here’s how it works:
One! You sign up using this form and give your name, your e-mail address, where you work, and whether you’re a farmer or an apprentice/intern/worker.

Two! Using the above information, we set up a directory and a listserv of all interested participants. This allows specific people to be contacted about their farming experience, as well as everyone to be called up if there are announcements or emergency pie requests.

Three! We set up a monthly field day at one of the participating farms, where farmers give a workshop on an area of their expertise, the apprentices network/socialize/feast, and everyone pitches into a work party to thank our hosts. (There’s a bit on the form if you’re interested in hosting!)

Sound like anything you know? That’s probably because it is! We’re fully inspired and charged by the tight connections that CRAFT and SOIL have been able to create in other regions in Canada.

Here’s how you take part:
Click here to be taken to the sign-up form. Fill it in, and we’ll contact you from there! Simple.

This project is still in its embryonic stages, so any comments, questions, or recipes can and should be sent my way here. And if you’re interested in getting involved in a more organizational fashion, drop me a line!

Do send this along to any folks you know who might be interested—the bigger the crowd, the greater the kitchen party. See you out there soon!