Orchard Technician Members - Capitol Reef National Park

American Conservation Experience, a nonprofit Conservation Corps, in partnership with Capitol Reef National Park, is seeking 2 Members to serve alongside the Resource Management & Science (RMS) division's projects within the park's Orchard Program to assist with planting and maintenance of newly established landscape trees, as well as management of the park's historic orchards.

For more information about ACE, please visit our website.

01/04/2027
* Pending funding approval

01/01/2028
* a 52-week minimum commitment is required *

Capitol Reef National Park, Torrey, UT

Capitol Reef National Park is in Utah's south-central desert. It surrounds a long wrinkle in the earth known as the Waterpocket Fold, with layers of golden sandstone, canyons and striking rock formations. Among the park's sights are the Chimney Rock pillar, the Hickman Bridge arch, and white sandstone domes.

For more information about Capitol Reef please visit the NPS website.

The ACE recruited intern will obtain hands-on experience working in the field and in the office with NPS employees as they manage newly planted landscape trees, as well as the park's historic orchards. The park is currently engaged in replanting over 100 landscape trees throughout the Fruita Rural Historic District, and the Orchard Intern will assist park staff with preparing for, maintaining, irrigating, training, monitoring, and overall care of these trees as they are planted and begin their lives.

The intern will primarily be assigned with the above duties throughout the growing and dormant seasons.

The Orchard intern will also assist the horticulturist and other staff with orchard and vegetation management, receiving daily oversight and guidance. Orchard management activities will consist of tree care such as winter, spring, and summer pruning, tree planting and irrigation, insect and pest monitoring, and implementing integrated pest management strategies.

Employing the intern for a full-year season will give a strong understanding of the entire landscape and orchard tree growing seasons, and this close-up introduction and familiarity with the park and its orchards will further instill a sense of resource stewardship.

The Orchard intern will also be provided with opportunities to learn about applied horticulture science and application of botanical and horticultural practices in a unique setting. They will learn hands-on horticulture practices such as pruning, watering, soil, pest, and cover crop management, grafting, and tree stabilization within the context of historical preservation. The position will also provide personal and professional development that will contribute new knowledge and perspectives for future application in various science and environmental fields.

This individual placement is meant to facilitate professional development and promotes exposure to land management agencies and networking with professionals. This could include gaining experience in different conservation fields and shadowing different work groups.

The usual schedule is 4/10's, Monday through Thursday from 7AM to 5:30PM with a 30 minute lunch. This has the potential to change to a 5/4/9 or 5/8 schedule, or to weekend days as program needs and seasonal changes require. Typically, the 5/4/9 or 5/8 schedules and weekend coverage are used only in the shortest winter days, and for specific project or field needs.

Living Allowance: The ACE Member is expected to contribute ~40 hours/week and will receive a living allowance of $800/week to offset the costs of food and incidental expenses, dispersed bi-weekly.

This position is part of the Public Land Corps Hiring Authority: Members serving under this agreement must meet the PLC Eligibility Requirements to be considered for this position. Members may be eligible for a federal hiring authority upon completion of their term of service and 640 hours of service. If the duration of a PLC-eligible term is not long enough for Members to accrue 640 hours of service (~16 weeks), the total hours served at the completion of the term may be eligible to be combined with hours accrued from another PLC-eligible term to meet the 640 hours requirement.

PLC projects also include specific eligibility requirements such as age (You must be between the ages of 16 and 30. Some agencies also interpret these guidelines to include…