Carolina Flowers is seeking experienced farmers for full-time or part-time work. Compensation depends on experience, but it will be in the $18-$22 range depending on experience.
We are looking for someone with at least two seasons or a full year of paid farming experience. Experience can be vegetables. Flower experience is not required.
Work takes place on our farm, about half an hour north of Asheville in Marshall.
In addition to a great team, this job has great boundaries. You will be farming the agreed upon number of hours per week. We might occasionally ask if you have time to help with a different project, but for the most part, this is a very straightforward farming relationship!
Carolina Flowers provides flowers from our fields to customers all over the Asheville area through our delivery business. We also offer floral design services for weddings and events and sell our blooms at farmers markets. Our shop, Carolina Flowers Mercantile, serves as both our retail showcase and our production area. All blooms come here after they leave the farm for processing, storage and arranging. It’s an exciting and beautiful place to work!
The Farmer will be responsible for supporting the Farm Manager in all areas of the farm, including harvesting, planting, weeding, soil prep, supporting/staking, irrigation, composting, maintenance, clean up, and all of the other many various job farms.
Job Description
The Farmer should encapsulate the spirit of Carolina Flowers with an upbeat, positive attitude and a genial, kind demeanor. The Farmer must be resilient and able to work outdoors in all weather conditions, including heat and rain and snow.
You must be a team player! At Carolina Flowers, we’ve spent years developing our growing practices, and we’re looking for people who can learn and execute our techniques. Good communication skills are required as you will be expected to ask clarifying questions to make sure you understand the processes. You must be open minded and able to receive feedback and direction.
Farming is a rewarding job, but it can be repetitive. You must be able to work on repetitive tasks for long periods of time regardless of the weather.
Duties
Harvesting flowers while adhering to handling requirements
Preparing soil for planting
Running, installing and maintaining irrigation systems
Weeding
Fertility management
Monitoring for pests and disease
Mowing and grounds maintenance
Clean up
Keeping records on the computer and on paper
Integrated pest management
Staking and support netting
Understanding proper harvest stage, necessary harvest conditions and post-harvest handling and processing, including drying
Dead-heading and topping plants to ensure continued production and proper physical structure.
Removing previous season’s crops efficiently in order to make room for the next succession planting.
Cover-cropping fields between successions as much as possible.
Caring for all over-wintered crops throughout cold months, including venting high tunnels and constructing and venting low tunnels.
Seasonally pruning flower bushes to encourage regrowth and proper physical structure.
Maintaining the farm properties, including mowing, weed-whacking, ditch maintenance, and regularly removing trash.
Maintaining proper irrigation and temperature conditions inside high-tunnels.
May sometimes be asked to assist with deliveries
May sometimes be asked to assist with farmer markets
Many duties not listed here
Requirements
Must be able to lift and carry 50 pounds on a regular basis
At least one season of commercial farming experience
You MUST be able to listen to feedback on your work and use this information to improve
Manual dexterity
An upbeat, positive attitude that comes across in everything you do
Enthusiastic team player
Organized and efficient
Resilient and indefatigable
Punctual and reliable
Apply at carolinaflowers.com/jobs