Organic Gardens
Coordinator position
Specific techniques in horticulture are required to work the terrace system and traditional irrigation channel. The Organic Garden department currently cares for twelve gardens which produce a wide range of food crops. The role of the gardens is to provide food for the project, education and research and improve environmental integration by maximizing the cycling of our waste materials.
Our gardens are run strictly according to organic principles and we incorporate the use of permaculture design and syntropic agroforestry. Careful soil management is especially important. No artificial chemicals are used. Our gardens are mainly of experimental nature.
Working in the gardens is always popular with co-learning residents, therefore the Gardens Coordinator needs to be able to work and communicate effectively with a wide range of people.
Core Responsibilities
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Using a mixture of methods such as crop rotation, companion planting, inter-cropping
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Planning sowing and transplanting times
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Harvesting crops
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Trimming and weeding the lands together with the Ecosystem Restoration Department for fire prevention and mulching
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Preparing garden beds
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Tree care and pruning
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Greenhouse management
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Soil Management
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Monitoring crop yield
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Starting and maintaining compost heaps
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Crop selection
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Proper irrigation techniques
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Using organic methods for pest control
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Organise and keep tidy the toolsheds including tool supervision and tool maintenance
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Trialling and developing effective gardening techniques to meet local conditions
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Assisting and supervising staff team and co-learning residents, incorporating them into the work and methodology
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Supervising innovative and experimental projects
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Education and Documentation
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Interdepartmental cooperation
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Work as a team to ensure the smooth running of Sunseed
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Check if urine tanks needs to be emptied
Requirements
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Experience and knowledge of all aspects of organic growing
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Tolerance of hard physical work in hot conditions
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Chain saw certificate and strimmer knowledge (optional)
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Good overview and time management to organise tasks, calendars and schedules
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Ability to work in cooperation with other departments, as well as working alone
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Ability to lead, teach and motivate assistants, interns, ESC's and co-learning residents, who range from those with a wealth of experience to those with little or none
Application
Please fill out this form here. For any more questions send us an email to sustainable.living@sunseed.org.uk