Experienced Nursery Worker

Job description

Crops/Commodities:
nursery stock and herbaceous plant material.
This job requires a minimum of 3 months of agricultural experience handling both manual and mechanized tasks. Applicants must be able to furnish verbal or written statement establishing relevant prior work experience. Workers must be able to perform manual and mechanized tasks with accuracy and efficiency.

Perform manual and mechanized tasks associated with the production of greenhouse plants and other horticultural products. Assemble pots and fill and label trays, plant/pot seedlings or “liners” by hand or mechanical planter, move product to/from greenhouses and or loading/unloading areas, retrieve tags, transplant and unpack incoming plant shipments, soil handling/using hoist/using pallet jack, and compost and trash runs. Work on production line. Must have working knowledge of production procedures. Operate equipment safely, with or without direction. Grade, size, sort and pack product. Move containerized plants using racks. Workers may be required to fill, lift and carry various size pots with soil and plant material and must do so carefully so that minimal leaves, limbs and roots are damaged. Follow quality control standards and production procedures. Clean/maintain work area.

Perform general plant maintenance, to include planting, cultivating and maintaining nursery stock, shrubs, bedding plants, plugs liners and other herbaceous plants. Prune, trim, space, transplant, divide, weed, cull and dump plants to ensure availability of marketable products. Water or irrigate plants. Pack, label, tag, pull, grade, space and store plants by variety. Attach hangers to baskets and hang throughout holding houses. Must understand nursery quality control standards, harvest crops according to specific standards and select and harvest crops pursuant to customer needs. Products must be handled carefully to prevent damage. Ensures the cleanliness and organization of the growing areas, including daily cleaning within areas worked, maintenance and storage of tools and equipment, stocking necessary supplies, returning plants to proper locations and maintaining a neat and orderly appearance of the area.

Fill racks and other containers with product and prepare product for shipment to market or storage. Work on a pulling crew, reading reports to determine which plants to pull from designated locations, selecting, carrying and unloading plants appropriately onto racks and dropping racks/reports off to Shipping department. Use power equipment including but not limited to: tractors, front-end loaders, bobcats, golf carts. Prepare plants for shipment by trimming, watering, weeding, labeling, replacing broken pots and flats, getting replacement plants, moving, reading a report and retrieving plants from designated racks per report, processing plant material by applying custom pre-printed adhesive stickers to individual plant containers, building racks for use in shipping process and processing racks for shipment/watering/applying shrink wrap. Lift, carry and load/unload products or supplies and unload/load trucks and product onto wagons and trucks. Bending, stooping and kneeling required. Perform quality control on inbound/outbound loads. Handle product carefully to prevent damage. Other duties include pushing, pulling and/or navigating loaded carts on wheels weighing between 100-500 pounds over a distance up to 180’, over smooth concrete floors.

Workers may also assist in building seasonal holding houses, driving other seasonal workers for work-related purposes, and grounds upkeep/mowing activities on the property.

Work is done in buildings, greenhouses, nursery areas, and outside in the fields for long periods of time. Workers may assist in handling product weighing up to 60 pounds and lifting to a height of 5 feet. Workers must work on their feet in bent positions for long periods of time.

Special Requirements

This job requires a minimum of 3 months of agricultural experience handling both manual and mechanized tasks. Applicants must be able to furnish verbal or written statement establishing relevant prior work experience. Workers must be able to perform manual and mechanized tasks with accuracy and efficiency. Saturday work required. Must be able to lift/carry 60 lbs. frequently.