Internship in Organic Market Gardening / Permaculture
Type: full-time internship with accom., stipend, more (see below)
Organization: The Rainbow Heritage Garden
Website: http://www.rainbowheritage.ca
Location: Cobden, near Pembroke and Renfrew, Upper Ottawa Valley, Ontario
About our farm:
• Est. 2007 (we are going into our 9th growing season)
• Husband (Zach) and wife team (Kylah) with 2 young children
• Certified Organic by Eco-Cert Canada
• One of the largest off-grid commercial farms in Canada (Two time
recipient of the Premier’s Award for Agri-Food Innovation; 1 for
off-grid farm design, the other for our 640 sq. ft in-ground root
cellar)
• We grow over 150 varieties of vegetables for a 165 member 20-week
CSA; , the Ottawa Valley Food Coop, on-farm sales, and the Carp
Farmer’s Market
• We incorporate permaculture principles into many aspects of our farm
and business; integrated design, multiple functions, fruit & nut
orchard, perennial fruits & herbs, garlic seed saving, root cellaring,
native tree planting etc.
• Our market gardens comprise approximately 15 acres (half in cover
crops) of our 50 acre farm; the remainder is in fruit & nut orchards,
native tree plantings, perennial fruits & vegetables, an old growth
maple grove (that we tap for syrup), open land for hay, and out
buildings
• We also co-operate & partner with Dobson’s Grass-Fed Beef (200 acre
neighboring 7th generation family farm)
Features of our 15 acre Organic Market Garden:
• 1000 sq. ft. greenhouse for starting seedlings
• 3 x 300 ft. caterpillar tunnels
• 2 x 1000 sq. ft. moveable hoop houses
• Extensive use of cover cropping, green manures & companion planting
• 600 sq. ft root cellar that uses traditional ice and geothermal cooling
• Mixed use of both hand tools, tractors, equipment & implements;
Allis-G, Farm-All and new Kubota tractors, mulch layer/irrigation
layer, potato digger, under cutter for root crops, tractor mounted
basket weeder, root barrel washer, extensive use of wheel hoes &
collinear hoe
• We also grow over 35 heirloom varieties of garlic to sell as
commercial seed for other organic growers
We’re looking for folks who are:
• Strong; emotionally & physically
• Can maintain a positive & fun attitude through diverse working
conditions (all farms have ‘perfect’ sunny days & cold rainy ones!)
• Have a strong desire to learn how to make a good living farming
because you want to BE a farmer (particulary market gardening)
• Curious and interested in permaculture growing principles
• Motivated while working on their own or as a team
• Have experience sharing and enjoying living space with others
• Respectful of the many people on and many uses of the farm
• Able to provide a minimum of 2 references
Internship
• May 4 – Nov 6, 2015
• work/learn 5.5 days / week
• avg. 45 hrs / week
• 2 story private, fully insulated cabin for each intern
• shared kitchen / living space
• huge yurt to use as additional hang out space
• laundry facilities, wifi, outhouse, solar shower, all utilities included
• $100 / week stipend
• WSIB coverage
• all you can eat vegetables from our gardens
To read our full 2015 internship package please visit:
http://rainbowheritage.ca/internships/about-internship/
Send a brief letter of interest and CV with 2 references to Kylah at:
rainbowheritage@gmail.com