Small town urban home with organic garden close to amenities and recreational opportunities.
British Columbia
I'm a recently retired man who lives on my own on a lovely property in the historic neighbourhood of a friendly and progressive small town on Vancouver Island. I have an active social life and love to get outdoors or in the garden as much as possible. My friends say I'm fun, relaxed and kind, and have a good sense of humour. There are no pets that live with me although there are some demanding hummingbirds living in the yard that get annoyed if I don't keep their feeders well stocked.
I'm looking for some help with a few interesting garden projects that are too much for me to do on my own (or would take me too long) and I'd love to share the learning and accomplishments with someone who is keen to learn some skills and see big results from the work we will do together.
The main projects are to set up a greenhouse in the back yard, build some new blueberry beds in the side yard, renovate my front yard into a native plant garden, rebuild some stone pathways, and other garden planting. The greenhouse, blueberry garden and native plant garden projects will also involve setting up drip irrigation systems.
An average day would involve some focussed time on one of the main projects on the list below. These projects will provide opportunities to learn a lot of urban gardening skills and specific knowledge related to each project. If time allows there may also be some general gardening tasks such as weeding and going to nurseries.
The specific main projects to accomplish together include:
GREENHOUSE (10' x 6.5' x 8')
-- helping with foundations, including digging some trenches and filling with gravel, and assembling a wooden foundation 12" high (this may already be done by the time a WWOOFer arrives)
-- assembling and erecting the Planta greenhouse (2-3 days work)
-- preparing raised beds inside the greenhouse for tomatoes
-- installing a drip irrigation system and hose tap
-- planting tomatoes in the beds and peppers in pots
BLUEBERRY GARDEN
-- preparing the ground (or filling raised beds if I get them made)
-- preparing the areas around the beds (walkways)
-- planting blueberry bushes
-- installing drip irrigation in the beds
-- (possibly) replacing any remaining grass in the side yard with flower beds (not decided yet about this element)
NATIVE PLANT GARDEN
Designing and planting a BC native plant garden under a large beech and walnut tree in the front yard, including:
-- participating in planning of the plantings, choosing species and design their groupings and arrangements according to the micro-conditions of the garden areas
-- preparing the areas (clearing grass and existing plants, preparing the soil)
-- collecting large sword ferns and other native plants from a friend's property
-- going to the native plant nursery with me to get more plant supply as needed (I already have a number of backbone local species to start)
-- planting everything
-- building out the drip irrigation system for the newly planted areas
STONE PATHWAYS
The three existing stone pathways were poorly done (by me, a few years ago) and need to be lifted and relaid properly:
-- lifting the existing flagstones and moving them out of the way
-- preparing the paths by re-leveling the ground, laying a proper sand base layer and installing benderboard borders
-- re-laying the flagstones levelled and with more space between them and filling in the gaps with more sand or peagravel (final material to be chosen together)
MISCELLANEOUS
-- weeding
-- improving soil, composting and mulching
-- planting flowers and perennials
My house is large and there's lots of space to relax and hang out. You will have your own bedroom and a bathroom that will be mostly just for your use, although the bathroom may occasionally be shared when I have an out-of-town guest staying overnight (see photos).
I am vegetarian (mostly vegan actually) and am hoping we can cook and eat healthy vegan and vegetarian dinners together. You will have open access to the kitchen whenever you want. There is an excellent outdoor gas BBQ if you want to grill meat for yourself. Breakfasts and lunches will mostly be yours to prepare for yourself at your leisure, although we may eat breakfast together if you like hot oatmeal with fruit and nuts. I have a really good coffee machine for making incredible espresso drinks!!
The house has a large sheltered patio for outdoor relaxation with a view over the back garden and it's fun to sit out here and read or watch the antics of the resident hummingbirds. There is also a lovely hot tub spa under an apple tree in the backyard that you'd be welcome to use at your leisure.
I live in the historic area close to the small village centre with coffee shops, brew-pubs, retail stores, grocery stores and restaurants all within easy walking and bicycling distance, and there is a riverside park at the end of the block. There are more wooded parks with river or estuary shoreline access within short walking distance and bike trails as well (there is a road/trail bike you'd be welcome to use). The river is close by for tubing and cold dips and there are some beaches a short driving distance away. There are a couple of gyms in the neighbourhood and a recreational centre all within walking distance.
This is a nature and outdoor-activity oriented town and there are many gorgeous forests and hikes within walking distance or a short car trip away. If you are a mountain biker then we are close to one of the best mountain biking areas in the world (in the neighbouring village) and there are places to rent mountain bikes there. I love to go walking in the forest or by the beaches, or do light to moderate hikes and would be keen to hike together and show you some of the natural beauty of our area.
Read more
Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Fruit or nut farming
Flower farming
Mechanics / tools / technology
Mentoring opportunities
LGBTQ+-operated
Host type
Self-sufficiency property
0.1
Hectares
|
0.2
Acres
Warren
Member since 2026
Languages spoken:
English
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Response rate: 100%
British Columbia
Comox YYQ, Courtenay bus depot, IslandLink bus
My past WWOOFers
Warren has not had any confirmed visits.
Reviews
This host doesn't have reviews yet. Be the first to review Warren!
