We are seeking individuals who are motivated by a career interest in sustainable agriculture to join our 2023 team, for a seasonal apprenticeship starting this spring or summer!

Siena Farms’ apprentices are hard-working, committed, honest, passionate individuals who participate in many daily farm operations, including production, harvest and post-harvest handling. We expect our apprentices to approach tasks thoughtfully, embracing a team effort to achieve the farms’ goals for quality and efficient work, along with their own goals of developing their farming career through professional work experience.

Our apprenticeship program is modeled on traditional methods of learning a skilled trade through hands-on experience. We believe that the best way to learn to farm is, of course, by farming. Our apprentices are integral, productive members of our fast-paced, for-profit, 75-acre farm operation. They are here to work, and work hard.  And, they are here to learn. We encourage questions, we encourage ideas, and we promise to listen and to share our own questions and ideas!

Responsibilities

Areas of responsibilities for apprentices will include but are not limited to the following;

Crop Production

• Planting, including greenhouse propagation and mechanical transplanting in the fields
• Cultivation/weed-control by hand and hoe
• Field work such as trellising, pruning, fencing & thinning
• Mushroom, cut-flower, and specialty crop production as well as our larger scale veggie production.

Harvest

• Daily harvest of our 150+ varieties of vegetables, fresh herbs, mushrooms and flowers
• Post-harvest handling, including washing, curing, packing, and transporting produce

Distribution & Outreach

• Preparation and packing of orders for restaurant deliveries and our retail stores in Boston
• Preparation and packing of CSA Farm Shares for pickup and distribution
• Participation in farm outreach events such as CSA member farm-tours & volunteer days

Our apprentices, like all of our employees, are held to high standards for organization, communication, positive attitude, respect and kindness for coworkers, work quality, and professional agricultural work ethic and schedule. Of all of these values, respect and kindness for coworkers is the top priority, as everything else follows from that.

Schedule

• Position is seasonal with start dates between April and June 2023, and an end date at Thanksgiving 2023.
• Hours range from 50-55 hours per week depending on the season (five, 10- or 11-hour days per week).
• Start-time is at 7 a.m., and end-time is at 5 p.m. in the spring, and 6 p.m. in the summer and fall.
• The farm as a whole is operational seven days per week during peak season (summer and fall) including holidays. Apprentices’ weekly schedules during those months are either Sunday through Thursday (with a Fri/Sat weekend), or Tuesday through Saturday (with a Sun/Mon weekend).

To Apply

Please email a letter of interest and a resumé to jobs@sienafarms.com. We look forward to hearing from you! We have multiple other open positions, both seasonal and year round, listed on our website: https://sienafarms.com/pages/jobs.