Internships

Click here for a PDF of the Internship Description.

Experience community life on a human-powered, organic vegetable farm. We are seeking interns with a passion for food sovereignty-based agriculture and social justice to work with us this growing season. Our internships take place between mid-May and mid-October and can range from 2-5 months, depending on the intern’s interest and our availability.

Farm Overview
In operation since 2008, Mustard Seed Community Farm is an evolving 11-acre volunteer-based farm dedicated to ethical food production and distribution, ecological land use, mutual aid, and community building. Using organic and sustainable methods, we grow a diverse variety of vegetables, fruits, and flowers for local food donation sites, our workers, and paying CSA members. We donate about ¾ of all the food we grow to the community.

The farm raises chickens, several sheep, and bees in addition to practicing prairie and savanna reconstruction. We are located near Ames, Iowa. Our farm is a part of the Catholic Worker movement, which is an interfaith, inclusive, social justice movement. We welcome persons of all backgrounds, spiritual beliefs, genders, and sexualities.

Job Description and Responsibilities
Interns will play a vital role in the life of the farm by assisting with daily chores (such as animal care and cooking meals) and providing 30/hrs week of labor with responsibilities including:

• Physical farm labor (weeding, mulching, hoeing, etc.)
• Support and leadership at our twice-weekly community harvests
• Care for a specific crop of their choosing
• Group cooperation in daily planning & participation in consensus decision-making

Opportunities

• Participate in weekly farm classes on a variety of topics in regenerative agriculture including: crop rotation, permaculture, soil science, and more.
Develop skills in folk arts.
Gain research experience in collaboration with the Practical Farmers of Iowa.
Write (or draw) for our CSA newsletters, social media, or mailing list.
Plan and host community events on the farm (potlucks, workshops, or field trips).
Participate in cultivating and selling locally-adapted prairie plant seedlings at the Ames Farmers Market.

Qualifications

• An interest in food sovereignty-based agriculture and social justice
• An ability to work with people of diverse backgrounds
• An acceptance of the challenge of simple living conditions including:
  Limited access to hot running water, electricity, and internet
  Heat and humidity
  Physical horticultural labor inc. weeding, mulching, hoeing, etc.
In addition to these basic qualifications, we are seeking applicants with agricultural and communications skills, such as:
• Annual/perennial horticultural skills and knowledge
• Farm systems management experience
• Community outreach/education/communication
• Basic fluency in Spanish

We encourage you to apply if you don’t meet all the qualifications but have a strong desire to intern with us. We generally require interns who would like to live on the farm during their internship to be at least 18 years old.

Additional Details
Simple room and board are provided on the farm. We are located in a rural setting 12 miles outside of Ames, Iowa. Generally, our interns are expected to work 30hrs/week, including during our community harvests (Tuesdays and Fridays beginning at 6:30 AM). We typically ask our interns to work on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays and either Thursdays or Saturdays (depending on the needs of that particular week). During the summer season, we host a variety of weekend and evening events including potlucks, community workshops, and volunteer shifts. We encourage our interns to participate in these events, and some will require support from our interns. We also participate in the Ames Farmers Market on Saturday mornings (6:30 AM - 1:00 PM) in June.

Although the internship is unpaid, the farm can help to connect interns with partner organizations that provide a stipend. Free time can be spent in personally chosen activities at the farm, visiting with host families (who provide additional support to interns who live on the farm with us), connecting with other area groups/opportunities, and exploring the surrounding area. Plenty of learning, working, and fun are close at hand as an intern at our rural Iowa location.

How To Apply
Send a cover letter with your personal goals for the internship, resume, and 2 references to mustardseedbee@gmail.com and outreach.mustardseed@gmail.com or apply in the Handshake system, if applicable. Applications will be considered in the order received, with a final deadline of March 15, 2026.



Questions? Feel free to reach out to us! We’d love to hear from you:mustardseedbee@gmail.com | 978.471.8414 | https://mustardseedfarm.org/