Apple Acres Farm
Last Updated On: diciembre 29th, 2021 at 11:48AM MST
Contact information
Farm Address:363 Durgintown Road
Hiram, Maine, 04041
Primary Contact: Molly Griffin McKenna
Secondary Contact: William Johnson
Primary Phone:
Type: Cell
Number: 207-710-8322
Email: info@appleacresfarm.com
Secondary Phone
Type: -----
Number: 207-625-1038
Email: musicfarmer1991@icloud.com
Email: musicfarmer1991@icloud.com
Website: http://www.appleacresfarm.com
Website: http://www.ossipeevalley.com
Internship information
General Farm Description: 2022 organic farming, carpentry, music, business, non profit, and hospitality internship! We own a 60 acre farm in Southern Maine which hosts a 2 acre organic pick your own fruit orchard, a farm store, restaurant and bar, weddings, tour-bus visits, school tours, and is expanding to also maintain chickens, a disk golf course in our woodlands, evening concert dinners, a tree house Air Bnb rental and more! In addition to our farm, we also run a large four day Americana/Roots music festival and 5 day educational all ages music camp, and we work as the managers of an 1820s bed and breakfast which also hosts weddings and events. Come help us run our little empire! Apprentices will work alongside the owners to learn about the difficulties involved in being one of the only organic fruit farms in New England, and will participate in all aspects of the three businesses outlined above, to gain a deep understanding of the work and energy required to run your own business and farm. We work six days a week, and the apprenticeship will be physically and mentally tiring, but also rewarding. We function as a family unit.CRAFT Member Farm? No
Internship Starts: 5/01/2022
Internship Ends: 11/25/2022
Number of Internship Available: 2
Application Deadline: ASAP
Minimum Length of Stay: 6 months
Internship Details:
Unlike any other farm apprenticeship–rather than being in the field and then doing a CSA, you will do everything from orchard work, to care taking animals, to building an Air Bnb Treehouse, to kitchen, bar and customer service work, to business management, hosting musical gatherings, and meet a vibrant community of independent and creative people. We also hire other workers to assist with running our store in the fall and working in the kitchen, and we host two hospitality/events apprentices at the Inn, that you will work alongside, however your primary focus will be the farm.
Apprentices also work on a small independent project which they present at the end of the term. They also get books, handouts, and attend Maine Organic Farmer Association Workshops.
Farming tasks may include: picking apples, hand thinning, fertilizing, watering, weeding, planting, pest scouting, pest trapping, weed whacking, mowing, grafting, learning to drive forklifts and tractors, wrapping trees, spreading compost & mulch, working with animals, removing rocks, logs and brambles, planting, grading and bagging apples, stocking cider, and more.
Carpentry tasks may include: using hammers, drills, nail guns, saws, and painting, running piping and conduit, jobsite cleanup, and more.
Business Tasks may include: using quickbooks and excel to track expenses and profits, inventorying store product, and running profit analysis, applying for grants, and submitting grant record paperwork.
Farm stand Tasks may include: grading apples, bagging apples, shipping apples, working at cash register, making doughnuts and pies, serving ice cream, cooking and serving food, learning to hand toss pizza dough, product ordering, restocking shelves, working at the cider bar, and learning about and maintaining cleanliness for health code, working with other employees, and daily cleanup (dishes, floors, trash, counters, maintaining ingredient freshness).
Music Festival–We are excited to return with our full size music festival in 2022. Music festival jobs will include attendee paperwork, checkin, building stages, installing lights and banners, pre-festival grounds preparation and post cleanup, organizing volunteers, and working in the merch tent, beer tent, and backstage areas.
Weddings–currently we do not have any weddings booked for the 2022 season, but we may have 1-2 eventually booked. Wedding prep includes grounds maintenance and cleanup, installing lights in the tent, chair setup, and any day-of coordination services necessary for the event such as food and beverage service, payment of vendors, shuttle bus driving, decoration, and cleanup after the event.
Innkeeping–you will not be the primary apprentices responsible for tasks at the inn, but we will most likely use you as needed in tasks such as reservation management, event planning and execution, and general repairs and maintenance.
We work with your strengths, and we offer a very diverse experience and try to get you doing as many different things as possible.
We also make sure to take breaks, have fun, etc like kayaking, meeting apprentices from other farms, and seeing live music. You may also get the opportunity to do work swaps with apprentices from other farms.
Compensation includes $250/week plus lodging and food supplement, as well as tips during any event, which can sometimes be as much as $100-$300/day of event or festival.
Educational Opportunities: Additional opportunities to attend MOFGA organic farm association workshops and lectures, as well as one day/month to work on an independent project. Former independent projects have included designing and implementing a local wine tasting event for the farm, fermenting hard cider from local wild apples, designing a home-scale orchard, designing high-school level educational school tours of the orchard, creating a radio segment, researching food deserts in Maine, and assessing store profits in an excel sheet. We also have a big binder of handouts for you to read which we sometimes discuss, and books as well. We also try as much as we can to teach you about the ecosystem and the life cycle of pests and diseases, soil health, and more, as we are planting and working in the orchard. The idea is that by working close alongside us you will have not only farm knowledge, but also business, time management, event execution, and construction skills when you leave.
Skills Desired: No skills needed! But ability to lift 50lbs and be in fairly good physical shape is necessary. It would be great if you had mechanical or carpentry skills, or skill with hand lettering signs, or experience in a kitchen or bar. The ability to work self-guided without succumbing to distraction, and the ability to understand how repetitive and menial tasks work towards accomplishing our bigger goals, are both a must (basically--a positive attitude!) We also do not allow the use of cellphones during the workday. In the interview process we will encourage an honest, friendly conversation about how our work schedule and physical and mental demands on your person might interact with your current health and wellness.
Meals: CSA share of veggies to share with other apprentices, bulk foods (beans, rice, flour, sugar, etc) plus semi-monthly dinners, we also sometimes go to see live music or to a local trivia night. We are working to expand our garden space as well! You are also allowed to take any food from our kitchen that you would like to when our restaurant is open in the fall--soup, sandwiches, salads, pizza, bowls etc.
Stipend: $250/week, plus a weekly veggie and egg CSA, a small garden plot to share, and housing. Transportation not provided, but we are close to town if you want to bike in. We also offer random perks such as a meal out every now and then, a chiropractic visit, last year's apprentices even went with us to see an opera in New York City!
Housing: You will share an open plan loft with kitchen and living room and shared bathroom. It has big picture windows looking over the Saco river valley and the orchards, a gorgeous setting. There are two apprentices each year, and we become a little family unit. Please note that the apartment is above a farm garage and it is very rustic and basic, but functional. We are happy to send pictures upon request. It does NOT have private bedroom space, so you must feel comfortable sharing a room with another person.
Preferred method of Contact: email