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Are you an aspiring ecological farmer who wants hands on experience working the land and living in community? Reclaim Organics in Pigeon Lake, Alberta might be the place for you!
About the Farm
Reclaim Organics grows and sells vegetables on Treaty 6 Territory and understand that our farm exists only from Treaty formed with the first peoples of this land. We promise to care for land we farm, act as stewards of creation and treat the ecosystems around us with respect. We acknowledge the land we are on as a traditional gathering place for diverse Indigenous peoples including the Cree, Blackfoot, Métis, Nakota Sioux, Dene and many others.
Reclaim Organics is a multi-enterprised certified organic market garden. Ryan and Brittany began their farm in 2014 in Edmonton on vacant land throughout the Whyte Avenue area. In 2018 they returned to Ryan’s family farm 1 mile from Pigeon Lake and changed how it operated from conventional animal and grain to organic market garden.
They grow microgreens year round indoors, cut flowers and vegetables seasonally, and process seasonal product into preserves and pickles.
They sell their product through 4 marketing streams: CSA box, wholesale to retailers, wholesale direct to restaurants and farmers markets.
One priority for the farm is increasing biodiversity (except gophers). They grow several hundred varieties of plants on their land and as a result have seen increased insect, pollinator, bird and mammalian activity as they feed and are housed in these ecosystems. They plan their land around ecosystem management to provide soil, plant and animal health and habitat. They do have things they want to keep improving on such as weed management practices and minimizing tillage. As a farm, they want to become a collective of like minded regenerative growers helping each other out and using the land and energy that they have cooperatively.
They work within organic standards to ensure that the least harm comes to the environment while farming while also trying to adapt their food system to be stronger and healthier for the next generation.
Website: reclaimurbanfarm.com
Facebook: @reclaimurbanfarm
Instagram: @reclaimfarm
Our Workplace Culture
The work week is Monday-Friday with weekends off. The apprentice will be one of 10-14 staff members.
About the Farmers
Ryan Mason is the owner of Reclaim Organics and is a farmaholic. He began Reclaim Organics as an urban farm in Edmonton with a friend who has since moved to Vancouver. Ryan’s wife, Brittany Mason, works off-farm as a teacher and plans the flower side of our operation. Ryan grew up on this farm raising broiler breeder chickens, cats and hating gardening mainly because of chickweed. He still hates chickweed but loves gardening. He went to university for global development (BA) and Environmental Sociology (MSc) and have travelled to Tanzania, Mexica, Cuba and other parts of Rural Canada to work with other agrarians.
About the Apprenticeship
The apprentice will be the right-hand person in the growing of vegetables and flowers on farm. They would be included in some planning and starting transplants indoors and in greenhouses. They will transplant and seed crops in the spring as part of a team using machinery on farm including waterwheel transplanters, tractors and hand seeders. Apprentices may be required to take soil and water samples and work with lab results to better understand soil health and improve on it. Soil will be amended using certified organic amendments based on those tests as well as adding compost and other organic matter.
The apprentice will have an opportunity to learn how to grow plants in hoop houses and possibly building greenhouses. Irrigation and polyculture installation will also be worked on in the spring.
Throughout the summer months the apprentice will be taught and get to practice irrigating crops, crop maintenance, harvesting crops for a variety of market preferences, and post harvest handling for those crops (cold chain, washing, packaging etc.).
The apprentice will learn to drive tractors, ATVs, and cube vans and will be taught about microgreen growing from bottom to top. Most importantly, the apprentice will learn about the back end of the operation. They will do some office work training in the spring early on to see what Ryan and Brittany do and may be assigned some tasks to help them learn more about marketing and sales to bookkeeping, cost of goods, and finances. This will not be many hours of their work but is crucial to their development in the agriculture industry.
Reclaim wants to help advance the current and the next generation of agrarians. They are hoping to grow their farm into a collective and have begun taking the first step by giving access to land to other budding farmers. Part of hosting apprentices is to find others interested in this collective and advancing this chapter of the farm. They want apprentices to help us develop this idea into a reality and hopefully demonstrate the same commitment to regenerative agriculture that Ryan and Brittany have.
The ideal duration of employment is 6-7 months with an option to continue year-round. The apprenticeship will start mid-April or beginning of May.
The job requirements are:
- Ability for physical labour
- Able to work standing shifts for 8hrs
- Ability to lift 50lbs consistently
- Bending over to weed and plant
- Ability to work outdoors in all types of weather
- Adaptability
- Positive outlook
- Basic computer and social media skills
- Driver’s license and vehicle are not mandatory but a big asset
Apprentices are willing to learn these skills:
- Assessing soil heath using soil testing,
- Assessing soil health in the field
- Seeding & transplanting
- Greenhouse management
- Harvesting crops
- Setting up irrigation
- Basic equipment operation
- Record-keeping & basic bookkeeping
- Marketing & packaging
- Organic Market gardening including flowers & microgreens
Compensation
We offer the wage of $16-$18/hour depending on experience
About the Community
Reclaim Organics is in a very unique place in the province. The farm is one hour from Edmonton and they mainly market to places in and around the city and find it accessible for anything urban they are missing. For the immediate vicinity, they are 1 mile from Pigeon Lake, which they have a view of from parts of the farm. It is a downhill bike or walk paved all the way for a quick dip, waterski, sail, kayak or beach day. Most of these things they own or have access to.
There are hiking/ATV trails right across the road, and land they rent is adjacent to the Greves Wildlife Sanctuary. Pigeon Lake is known for great road cycling and a nice 15-minute bike ride gets you to the hamlet of Mulhurst.
For sports, fitness, library, restaurants, groceries they go to Thorsby, a 12-minute drive straight north. This farm provides the rural rustic feel of agrarian life, but there are thousands of summer cottages on Summer Village beginning hundreds of feet away, making it feel like a peri-urban environment. This means seeing the stars on weeknights and fireworks on weekends. This means more people, housing and summer activities. Across the lake, 25 minutes away, is the Village at Pigeon Lake that has restaurants, a hotel, mini-golf, and summer activities. Verge Permaculture is also setting up shop to the west of Pigeon Lake – more like-minded folks coming together.
Thorsby is a 12 minute drive away, Edmonton is 1 hour away.
Accommodation
Accommodations: yes
Accommodation details: There will be off-farm accommodation provided a self-contained private garage suite with kitchenette within one km of farm.
Accommodations shared with other employees/apprentices: no
Access to a full bathroom with running water: yes
Type of dwelling: Four seasons
Accommodation checklist:
- Furnished
- Running water (potable)
- Clean
- Private bathroom
- Heating
- Private kitchen
- Electricity
- Shared laundry
Pets permitted: maybe
Guests permitted: yes
Rent: $200/month
Accommodation Agreement: yes
Other information: If you are staying in the accommodation, there is sports equipment including bikes and a kayak available. They also have vehicles and could negotiate with potential apprentices to use them on a part-time basis.
All staff are able to use the gardens as their gardens so vegetables are in no short supply. They are willing to share meals with an apprentice if they live on farm with us and they can have access to our kitchen and bbq.
We look forward to seeing you!