Position Summary:

The Plant Health Supervisor will be responsible for overseeing the health, growth, and development of citrus trees within the nursery. This role focuses on identifying, preventing, and treating plant diseases, pest infestations, and nutritional deficiencies specific to citrus trees. As well as implement plant health programs and ensure that nursery operations meet high-quality standards for citrus tree production. The role is essential to support organizational goals and model best practices, guided by our values of Excellence, Accountability, Transparency and Stewardship (EATS). 

Job Duties and Responsibilities:

• Oversees irrigation department ensures all products are properly irrigated, nutrition is being injected accurately, and water testing is performed according to schedule, ensuring the water is being used efficiently during irrigation run off. 
• Leads spray team, ensures scouting is completed weekly for all facilities. Works with production managers to schedule spray based on scouting report as well as any other preventative maintenance sprays. 
• Develops pest control plan (as required) to prevent the spread of insects, diseases, and weeds. 
• Manages climate control and alterations for all Greenhouse and Screenhouse space.
• Ensures a beneficial predatory mite program. Responsible for ordering, purchasing, and releasing beneficial insects. 
• Visits greenhouses/screenhouses regularly to scout for pests and deficiencies 80/20, conduct Weekly Grower Walk Meetings with Irrigation dept Supervisor Monday mornings. 
• Manages nutritional fertility program. Works with the nutritional advisor to ensure recommendations are passed to the Irrigation lead by Wednesday Grower meetings.
• Trains and advises nursery staff in plant health processes. Communicates plant needs with area Supervisors and Management.
• Maintains all logs and files for pesticides and fertilizer applications, nutritional sampling, EC pours, PCA recommendations, pesticide purchases, etc.
• Procures all pesticides, fertilizers, and plant health materials and ensures they are available for immediate use by managing stock. Uses prudent buying methods to evaluate costs. 
• Obtains PCA recommendations in a timely fashion. Updates Spray calendar by Friday afternoon with clear instruction on rate, material name, location, and REI. Coordinates spray recommendations with Spray Lead and Production Manager. 
• Ensures Spray personnel are properly certified and maintains records accordingly. 
• Trains production staff in diagnostics skills such as, pH testing, EC testing, pathogen testing, nematode sampling, etc. 
• Tests growing media to evaluate pH and soluble salts, including collecting, preparing, and processing of growing media and plant tissue samples.
• Ensures personal protective equipment is available and properly maintained for Plant Health staff.
• Ensures greenhouse safety by following greenhouse SOPs on hazard communication, posts signage, giving advance notice of chemical applications, and maintains application records in a publicly accessible area.
• Completes all required paperwork, including work orders and monthly reports.
• Reports maintenance needs within plant Health department. 
• Ensures fertility and spray equipment are properly calibrated prior to use.
• Follows operating budgets by purchasing, tracking, and coding nursery expenses accordingly. 
• Manages trial implementation data collecting and storage. 
• Ensures a safe work environment for all personnel assigned to chemical use. Adheres to all federal, state, and local regulations. Maintains knowledge of applicable laws, rules, and regulations governing pesticide usage.
• Executes strong supervisory and leadership skills.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Essential Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each duty satisfactorily, including all important aspects of the job- whether performed daily, weekly, monthly, or annually; and any duty that occurs at irregular intervals. Reasonable Accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• In-depth knowledge of citrus tree biology, diseases, pests, and nutrition.
• Expertise in identifying and treating citrus-specific diseases.
• Proficiency in developing and implementing pest control strategies for citrus trees.
• Strong supervisory and team leadership skills.
• Ability to diagnose plant health issues and implement effective solutions.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills for reporting, team coordination, and training.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Horticulture, Plant Science, Agronomy, or related field, with a focus on citrus or tree crops preferred.
• Minimum of 3-5 years of experience in plant health management within a nursery or agricultural environment, with specific experience in citrus tree care. Supervisory experience preferred.
• Certification in pesticide application or pest control (e.g., Certified Crop Advisor, Pesticide Applicator License) is required.
• Intermediate to advance level computer skills with Microsoft 365 (Outlook, Excel, Word, Teams, etc.) and Bizspeed
• Bilingual verbal and written English/Spanish, preferred.