Farm Laborer

Job description

Crops/Commodities:
trees and peonies.
This job requires a minimum 3 months of verifiable agricultural experience working in a nursery or tree and shrub farm handling both manual and mechanized tasks associated with production of trees. Workers must be able to perform manual and mechanized tasks with accuracy and efficiency. Workers will plant, prune, & graft shade, flowering & fruit trees. The worker is expected to possess or acquire skills in order to perform the pruning, and grafting activities.

General tasks including, but not limited to, fertilizing crops, weeding, seeding, potting plants, making cuttings, covering the green houses to protect plants.

Trees – Field

Shade, Flowering & Fruit Trees
• Prune – shape trees
• Sucker – remove suckers from the base
• Limb up – remove branches
• Set posts stakes
• Tie trees to stakes
• Hoe
• Tie tops of trees to stake
• Field planting of trees
• Grafting trees in the field - Grafting is the process by which trees can be cloned. The worker must possess the ability to stay bent over for long periods of time. Tasks include: removing branches with clippers from the base of the tree as well as up to 12” from the soil, technical knife control will be needed to make a cut on the understock as well as the scion wood, bud from the scion wood needs to placed in the cut on the understock, plastic is banded around the scion wood and understock to prevent moisture from entering the wound, plastic is cut from the understock and scion wood after the graft union has healed.

Harvest Shade, Flowering & Fruit trees
• Lift trees out of ground
• Shake soil from trees
• Load trees onto trailers for transport to the grading barn
• Pull stakes from trees
• Drive tractor in the field to aid in harvesting trees

Trees - In Warehouse & Cooler
• Grading 1, 2, 3 year old trees
• Tie bunches together
• Grade to KCK quality specs
• Place trees on Pallets
• Place trees on racks in cooler
• Pick up trees for shipping
• Place bare root trees onto truck

Trees - Shipping
• Tie up containerized finished trees and shrubs in 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 15, & 25 gallon pots
• Load finished trees onto trailers
• Transport saleable trees or shrubs in 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 15, & 25 gallon pots to dock for shipping
• Load saleable trees onto trucks
• Consolidate saleable trees as necessary

Peonies
Peony Planting: The worker will hand plant stock into the ground and will include,among other tasks: Identifying the different varieties by label as to not mix the varieties when planting, laying on a platform pulled behind a tractor to help place and cover peonies after they have been planted, placing the planting stock with buds upright and spaced evenly so the plants grow successfully.

Peony Root Harvest: Harvest is the process by which roots are lifted out of the ground with a machine then washed and divided into planting stock and divisions for potting. The worker must possess the ability to stand for long periods of time. Workers must also possess the ability to work with knives to cut the roots. Some tasks include: lifting roots as to not allow buds to become damaged, washing the roots to expose the eyes of the peony roots, making intricate cuts on the roots as to maximize the number of saleable roots from the division, counting and packing of the peony roots to the appropriate number of plants.

Irrigation
• Move irrigation pipe in fields
• Set up mainline in fields
• Set up irrigation reels in the field

Driving
• Move harvested trees from field to warehouse
• Transport employees from housing to job site, town, shopping
• Driving to deliver crops to the warehouse

General conditions: Field work begins at assigned time shortly after daylight. Work may be performed during light rain and in high humidity and in freezing or high heat temperatures.

Special Requirements

This job requires a minimum 3 months of verifiable agricultural experience working in a nursery or tree and shrub farm handling both manual and mechanized tasks associated with production of trees. Workers must be able to perform manual and mechanized tasks with accuracy and efficiency. Other Special Skills: Saturday work required. Must be able to lift/carry 60 lbs. Employer-paid post-hire drug testing is required at random and after a worker has an accident at work.