Guyon Springs Apprentice

Last Updated On: January 22nd, 2024 at 07:33AM MST

Contact information

Farm Address:
Rogue Farm Corps, Satellite Farm Location
Dayville, Oregon, 97825

Primary Contact: Kait Crowley
Primary Phone:
    Type: Cell
    Number: 541-588-3551
    Email: training@roguefarmcorps.org

Website: https://www.roguefarmcorps.org/host-farms/guyon-springs

Internship information

General Farm Description: We grow a variety of produce focusing heavily on three crops: garlic, peppers and chiles, and purple corn. We also grow lettuce and will make this one of our main crops for the summer of 2024. We also grow a variety of other produce for market and a small CSA and market, plus flowers and herbs. We have a 1/3 acre field that supports 36 beds, standard 50’by 33”. We hope to expand to 52 beds. This field, as well as the hay field, is watered by hand lines off the irrigation ditch. The flower and herb beds are in a different field and are watered by the well using drip irrigation. We sell our garlic and chilies to customers in our community who pre-order and buy from our store or markets. We have many value-added items such as roasted chilies, pickled vegetables, jams, garlic braids, dried and fresh flowers, chili ristras, etc. We will be selling lettuce to two local restaurants for the summer of 2024. We have a goal of a 10 person CSA for the 2024 season. Previously we have had five subscriptions. We attend 4 markets a year, and sell from our store for other outlets. We are no-till and biodynamic. We use hand tools for most of our farming. Twice a year we rent a tractor to manage compost made by our two donkeys and two horses. We use cover crops, mulch and black plastic covering to manage our beds.

CRAFT Member Farm? No

Internship Starts: 4/1
Internship Ends: 11/1
Number of Internship Available: 1-2 POSITIONS, PART TIME (30 hrs/week)
Application Deadline: Rolling basis until positions are filled by early-mid March
Minimum Length of Stay: 500 training hours (~3-4 months minimum)

Internship Details:

An Apprenticeship is part of Rogue Farm Corps’ beginning farmer training program. Hands-on field training at the Host Farm is complemented by a series of classes, farm tours, discussions, and networking events organized by Rogue Farm Corps.

EDUCATIONAL EVENTS
Apprentices join other beginning farmers for an Educational Event Series facilitated by Rogue Farm Corps.
The full event series includes:
24 classes focused on foundational sustainable agriculture concepts, skills, and knowledge and the food system.
7-10 farm tours which showcase practical skills and individual farmers’ stories, as well as provide insight into diverse production and marketing systems.
3-5 discussion circles with topics including Food Justice / Food Sovereignty, and Next Steps for Beginning Farmers.

RFC strives to make all educational events inclusive and welcoming to people from all backgrounds and identities. Classes, tours, and discussions are led by Rogue Farm Corps staff, agricultural professionals, and expert farmers. Scholarships are available.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
Apprenticeship applications are accepted on the Rogue Farm Corps website on a rolling basis until positions are filled (usually by early-mid March), but early applications are considered first. Approved applications are passed onto the host farmer. Guyon Springs will decide which applicants to interview and offer placements to.

Rogue Farm Corps seeks to train an inclusive next generation of farmers and encourages applicants of all backgrounds and identities to apply.
Applications. https://www.roguefarmcorps.org/apprenticeship

Educational Opportunities: Tasks to be done include but are not limited to: bed building, compost management, planting, transplanting, cultivating, harvesting, washing packing, delivering, processing value added products, animal care, mowing living pathways in our vegetable plot, and managing water and irrigation. We train and work alongside employees several days a week while our teaching schedules allow. We expect employees to work five days a week, six to eight hours a day on all areas of the farm. We divide our time on hot days into 2 shifts: a seven a.m. to noon shift, then a five to seven shift. We meet in the morning to assess needs and decide what tasks to be accomplished. In the early season this is bed prep, planting, cultivating etc. We discuss longer projects and make sure we are tending toward the steps of production and sales. We demonstrate best practices with the goal of training for independence. Apprentices will grow into working solo on the farm for several days out of the week, as we teach until June and go back to work in late August.

Skills Desired: We are looking for someone who loves the process of farming and being outdoors, with good communication / listening skills, willingness to learn, good mechanical skills, a commitment to agriculture, and lastly someone who enjoys animals and small communities. An ability to thrive in a remote, rural, high desert environment and work independently is required.

Meals: We offer free produce and host a weekly potluck where we feature our produce and a wood fired oven

Stipend: $15/hr. Also, of course produce and community camaraderie as perks!

Housing: There is on-farm housing. We ask $500.00/month for rent for a bedroom in the farmhouse.

Preferred method of Contact: email