Grower

Jones Valley Teaching Farm; Birmingham (AL); On-site; USD 36,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

Jones Valley Teaching Farm (JVTF) in Birmingham, Alabama, seeks a Grower to manage production across multiple Teaching Farms and hydroponic classrooms. The role emphasizes hands-on farming, mentorship of students, and maintaining learning spaces that welcome diverse participants.

The Grower collaborates with Farm Managers and Lead Growers, supports school programs, and helps supervise interns and volunteers while maintaining records and ensuring safe, productive operations.

Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with organic farming practices.
• Experience with hydroponic or controlled environment growing.
• Experience working with youth, interns, or volunteers.
• Ability to keep digital records and logs.

Responsibilities

• In-ground and raised-bed production across multiple sites.
• Operate hydroponic and controlled environment systems.
• Harvest, process, and distribute to farm programs and partners.
• Teach and engage students, interns, and volunteers.

Skills

Organic farming

Youth engagement

Record keeping

Irrigation maintenance

Tools

Hydroponic systems

Controlled environments

Job description

Company description

Founded in 2002, Jones Valley Teaching Farm (JVTF) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) located in Birmingham, Alabama. Envisioning communities inspired by food and transformed by youth, JVTF uses food as a foundation so young people can lead, create, and grow a healthy future for themselves and their community. Learn more at jvtf.org.

Our Culture: The “Teaching Farm” isn’t just part of our name, it’s the heart of our mission. Every team member plays a vital role in educating, mentoring, and working alongside students and young people. If you’re energized by passing on your knowledge and skills while doing meaningful work, you’ll thrive here.

Job description

A Jones Valley Teaching Farm Grower produces food and maintains learning spaces across JVTF's sixteen Teaching Farms and hydroponic classrooms. A Grower sows, transplants, irrigates, manages pests and soil, operates hydroponic systems, harvests, and keeps the records. This work upholds the organization’s vision of welcoming, productive, and diverse learning environments

Because JVTF is a Teaching Farm, the Grower works alongside students, interns, apprentices, instructors, and volunteers, and treats every task as a chance to pass on a skill. Growers receive daily coordination, site priorities, and expectations from Farm Managers and Lead Growers.

Reports to: Farm Managers and Lead Growers

Supervises: No formal reports. Supervises interns and directs volunteers on site.

Based at: Jones Valley Teaching Farm Center for Food Education for the current season.

The Grower position is a rotational role that supports production and farm operations across all JVTF farm sites in Birmingham, Alabama. Site placements are determined by organizational needs and programmatic priorities.

Core Responsibilities

In-Ground and Raised-Bed Production

• Sow, transplant, and direct-seed according to each site's crop plan; communicate changes to the Farm Operations Manager and site instructors
  Irrigation oversight; troubleshoot and repair drip and overhead irrigation
  Manage soil health through composting, cover cropping, amendments, and fertigation
  Scout for pests and disease weekly; treat using approved methods
  Prune, trellis, weed, and flip beds to keep plantings productive and on time
  Maintain orchards, perennials, pollinator mounds, and edges so sites read as cared-for learning spaces

Controlled Environment Agriculture

• Operate hydroponic and vertical systems at assigned sites: nutrient mixing, pH and EC monitoring, lighting, water changes, and system cleaning
  Sow, transplant, and harvest hydroponic crops on a production calendar
  Diagnose and fix routine system faults (pumps, lines, timers); elevate larger repairs
  Log system readings and yields so production can be compared across sites
  Complete controlled environment agriculture training; all farm staff are expected to grow in soil and in controlled-environment systems

Harvest, Processing, and Distribution

• Harvest, wash and pack produce to food-safety standards
  Prepare produce for farm stands, school distribution, culinary programs, CSA program, and partner deliveries
  Keep wash stations, coolers, and harvest tools clean and sanitized

Teaching and Engagement

• Supervise interns assigned to your sites: daily task lists, expectations, skills coaching, and feedback
  Work alongside students, interns, and volunteers; turn daily tasks into teachable moments
  Lead volunteer shifts and school workdays: task lists, safety briefings, waivers, check-in, and supervision
  Support instructors at school sites with planting guidance, harvest training, and quick answers
  Give and lead farm tours when scheduled

Site Stewardship

• Keep assigned sites clean, organized, and safe; maintain tools, equipment, sheds, wash stations, and compost systems
  Report structural, electrical, or main-line water issues to the Farm Operations Manager and Facilities Manager
  Maintain bed records, pest and amendment logs, harvest logs, and volunteer records
  Purchase supplies within approved budgets and keep inventory current

Please note that this job description is not designed to provide a comprehensive list of all activities, duties, or responsibilities required of the employee for this position. Job responsibilities may change at any time and without prior notice.

Physical Requirements

• Able to perform physically demanding farm work outdoors in Alabama heat, cold, and rain: lifting 50 lbs, bending, kneeling, and standing for extended periods
  Able to safely operate and maintain hand tools, power tools, mowers, and farm vehicles
  Willing to work weekends and early mornings or evenings (when needed)

Qualifications

• Two or more seasons of hands-on experience growing using organic, sustainable, or regenerative practices (farm, garden, school garden, or equivalent)
  Hands-on experience with, or demonstrated ability to learn, hydroponic or other controlled-environment growing systems
  Experience working with young people, volunteers, or learners in any setting
  Comfortable keeping digital records
  Preferred: experience in a school, nonprofit, or community food setting; pest and disease identification; irrigation repair; food-safety training

Personal Attributes

• Self-directed and able to accomplish tasks without waiting to be told
  Observant: notices opportunities to improve and addresses issues
  Clear and kind in giving direction to interns and volunteers, and quick to accept feedback
  Steady under a changing schedule; treats a site change as the job, not a disruption
  Positive, constructive, and curious about learning new growing methods

Compensation

this position is: salaried, $35,568* - $50,000

Deadline

November 23, 2026