Three Oaks Farm in Victoria, BC is seeking a Farmhand!
ABOUT Three Oaks Farm
Our 1.5 acre certified organic farm is part of a 5 acre piece of land in the beautiful Mt Newton Valley, 30 mins from Victoria and 5 mins from nearby commercial centres. We grow 40 different veggie crops and specialize in Spring and Fall veggie seedlings, salad greens, carrots, leeks, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, strawberries. Most of our produce is marketed through a farmer-driven distribution business, Saanich Organics. We have a 150 member CSA, attend 3 Farmers Markets, and do restaurant sales. We have a seed business called Seeds of the Revolution! which supplies our farms with seed as well as packet sales on our website, for markets, shops, and Seedy Saturdays.
Three Oaks Farm has been in operation at this location since 2006. We have 4 greenhouses and the rest of the 2 acres is in field crops or cover crops. We grow 30-40 different crops and emphasize succession planting, lots of emergent weed hoeing, broadforking, use of landscape fabric and silage tarp, fertigating through driplines, and are always looking to make our methods more efficient. Salad greens, veggie starts, tomatoes, strawberries, leeks, peppers, and carrots are some of our bigger crops.
In the field we use a tractor and spader for the bulk of our cultivating in spring, and for individual beds are moving from rototiller use to low-till methods. Irrigation is through a mix of drip lines and overhead watering. We work hard but have fun at it and if we’re ahead of the game we like to take an extra long lunch or go for a swim.
Our team at Three Oaks Farm is a hard-working, communicative, fun loving, awake group and we welcome more of the same. We are usually a core group of four plus two part-timers including the owner. The owner is committed to growing the sustainable food movement and has mentored many farmers over the years. We encourage making connections with the other farmhands at Saanich Organics farms and usually have a couple events to bring everyone together through the season.
Saanich Organics has a great reputation among our CSA subscribers, market customers and chefs for reliability and excellent quality. We are grateful to all the individuals, chefs, and small grocers in Victoria who have made purchasing local and organic a priority. We are committed to what we do and enjoy it very much and hope you do too.
DESIRED QUALITIES
The ideal employee has a great attitude, is eager to learn and embrace farm practices, and is physically fit and prepared for work in all kinds of weather. They have a great work ethic, good listening skills and an eye for detail. Must be a good communicator and team player, and be able to stay motivated during repetitive tasks or working alone. (The work is so diverse and interesting that it probably won’t be a problem!) Previous farm, landscaping, or tree planting experience a big asset.
JOB TASKS
You will do all kinds of tasks from seeding to weeding, transplanting, hoeing, wheelbarrowing, broadforking, repairing irrigation, using machinery like weedwacker, rototiller, salad harvester. There will be lots of harvesting, preparing produce for sale, packing for various outlets. Possibility of going to farmers markets. And eating the fruits of your labours!
JOB DETAILS
Term: April 15-October 31 full time with possibility of part time after that till mid December.
Hours per week: 32-40 hours a week (to be discussed)
Wage: $17-18/hr depending on experience, including vacation pay and full access to farm veggies.
TO APPLY
Please send letter of interest and resume to rachel@saanichorganics.com
When applying, please mention you saw this posting at youngagrarians.org
LEARN MORE ABOUT Three Oaks Farm
Website: https://www.saanichorganics.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_threeoaksfarm/
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