Crop Technician Apprentice

As a Crop Technician Apprentice, you will learn all aspects of production from propagation to despatch. This will include growing a successful crop, including general care, watering, feeding, crop monitoring, and adjusting the growing environment.

General Nursery Tasks

• Despatch work: selecting, traying up, collecting, preparing plants for despatch, labelling, packing, and cling wrapping, assembly of Danish trolleys
• Potting: machine potting, planting, setting plants down, supplying machine with pots and plants. Hand potting of young plants or final pots
• Plant care: trimming, weeding, caning, and tying, watering using hose and lance
• Propagation: filling trays, collecting, preparing, and sticking in the cuttings
• Mini-tractor driving: including transportation of plants and Danish trolleys
• Nursery hygiene: including disposal of dead or diseased plants and cleaning of growing areas
• Maintenance: assisting with work on nursery structures, roads, and facilities
• Ensuring that Health and Safety procedures are adhered to throughout and Risk Assessments followed

Training

You will undertake training on crop protection allowing you to recognise and manage common pest and diseases through the application of biological controls and chemical crop spraying.

Course Contents

• Identify and mitigate risks to promote and maintain health, safety, and security. (Core)
• Manage accurate paper or digital records within the workplace. (Core)
• Maintain and operate machinery and equipment in accordance with manufacturer operating instructions. (Core)
• Maximise economic sustainability by optimising plant growth when carrying out operations. (Core)
• Establish crops to ensure efficient and sustainable growth. (Core)
• Operate vehicles in accordance with manufacturer operating instructions. (Core)
• Control pests, weeds, and diseases using integrated pest management. (Core)
• Apply and store pest management treatments in accordance with standard operating procedures, legislation, and regulations. (Core)
• Carry out plant nutrient application or irrigation tasks required by the crop. (Core)
• Carry out harvesting and dispatch operations. (Core)
• Assess and monitor crops for quality, performance, and specification requirements. (Core)
• Select harvesting techniques taking account of crop condition and quality requirements. (Core)
• Maintain biosecurity and hygiene practices in line with legislation, regulations, and organisational requirements. (Core)
• Keep harvested crops in suitable conditions to maintain quality. (Core)
• Maintain soils or substrates to ensure sustainable, efficient, and healthy growth. (Core)
• Sample and evaluate soil or substrate health to determine nutrition requirements. (Core)
• Comply with health and safety legislation, regulations, guidelines, and procedures relevant to own role. (Core)
• Participate in learning and CPD activities. (Core)
• Manage own time to achieve tasks to schedule.
• Consider different approaches to current working practices, identifying improvements, developments, and innovative ideas. (Core)
• Set and monitor machinery performance to ensure good seed or plant establishment and crop growth. (Soil based)
• Set machinery and equipment taking into account the crop, environment, soil condition, and specification requirements. (Soil based)
• Maintain non-productive areas. (Soil based)
• Assess the impact of machinery on soil structure and identify potential damage in accordance with legislation. (Soil based)
• Optimise growth conditions for crops, based on the specific needs of the plant relative to the environment. (Container based)
• Maintain productive and non-productive areas. (Container based)
• Plan for and carry out the removal of waste materials following harvest or dispatch. (Container based)
• Evaluate and select different growing mediums taking into account site conditions and production requirements. (Container based)