Listing Information

Currently Hiring

No, not at this time. Please check back next season!

Type of Farm

Large Animal (cattle, sheep, goats), Small Animal (pigs, rabbits, poultry), Vegetable, Fruit/Orchard

Marketing Strategy

Community Supported Agriculture, Farm Stand, Farmers' Market, Restaurant, Wholesale

Paid

Yes

Pay Rate

Glacier Tilth is NOT hiring for the 2023 Season.

What are the dates of your position?

Glacier Tilth is NOT hiring for the 2023 Season. May 7th-September 14th. Work days will be Thursday-Monday (half day on Sunday) because of the timing of our markets and off farm work.

Are you open to shorter periods of employment or do you prefer that workers stay the full season?

Prefer full season

Housing

Yes

Explain the room and board arrangements or describe options in your area

The main farm house is occupied by myself and my husband, and our baby son. Additionally, our landlord lives on site in an apartment above the barn. Intern housing is in a rustic, private cabin tucked away in the woods behind the main farm house. The cabin is off-grid but has a wood stove and a small kitchen set up where you can prepare simple meals, wash dishes,etc. In addition to the main living area, there is a loft area for a bed and a screened in porch with a swing. There's also a composting toilet. Intern will have access to the main farm house for some additional amenities as well, which can be discussed. You'll prepare your own meals but we will definitely eat lunches and dinners together on a casual basis.

Please share three things you think people should know about living with you.

We are pretty family oriented these days, with a young baby at home. We spend a lot of our free time going on walks together and enjoying the beautiful place where we live, although we are also old-time musicians and try to fit in as much music making as possible. We are part of a tight knit community of farmers and ranchers, and enjoy spending time with folks as time allows. Food is the focal point of our lives.

Do you have a website, social media account, or job posting anywhere else?

Yes

Online Listing URL

https://www.glaciertilthfarm.com

Describe yourself, your family, background, farming experience, philosophy, goals and interests

I am a first generation farmer with 10 years of organic vegetable growing experience, and a bachelor's degree in agricultural sciences. My husband is a first generation farmer as well who has more of a background in livestock and is currently building his own cattle herd on a neighbor's property. Both of us love working hard, spending time outdoors, playing music and exploring the beautiful state in which we live.

Describe the physical setting of your farm and the nature of the community in which you live

We live about 5 miles outside of Dixon, on the Flathead Reservation. Dixon is a one horse town with a big heart. The community is an eccentric mix of young and older generations, farmers, ranchers, entrepreneurs, builders, and artists. The town has a post office, a school, and a senior center. We are fortunate to be down the road from The Dixon Mercantile, a new brunch place/community gathering space that has amazing food and frequently hosts live music and performance art, as well as occasional themed dinners. Most other services (groceries, gas, bank, etc.) may be found in St. Ignatius which is about 12 miles north. The city of Missoula is about 40 miles to the south of us. Though we are somewhat rural, there are a lot of other farms in our area who accept seasonal employees and interns, so there should be no shortage of other people to connect with.

Describe your farm operation

We grow vegetables on about 1.5 acres, which we market through a small CSA and wholesale through the Western Montana Growers Coop. Additionally, we grow micro greens for wholesale to stores and restaurants. This season we will be experimenting with a farm store that will be open to the public 1-2 times a week. In addition to the veggies and micro greens, there are apple, pear, and plum trees plus other small fruits. All of our produce is certified organic by the Montana Department of Agriculture.
We also raise grass fed lamb, which we rotate daily on pasture.
We are pretty small scale, but still use a tractor for field and bed preparation. We also use tarps to prep some beds and to minimize weed pressure. Weeding/cultivating is done with a mix of flame weeders, hoes, and occasionally a cultivating tractor. Though we try our best to avoid it, some hand weeding is also inevitable.

Describe the work to be performed by applicant

Glacier Tilth is NOT hiring for the 2023 Season. About 90% of the work you would do would be related to the veggies---Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays will likely be spent harvesting and packing produce, plus other tasks such as weeding, tractor work, planting and seeding, depending on the season. Sundays are a sales day for us, so you will likely be involved in some aspect of marketing produce that morning---either taking produce to a new start up market in Dixon, or helping to manage the farm store---and then you will have the rest of the afternoon off.

In addition to the main tasks of the day, you will also be involved in daily morning chores. This will usually involve helping us move irrigation pipe, and moving fence/livestock.

What do you expect of a worker?

We expect that you will come to work everyday willing to learn and to work hard. We appreciate someone who has a good attitude and is able to make a positive contribution to our farm.
You will need to be able to lift up to 50 lbs and be ok with hard physical work outside in many different types of crazy Montana weather. You will work 40 hours a week, Thursday-Monday with a half day off on Sunday. Daily start time and end time will be discussed, but once those times are established we will adhere to them fairly strictly. You will have the opportunity to take 3 paid days off during the season (consecutive or nonconsecutive) in addition to your regular days off (Tuesday and Wednesday).

Describe the learning and educational opportunities available to a worker

Most of the work you will be doing will be alongside myself or my husband, especially in the first few weeks. Occasionally our son will be involved too, which will mean that our attention will be somewhat split between him and farm tasks. Once we feel that you are ready we will give you more responsibilities where you will be working independently. You will be expected to be able to work on your own sometimes, but we will always be present to check in if we aren't directly involved in the tasks that you are doing. We will do a "field walk" once a week, where we will check up on the fields together and talk about plans for the week, issues with pests/weeds, observations, etc. In addition to the field walks, we will have structured time once a month where we will learn about some aspect of farm management and give you the opportunity to delve into more of what goes on behind the scenes. We will also have a small stipend for you to plan and implement a project of your choosing (pending our approval). All of the educational opportunities we offer will be integrated into your working hours.

Are you a full-time farmer?

Yes