Job description

Vegetable and Native Plant Horticulturalist/Gardener on Little St. Simons Island, GA 

Little St. Simons Island (LSSI) is a privately owned barrier island in coastal Georgia accessible by boat only.   Its lodge is a destination for as many as 32 overnight guests with extraordinary opportunities for bird watching, wildlife viewing, fishing, hiking, and kayaking.   The Garden is maintained to supplement all meals prepared daily by the culinary team with the freshest seasonal herbs, produce and flowers.  The Garden is integrated into the education programs provided for our overnight guests.  Native plantings around the Lodge Compound enhance the aesthetic beauty of the grounds and serve as a platform for guest education focused on the importance of landscaping with native plants. 

Position:  Full-time or Part Time vegetable, herb, flower, native plant Gardener. 24 – 40 hours/week. 

Responsibilities: 

• Manage and maintain the Garden using organic and sustainable growing methods with a focus on soil building, crop rotations and integrated pest management strategies.
• Manage crop and produce record keeping using COGPRO Software.
• Maintain and improve garden infrastructure: Electric fencing, drip irrigation, raised beds, composting systems.
• Work directly with the Island Executive Chef to plan each season’s production goals, harvest and crop availability projections.
• Manage composting systems: vermicomposting, 3-Bin systems.
• Educate and oversee island staff assisting in Garden (Kitchen and Naturalist staff) and supervise volunteer and intern efforts.
• Manage Garden blog and garden Facebook posts.
• Work with Naturalist staff to implement passive and active educational materials for the Garden and composting systems. Lead educational programs for Lodge guests in the Garden and native plantings.
• Network with coastal community of farmers/growers, extension agents, and native gardeners.
• Maintain the grounds around the Lodge compound, including native and heritage plantings.
• Maintain view sheds and trails through natural vegetation around the Lodge compound.
• Work with ecological manager and plan additional native plantings.
• Work with Coastal WildScapes volunteers twice/month to maintain native plantings and collect native seeds for propagation. (www.coastalwildscapes.org)
• Remove invasive/exotic species around the Lodge Compound.

    Job Requirements:

• 1 full year of growing vegetables in the South East Coastal Plain soils. Understanding of soil management principles.
• Ability to work in challenging climate conditions, abundant mosquito, gnat and deerflies. (seasonal)
• A passion for farming in the rewarding and challenging climate of southeast Georgia.
• Enthusiasm for teaching and conducting educational talks.

 Benefits (for Full Time Positions):

• Company paid health, dental and vision insurance
• 401k with company match
• Paid vacation and holidays

Compensation

this position is: hourly

Application instructions

Deadline

January 01, 2016