The program

Apprenticeships

Serving as a host farm

How to participate

Events 

Contact info:

• Farmers: Chris and Shawna Tecklenburg
• Farm address: 1540 W 12^th Ave, Hutchinson KS, 67501
• Phone: 620-200-6997
• Email: teckfarms@gmail.com

About the farm:

• Crops produced: Vegetables, herbs, eggs
• Farm size: 5.5 acres
• Style: Certified organic
• Years in operation: 5
• Sales: On-farm; Grocery stores (Dillons and Smiths)

Apprenticeship:

• Looking for a volunteer apprentice (may receive produce and/or percentage of sales as compensation)
• Work is from March-October, 20 hours/week, very flexible

Why do you want to host an apprentice?

• Our mission and vision at Teck Farms is twofold: we are an LLC providing local grown organic food to the local community, and we also established a 501c3 foundation to provide education on soil, plant, and vegetable relationships and how they impact humans and environment. It is truly a collaborative effort to share knowledge and build strong communities!

Good to know:

• It is our first year producing 150-200 lbs of tomatoes daily and delivering to two grocery stores. Would love to show how we start seed in succession and maintain that production throughout the semi-determinate growing season.  We will be growing other vegetables as well (other tomatoes, peppers, jalapenos, squash, etc.) We have food processing license with KDA to process and bag a 5 species lettuce blend.  We hope to host many workshops and tours throughout the growing season.
• We are a family owned farm in Hutchinson KS. I am 47 years old with wife 42 years, son 15, son 13, and daughter 11. We love food!! We have approximately 5 urban acres of land to grow vegetables. We are currently growing in 7 high tunnels that are 30X72 feet. We are certified USDA organic by the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture and Forestry. I have a job with USDA-NRCS and my wife is full time worker at the farm.
• I’m all about transparency! I will be open and honest in all everything. Please feel free to contact me prior to commitment with any questions.

Contact info:

• Farmer: Tom Brown
• Farm address: 11249 SW 160th St, Rose Hill, KS 67133
• Phone: 316-518-8907
• Email: meadowlarkfarmllc@icloud.com

About the farm:

• Crops produced: Vegetables, small and tree fruit, hard apple cider
• Farm size: 80 acres
• Style: Sustainable (use of chemical treatments in limited ways)
• Years in operation: 11
• Sales: Farmers markets, restaurants, on-farm sales

Apprenticeship:

• Looking for a paid or volunteer apprentice (may receive produce as compensation)
• Work is throughout the growing season for a minimum of one 8-hour work day per week, up to 40 hrs/week
• Looking for an apprentice who is ready to work like a regular employee and who is committed to developing their skills so that they can work independently with minimal supervision. This may take weeks of doing one thing, such as pruning trees or thinning fruit. This position isn’t a buffet of interesting farm tasks, but is an opportunity to gain a high level of horticultural skill with speed and proficiency, through rigorous, careful repetition. 

Why do you want to host an apprentice?

• We want provide apprenticing opportunities to help increase the number of skilled horticulture workers in the Wichita area.

Good to know:

• Take a look at our website for more information on our farm’s background! 

 Contact info:

• Farmer: Bryan Mann
• Farm address: 6145 North Maize Road, Maize, KS 67101
• Phone: 316-641-5789
• Email: johnmann3@cox.net

About the farm:

• Crops produced: Vegetables
• Farm size: 1 acre
• Style: Sustainable (use of chemical treatments in limited ways)
• Years in operation: 12
• Sales: Farmer’s market, restaurants, (Common Ground Mobile Market)

Apprenticeship:

• Looking for a volunteer apprentice (may receive produce as compensation)
• Work is from April 1 – August 31, 4-8 hours per week
• Looking for someone who is willing to learn many components of our farming operation. We believe an apprenticeship should be more about the apprentice than the farm itself. As such, apprentices will participate in on-site tutorials covering hugelkultur concepts, biochar creation, low tunnel and high tunnel growing, various composting methods including Johnson-Su bioreactors, and compost tea formation. The apprentice will participate in all aspects of the farm operation – planting, growing, harvesting, processing, storage, and marketing. Fridays are an important harvest day and apprentices will be encouraged to participate in the harvest and processing aspects of specialty crop farming. Apprentices will also be expected to participate in one Farmers’ Market experience but may elect to participate in all of the weekly markets as well.

Why do you want to host an apprentice?

• As stewards of the land, we acknowledge our responsibility to share the farming tradition with novice growers and other interested parties. We feel it is important to preserve and pass on the age-old process of growing food with sane and responsible principles.

Good to know:

• Victory Gardens is a serious-minded specialty crop operation that utilizes organic methods and sustainable techniques. We take our name from the WW II Victory Gardens. In 1945, Victory Gardens, consisting of citizen farmers, grew over 40% of all the vegetables in the USA. We believe this historical lesson translates into many contemporary positives: Reconnection with the land, individual and group empowerment, while providing healthier food produced in an energy efficient manner. We believe the sine qua non of superior farming is to produce nutrient dense food with the lowest carbon signature possible.

Contact info:

• Farmers: Susan and Don Rommelfanger
• Farm address: 7261 NE 140th St, Cassoday KS 66842
• Phone: 316-621-0128
• Email: rommeyfarmsllc@gmail.com

About the farm:

• Crops produced: Vegetables, herbs, cut flowers, value-added products, eggs
• Farm size: 52 acres
• Style: Organic
• Years in operation: 8
• Sales: Restaurant, on-farm, CSA, online

Apprenticeship:

• Looking for a paid or volunteer apprentice (volunteers may receive produce as compensation)
• Work is from April 1-July 31, 15-20 hours per week
• Looking for someone who can help with recordkeeping and troubleshooting problems towards maximizing efficiency, ensuring product quality (including following specific procedures to guarantee uniformity), and minimizing waste. Preferred hours include Thursdays and Sundays from noon-6pm, but can be flexible.

Why do you want to host an apprentice?

• We want to work with younger people who want to learn!

Good to know:

• I (Susan) grew up on a farm north of Towanda, Kansas. My love of gardening blossomed under the guidance of my father who encouraged and inspired me from a very young age. I find it empowering and awe-inspiring to put in the work, bury something deep, nurture it, and watch it grow into something beautiful. That’s exactly what we’re doing here at Rommey Farms.
• Ever since I was a little girl it’s been my dream to bring fresh, locally grown, sustainably produced foods to my community and the surrounding area. In 2015 I added a partner in crime to my dream, my husband and co-producer, Don.
• In 2016 we established Rommey Farms in the heart of the Flint Hills, just west of Cassoday. With a half-acre tilled from a cattle holding pen, the garden was planted on the land following sustainable agriculture practices.
• We grow a variety of vegetables including lettuces, radishes, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, and so much more. We love our egg-laying chickens and ducks and recently added an apiary so we could produce our own honey. In the spring and summer time we love our fresh cut flowers and think they are a perfect addition to any dinner table.
• We sell directly to our customers through our farm stand, online store, pop-up tent sales and CSA program.
• Most of all, we love putting food on the tables of our friends and family and being able to come together with those people and share a true bond. That’s the way the farmer to consumer relationship used to be and that’s what we’re trying to bring back to life.

Contact info:

• Farmers: Lauren Scislowski 
• Farm address: 945 S Wichita St. Wichita KS 67213
• Phone number: 316-347-9664
• Email: lauren.scislowski@gmail.com

About the farm:

• Crops produced: Vegetables, herbs, tree and small fruit
• Farm size: less than one acre
• Style: Organic
• Years in operation: 9
• Sales: Farmer’s markets, restaurant sales, on-farm sales, CSA

Apprenticeship:

• Looking for a paid apprentice and possibly an additional volunteer apprentice (may receive produce as compensation)
• Work is from March through October, average of 10 hours per week
• Looking for someone who is either a current participant or graduate of our youth program for the paid apprenticeship. For the volunteer apprenticeship, looking for someone who is interested in non-profit work and youth development.

Why do you want to host an apprentice?

• We are a unique program here in Wichita and if someone is interested in what we do, I want to be hospitable and let them participate.

Good to know:

• We are a faith-based youth development organization. We do not require volunteers or staff to be of any particular faith. Here’s our mission statement: “Legacy is a community of hope that fosters discovery, creativity, and accountability in youth.” The GardenWorks program in particular focuses on promoting food access and awareness of healthy eating, in addition to environmental sustainability.

Contact info:

• Farmers: Jimmy Vo and Liz Jackal
• Farm address: 5555 S. Meridian Ave., Wichita, KS 67217
• Phone: 316-214-3022
• Email: jnomad9@gmail.com

About the farm:

• Crops produced: Vegetables, tree and small fruit, herbs, eggs and poultry
• Farm size: 3 acres
• Style: Organic
• Years in operation: 12
• Sales: Farmer’s markets, restaurants

Apprenticeship:

• Looking for a paid or volunteer apprentice (may receive produce as compensation)
• Work is from April through November
• Looking for someone who is ready to work hard and learn! We are a very fast paced farm. Be prepared for early morning starts and learning to do everything start to finish. Special projects could be given on permaculture development and understanding.

Why do you want to host an apprentice?

• Teaching people how to grow and sustain in farming is important to us.

Good to know:

• We have evolved over the years on what we do here at Kan-Grow. We continually strive to grow better and stronger in trying reach true sustainability as a small farm. We do have value added products and we are a family oriented farm. We have poultry, bees, and a small orchard, and we use beyond organic practices.

Contact info:

• Farmers: Sandy Allen
• Farm address: 14401 W 117^th N, Sedgwick, KS 67135
• Phone: 316-796-1932
• Email: beaverteacher@gmail.com

About the farm:

• Crops produced: Vegetables, tree fruit, eggs and poultry, beef and pork
• Farm size: About 1 of 10 acres total is used for the garden
• Style: Sustainable (use of chemical treatments in limited ways)
• Years in operation: 20 years
• Sales: Farmers market

Apprenticeship:

• Looking for a volunteer apprentice (may receive produce as compensation)
• Work is available on weekday evenings and Saturdays during the school year; after school is out, more hours during the week are available.
• Looking for someone who can do seeding, transplanting, care of the greenhouse, and planting various crops in the garden as spring approaches. There is also some harvesting and preparing for market on Fridays.

Why do you want to host an apprentice?

• I would like to pass on my knowledge of farming to another person who is interested in starting their own piece of land regardless of how large or small.

Good to know:

• My primary crop is onions, approximately 25 to 30 thousand, in addition to approximately 100 tomatoes and 200 pepper plants, half of which are from jalapenos on up to ghost, scorpions, and reapers. There are also several varieties of squash and eggplant. I raise Holstein calves and pigs for meat for our family – the meat does not go to the market. I have chickens that produce eggs for our family and the market. I compost manure for the potting mix used in the greenhouse for plants taking to market. Some compost/manure is put on the garden. I try to be as organic as possible, but at times spays are needed to control plants such as poison ivy.