Greenhouse Technician

We are looking for a responsible and highly motivated individual to join the Controlled Environments Team. Here, you will help us grow what’s next. No matter what your role, you will be part of a team that is building the future of agriculture – solving the world’s food problems through innovation, technology, and putting people first. We have an exciting opportunity to join our company at our Johnston, Iowa research facility. This position will primarily assist with preparation and execution of routine duties such as seeding, pollinating, transplanting plants, watering, harvesting, tissue sampling, and data collection and handling, along with general greenhouse work while maintaining a professional, clean, and safe work environment and meeting all compliance standards.

We are looking for candidates who take initiative, love to learn, work hard, and have a stable work history.

Duties/Responsibilities:

• Daily greenhouse plant care such as checking for watering needs, harvesting, discarding plants, seed processing & handling for corn, soybean, wheat, and other crops.
• Move carts of plants in and out of greenhouses and assist with experiments, collecting data, and maintaining records.
• Safely run threshing machinery as trained and as outlined in the protocols. Follow all safety and process protocols at all times.
• Perform routine greenhouse sanitation tasks such as discarding regulated material, destroying waste, cleaning pots/containers, cleaning, and sanitizing rooms.
• For all processes, carefully maintain plant/seed identity for thousands of unique identities at a time.

Job Qualifications:

• High school diploma/GED required.
• Bachelor's degree in an agriculture, horticulture, biology, or related field or three or more years of related experience or equivalent amounts of relevant education and experience is preferred.
• Experience with safely operating machinery and/or following protocols is also preferred.
• Ability to pay close attention to detail and follow standard operating and safety/ergonomics protocols is essential.
• Excellent communication and organizational skills, a high degree of self-motivation, a positive attitude, and the ability to work well independently as well as a team member with minimal supervision.
• Basic computer skills preferred, including MS Office programs (Word, Excel, Outlook), and ability to gain competency with internally-developed research software.
• Must be able to stand and sit for long periods of time and lift at a minimum 30 lbs. Must be able to tolerate hours of repetitive work in a warm, humid greenhouse with pollen present year-round.