Are you a young, aspiring farmer curious to learn about seed saving, Co-ops, veggies and cows in beautiful Kispiox Valley, British Columbia? WoodGrain Farm may be the apprenticeship for you!
About the Farm
We are a small-scale diverse organic farm in the Kispiox Valley, northwest BC. This land that we steward, and the communities who we grow food for, lie within the homelands of the Gitx̱san and Wet’suwet’en peoples. We take to heart our responsibility to nurture and respect these lands and waters, so they may continue to provide for future generations as they have always done.
Using a traditional mixed-farm system, our animals capture the fertility of sixty acres of pasture and hayland, harnessing the nutrients to feed our half acre of vegetable production in a sustainable closed loop.
Selecting and stewarding varieties that thrive and adapt to our growing region, builds resilience into our farm and enables us to remain adaptable in a changing climate. As northern growers, we utilize greenhouses and tunnels and curate the varieties of the seeds we grow to take full advantage of our intensive short growing season.
A healthy foodshed requires growing more local farmers and gardeners as well as food. Formerly market farmers, we scaled back from Farmers’ Markets and shifted focus to seeds, retail and bulk orders (garlic, tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, and seeds). This opens up opportunities and space on the land for aspiring growers looking to focus on growing within an existing operation with the infrastructure, tools, and growing space to hit the ground running.
Discover more about WoodGrain on their website & their socials
About the Apprenticeship
This opportunity is suited to a farmer who is keen to learn subsistence farming and commercial carrot, garlic and seed production. Support for these activities would be from mid-June to September/October for 3-4 days/week. Being a diverse farmstead, with a lot of animals, buildings, and crops to look after, an apprentices that appreciates a good amount of time spent working on tasks independtly is key. Additional work-trade and farm-sitting options can be discussed, and there are many opportunities to work a piece of the land and grow additional crops for additional income (with mentorship and guidance of course).
A June start involves bed and soil preparation for carrot production, seeding, irrigation and keeping up to any final spring harvests and greenhouse production. We use a method of stale seed bed techniques with carrot production which gives the carrots a good head start on germination. Depending on interest and capacity at the farm, there may be opportunities to develop a crop plan for other fall crops, and a continuation of a small CSA for local farm pick-ups.
July will be an early focus on weeding, followed by harvest and processing garlic scapes and enjoying the harvests. Seed crops and tomatoes need trellising, irrigation is ongoing. Maintenance and harvest of perennial berries, processing some of the harvest, and support with farm infrastructure or building projects could be a possibility.
August to October is focused on harvests. Garlic and carrots come out of the ground, garlic gets cleaned, sorted, and delivered to retailers and customers. Additional tasks may include fencing, mowing, and occasional support with livestock tasks.
Apprentices are expected to use their labor for the daily work of the farm as a major part of their learning experience. Apprentices work in all aspects of farm production from soil preparation to harvest, seeding to cultivation, wheelbarrows to hand hoes, and farm planning to marketing.
You will meet with other apprentices across the province who are part of the Young Agrarians Apprenticeship program. Field days, learning opportunities and potlucks will be planned with this group at each host’s farm.
About the Mentors
The apprentices will be working independently or alongside a variety of folks, including Woofers, volunteers and the main mentors Jolene Swain & Jonathan Knight. A busy farmstead means a lot of small tasks to keep up to, which means after some work side-by-side, once an apprentice is comfortable with a task, they may often be working independently, with opportunities to listen to the sounds of the forest, a podcast, or music while they work.
With a background in Biology, Jolene has done fieldwork in Northern Alberta, the Yukon and the Cascade mountains. With a growing interest in food, she shifted to a Masters project looking at insect pests in Organic apple orchards. This journey into agriculture led her to WoodGrain Farm, where she shifted her focus from crops to seeds. Growing seed crops also means being part of a growing network of seed savers and keeping seeds in joining the BC Eco Seed Co-op, to work with farmers across the province to increase the quantity and quality of seed grown in the province.
Jolene would be the main farm mentor as Jonathan’s focus is on milling lumber, maintenance, and building projects. Jonathan will provide mentorship with animals, grain and carpentry/building as projects come about.
For the past dozen years, Jonathan has been fully immersed in small-scale organic farming and homesteading in the Kispiox Valley, growing vegetables for two community farmers’ markets; heirloom grains to mill into flour; lamb, pork and poultry; and milking the cow every morning. Prior to this, Jonathan is an accomplished red seal baker and grain miller.
Skills this farm has to teach
The following skills are being offered by this farm. While you’ll get exposure to many of these areas, apprentices will work to identify the skills they want to develop through a learning plan with the host farm.
| No till vegetable & grain production | basic operation of hand tools |
|---|---|
| Seed crops & seed saving | Team work & Organizational skills |
| assessing soil health | Harvesting for bulk & retail sales |
| Animal husbandry and integration | Co-op farming models |
| irrigation set-up/use | compost making/processing |
| greenhouse management | Plant & pest identification |
| baking & Wood-fire oven |
Skills Required of the Apprentice
A keen desire to learn about organic regenerative farming practices, as Jolene and Jonathan enjoy sharing what they’ve learned on the farm, and giving people space to grow. They also welcome outside perspectives and ideas so everyone can all grow together, and support each other in the ongoing rewards and challenges (and unpredictability) that come with farming. Good communication skills and someone comfortable working independently. There will be lots of learning and teaching, but also lots of afternoons of working away at repetitive tasks in your own company (good podcast activities).
The ability to do physical labour on a day-to-day basis is essential, so being physically fit and able to lift weight in the range of 30 to 80 pounds is essential. The ability to work independently in physically challenging contexts for long hours in variable weather is essential to enjoying work on the farm.
Housing, Wages, and Duration
We subsist primarily on food from the farm, and are happy to share that lifestyle. Some meals would be shared during the week and on some days folks will have the kitchen to prepare their own meals. Extra treats and snacks can be prepared or purchased in town.
Most services are here – Wifi, library, laundry. Give the remote location, having a vehicle is helpful to get off the farm once in a while. There are bicycles around as well for trips off and around the farm.
A large A-frame cabin with a full kitchen, bathroom and wifi is available on the farm for common use. The A-frame is also used for guest and short-term visitors to the farm, therefore a seperate trailer may be available at busy times of the season when the A-frame start to feel too full. Possibility of sharing with other farm help/guests at times.
Apprentices will be paid an hourly wage and will need to pay for housing and off-farm food separately.
Pay will be $18.00/hour, FTE (18-22 hrs/week). Scheduling is flexible and amenable to working with and around the seasonal tasks. Happy to explore and discuss opportunities for an independent growing project to supplement income on days off.
The apprenticeship has flexible dates starting from June to ending in September/October. Priority month is August.
About the Community
The land that we steward, and the communities who we grow food for, lie within the homelands of the Gitx̱san, wilp Delgamuuk, and the Wet’suwet’en peoples. We take to heart our responsibility to nurture and respect these lands and waters, so they may continue to provide for future generations as they have always done.
We live remotely. The nearest village is 10 minutes away (gas station) and the next town is 25 minutes (library, coffee shop). The ‘big’ town is Smithers, just over 1 hour. A very trendy little town with a nice main street. The valley has a community hall (10 minute drive) where the annual rodeo and music festival are hosted. There are lots of great homesteaders, fishing guides and small farms in the area. There are beautiful hikes nearby, directly from the farm.
More Details about this Apprenticeship and How to Apply
Application opens: December 2, 2024
Application due: January 31, 2025
Interested in an Apprenticeship but this isn’t quite the right one? Check out other Young Agrarians Apprenticeships being offered in 2025 here.