Farm #1
Primary Products: vegetables and table grapes
This farm does not accept couples.
This farm is not able to accommodate children.
This farm offers a stipend.
Apprenticeship term: May 1 to September 30
This farm has signed SOIL's Host Charter
We had always dreamt of owning our own farm and being more self reliant so we made a plan and after much preparation made the move from Guelph Ontario to beautiful Cape Breton Island. We love the beauty of this rugged place and we have learned so much. When we moved here from the city it took time to adjust to what is real. You can't have any kind of food any time of the year! It 's been such a great experience learning to appreciate the time and effort it takes to grow food in it's season and most importantly, recognize the need to protect, nourish and build the soil. It's all about the soil. That's probably been our biggest take away these last 8 years. Again this season we will be working on improving soil structure and reducing weed pressure. Our goal is to move closer to the no till method throughout the farm but it takes time. We have about 3 acres of field to work but are currently only using 1.5 for vegetables, two greenhouse and we have a quarter acre table grape vineyard.
We are located in a little village that time forgot. There's a general store that has anything you could ever need at the end our driveway, a community centre where they have local dances with live celtic music every monday night across the road, and the old church and rectory nestled inbetween. Its beautiful. We are on a paved road so bike riding is easy and we are close to several amazing beaches.
You would be working full days and some half days, depending on where we are and the weather, with evenings and Sundays off. You would work along side Rhonda, other employees and on your own doing a wide variety of tasks. A list of these would include making compost and compost tea, direct seeding and transplanting, greenhouse plant pruning and care, flame weeding, bed prep, irrigation set up and use, weeding, harvest and preparing for customer orders.
We have a comfortable trailer with a double bed, pullout couch, kitchen, bath and tv. We will provide your groceries and you can cook your own meals. We will also pay a small monthly stipend
Location: Mabou, NS
Farm #2
Primary Products: mixed vegetables, fruits, and herbs
This farm can accept couples.
This farm is not able to accommodate children.
This farm does not offer a stipend.
Apprenticeship term: June through September
As an apprentice here on the farm, We hope you will have a deeply rewarding and memorable experience during your 2 to 4 month stay for June, July, August, and September.
We are Meg and Erich, with a combined 16 years of seasons of organic farming experience, we cooperatively run a small-scale farm that grows vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers by hand!
We are located on the Gaspereau Mountain (8minute drive to Wolfville, 1 hour drive to Halifax).
The land is 3 acres of rolling pasture, market garden and Food Forest zones. We spend our down time hiking and swimming in our area at the many close by trails and swimming spots (lakes, rivers, ocean and waterfalls!)
As a team we will work and teach the many tasks throughout the season that we do to make our small-scale market garden run ! We will learn tasks such as seeding, bed preparation, transplanting, pruning, watering, harvesting and packaging for the markets and CSA.
The Apprentice will work a minimum of 25 hours a week. We are flexible on the scheduling with some exceptions such as Fridays are required because it is our busiest day. Two options we recommend are:
Monday - Friday (5 hours a day) 8am- 2pm (with an hour lunch and beat the heat!)
or
Monday, Wednesday, Friday (8 hours +1 extra hour) 8am- 5pm (if too hot in the day, we may start earlier or we will go swimming and shift the afternoon shift )
We love to celebrate our season with lots of delicious food! We cook together as a team for lunches and most dinners. As an apprentice we hope you are excited about farm fresh meals, enjoy community cooking and team clean up. There are days where you will need to cook dinner for yourself such as days we go to market, or weekends or even days you would like to cook for yourself :)
We typically make vegetarian lunches with our farm fresh eggs, but we do also eat meat from our local farmers! (You are welcome to purchase meat with us, but it is not included)
You will have access to the farm produce, apples, and local fruit in season, our pantry for oils, spices, salts and grains (rice, oats, barley, lentils, beans).
You will also have space in the community cupboard/fridge for your own goodies and treats.
You will be living in a newly purchased 4 Season Canvas tent! The space is a 13 ft round tent with 8ft ceilings. We have a queen bed, dresser and electricity for lighting and charger.
We share the living room, kitchen, bathroom (composting toilet inside and outside) and have space inside for wet clothing, coats, and boots.
We open our home from 7am- 9pm (quiet times during early mornings and our babies naps)
We are looking forward to hearing from our next teammate and soil apprentice, please feel free to reach out and contact us about any questions you may have about our farmstay.
Location: Wolfville, NS
Farm #5
Primary products: Free range chicken, pork and beef. We also process our pork on farm making sausages and bacon. Vegetables, herbs, some flowers.
This farm will not accept a couple, due to space constraints.
This farm does not accept children.
This farm offers a stipend and profit sharing.
Apprenticeship term: May 1 to October 15
This farm has signed SOIL's Host Charter
We are a very diversified small scale farm located near Sydney in Cape Breton, with lots of sandy beaches nearby as well as the Cabot Trail with so many breathtaking views and hikes.
Farming has been our top priority since we were very young, growing up on a farm in France and in Cape Breton. Between us we have a Masters in Agriculture and a degree in horticulture with 11 years of farming under our belts. This year we will also partner with a market gardener to take over the vegetable production. We commercially raise free range chickens, pastured pigs and cows and process some of our meat into sausages and bacon on farm. We also raise a couple of goats and sheep as well as laying hens and ducks and grow lots of culinary and medicinal herbs.
We are committed to organic practices and regenerative farming as we want to leave a legacy for our children and future generations.
The learning potential on our farm is endless: between all of the different types of production you will experience, you'll be able to know which ones you like best and which ones you will never want to do again. The work is physically demanding with lifting 55 pound bags a regular task.
We have 3 young boys (age 9, 7 and 6) and are planning on hosting a kids day camp this summer. We also have organized workshops and farm tours in the past and we created an online gardening course that will be available to the apprentice.
Location: near Sydney in Cape Breton
Farm #6
Primary production: vegetables for market and CSA
This farm offers a wage
This farm is not able to accommodate children.
This farm is not able to accept a couple.
Apprenticeship term: April to end of October
We are a certified organic farm in Salmon River just 4 kilometers from Truro, NS which is about 100 kilometers from Halifax. We grow as wide as possible a variety of vegetables to bring to our weekly farmers' market as well as a 40 share CSA program that runs for 18 weeks in the summer/fall. We are looking for someone to work full time from April to October in the field and for some farmer' markets. We can pay just over minimum wage, no previous experience required, just a eagerness to work hard and learn.
Our apprentice will learn everything it takes to run a small farm from the perspective of starting with just an empty field. The wage will be offered for farm labour and markets only. Learning about our ferments, preserving or participating in building projects will mostly be outside of the hourly wage. There will be plenty opportunities for learning about our farm operations for a motivated apprentice.
We can offer a room in our house in Truro (not on the farm) and we'll put together a bike for transportation if needed.
Location: Salmon River, near Truro
Farm #14
Primary production: Diverse range of heritage vegetables, flower seeds. Apples and blueberries, preserves. Small-scale pigs and ducks
This farm offers an end of year bonus
This farm would accept a couple
This farm might possibly be able to accommodate children.
Apprenticeship term: May to October
This farm is a heritage homestead located on Nova Scotia’s beautiful South Shore. We’ve been growing seed commercially since 2009, and believe it’s an important way to support food security & food producers. We grow close to 200 varieties of vegetable, grain, flower, & herb seeds, all by hand & ecologically. We sell only what we’ve carefully grown ourselves, and have been expanding our offerings of live plants such as seed garlic, potatoes, sunchokes, willow whips and fruit trees.
This apprenticeship is ideal for those who have a strong interest in homesteading & seed saving, love to spend most of their time outdoors, enjoy physical work, and are comfortable living rustically. Candidates who have interest in carpentry/renovation as well as the garden-related tasks will be preferred.
Duration is ideally April/May through October/November (we also host shorter stays, contact us for details on that arrangement)
There will be a 2 week trial period to start with, so each of us can determine if we work/share space well together.
This is an immersive experience, but expect to average 7 hours of farm labour per day for 5 days per week.
Work is task based: pace of work plus attention to detail determines productivity.
Some longer days may be needed to complete certain tasks when the timing is critical.
Our primary commercial product is ecologically grown vegetable, grain, herb and flower seeds – we currently maintain close to 200 varieties which we sell through our website, retail locally, and wholesale to seed companies. We grow a homestead-scale vegetable garden, selling excess produce to a local cafe. We also raise ducks (eggs and meat) and sometimes pigs for home use.
Our current projects are:
maintaining the garden for seed production and homestead food
Includes harvesting and processing seed crops
maintaining/establishing perennial crop systems/nursery (nut, fruit, berry & herbs)
erecting a new 20 x 24 ft seedling greenhouse
barn renovation, specifically building a cold storage system in the cellar
basic homestead tasks (firewood, animal chores, processing storage crops, other building and equipment maintenance)
Farm Setting: Our farm is tucked away at the end of a gravel road on the South Shore of Nova Scotia-- 10 km to downtown Bridgewater, 20 km to Lunenburg, Mahone Bay, or LaHave, 25 km to beaches, and less than 100 km to Halifax. We have 20 acres of fertile soil on a gently sloping drumlin hillside, 200 acres of forests and wetlands to explore, and frontage on a spring fed lake. Wildlife is abundant, though kept from the main farm area by our trusty farm dogs. The heritage 30'x50' post and beam barn is where much of the seed processing and shop work takes place. We have a couple of outbuildings and a 20'x48' greenhouse. There is a small orchard, abundant wild blueberries, and we have around 2 acres in cultivation for annual vegetable and grain crops (1 acre fenced).
About Us: Owners Chris and Garrett have a diverse background of farming and homesteading experience in Nova Scotia and the Northeast U.S. Chris has been small scale organic farming (vegetables, fruits, nursery, seed crops) for over 20 years, including apprenticing and managing crews, and she has taught gardening workshops & provided sustainable landscape consultations/designs professionally. Garrett is a skilled carpenter, craftsman, farmer, teacher, and artist, as well as general fixer of things. We both love sharing skills and knowledge about living off the land. Our daughters Ruth (10), Joyce (4), & Flora (1) are a delightful and dynamic force on the farm who will seek interaction with apprentices. We work hard and enjoy relaxing by a campfire, playing music & swimming in the lake. We are well connected socially with the active and growing rural community on the South Shore. There are frequent social events and concerts, and there are plenty of outdoor recreation opportunities in the area.
Accommodation: Our 17’ camper trailer is reserved for the full season apprentice/couple (equipped with double bed, kitchenette, dining table & storage). A shared composting outhouse is nearby, as well as an outdoor shower with hot & cold taps. We have rural satellite internet – slower wifi with a data limit (sufficient for the basics, no streaming). Please plan to unplug and enjoy the natural setting.
Board consists of fresh farm raised food as available (veggies/fruit, duck eggs), and a weekly groceries stipend ($100 single/$150 couple). We enjoy communal meals in the farmhouse, so as our family’s schedule allows are open to incorporating a shared evening meal. In this scenario we provide all meal ingredients with your help to cook and clean up from meals.
For those interested in shorter term stays, please contact us for accommodation details.
What to Expect: Throughout the season, heavy physical work is a must- lifting, wheelbarrowing, shoveling, digging, raking, hoeing etc. We believe strongly in setting a pace that is both productive and healthy for body and mind, being present & mindful, and taking adequate breaks, but it must be understood that hard physical work is central to small-scale farming and will be a necessary central feature of the Apprenticeship experience. That being said, our farm experience includes varied tasks with lots of interesting things going on to learn from. Please note – this is not a clock in, clock out job experience, our schedules are flexible. When we take on apprentices, we are committing to teach you our skills and welcome you as a community member.
The Ideal Full Season Candidate:
Brings a positive attitude to their work
While previous farm experience can be an asset, we have found it to be less important than a person's attitudes and inclinations
Enjoys and understands the need for maintaining an efficient work pace and safe work practices
Has attention to detail and can self direct
Will be comfortable working alone, with us, and possibly directing short term farm-stay volunteers
Has good physical stamina
Is comfortable and responsible being around children
Has their own transportation
Location: Laconia, Nova Scotia.
Farm #24
Primary production: Veggies, eggs, lamb
This farm offers a stipend.
This farm may be able to accommodate children.
Apprenticeship term: April 15 to October 15
This farm has signed SOIL's host pledge
Our farm is located on the southern side of the South West Margaree River Valley.
We grow about 2 acres of vegetables and perennial fruit on the fertile flood plain on permanent raised beds using permaculture & no till philosophy. Our produce is sold through a 40 member CSA plus farmers markets, restaurants and local stores. We also pasture about 12 sheep & lambs for the summer using intensive rotational grazing techniques. We keep about 24 laying hens who follow the sheep in there mobile chicken coop. Our resident donkey Jennifer keeps a watchful eye on the flock and also helps out with our forestry practice in the fall and winter.
The farm is an active part of the community with visitors often stopping by, we also host concerts and events from time to time.
The Margaree is a beautiful part of the island with easy access to the river, sandy beaches, hiking trails and Celtic square dances.
Location: Margaree Forks, NS