Organic Gardening News

When you look out a window at your deck or patio at this time of the year, what do you see?

I’m able to enjoy the unique beauty of two corkscrew willows, Salix Tortuosa. They’re planted in containers and, on sunny days, their contorted branches look magnificent as their many twists and curls are beautifully accentuated. At night, we illuminate them with mini LED lights. With our longer and darker evenings, they look absolutely magical.  

On warm summer days, they provide great shade and make a nice screen. Throughout the year, birds love to rest on the branches, and hummingbirds sit on them often between drinking nectar of nearby pollinator pots.  

Salix trees are excellent sources of interesting cut stems for accenting containers. Hardy to zone 3, they require very little care and withstand our coldest winters. In summer, all they really need is a daily drink and a little slow-release nutrient to keep them in great shape.  

We have the green stemmed variety, but for an even more dramatic winter look, you may want to choose a bright yellow- or a scarlet-stemmed variety.  

In the garden, most salix plants need to be root pruned or cut back hard on a regular basis to keep them in check, because they can reach 32 feet (10 metres) in height in just a few years. When containerized, however, they are well behaved and are a constant source of enjoyment, but you must not let them dry out.  

At this time of the year, the willow family has much to offer. At the flower auction in Burnaby, the earliest blooming pussy willows, Salix discolor, are being showcased and sold as cut stems. Local cut flower growers are producing a series of varieties that bloom in sequence and can be harvested from January until early March. Stems of pussy willows are very much in demand as they look so good combined with early spring flowers, such as daffodils, tulips and iris. Many folks are using them as dried flowers in a vase as they can last well over a year. There are lots with unique catkins that have been collected and propagated over the past several years.

A few years ago, at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show in Seattle, growers were selling salix branches that had black catkins. They were incredibly popular; throughout the show I saw dozens of folks carrying bouquets of them. They are available as ornamental plants, but remember, they are fast growing and need to be contained.  

Another interesting variety is the fascinating contorted pussy willow, Salix Sekka or Japanese Fantail Willow. Its branches change from natural, round stems to flat, twisted stems with catkins spaced irregularly along the sides. It, too, should be planted in a container.  

My new favourite is a Japanese variety, called Salix Mount Aso. It has bright pink catkins. I gave one to a friend, and he mentioned that he had gone hiking on that particular mountain range. These catkins open with a touch of silver, then turn a bright pink. It’s a gorgeous salix, and its cut stems are sold in February. Many growers are now producing this variety for late winter colour.  

Willows are growing fast, and they can be grafted into many forms. I love a standard tree form, which makes a beautiful garden specimen. There is also a stunning weeping form of pussy willow called the Kilmarnock tree. It needs to be pruned hard when the catkins finish in early March, thereby allowing many new branches to form for a much fuller tree the next season.  

By far, the most popular willow is the standard grafted form of the dappled willow, Salix Hakuro-nishiki. It has attractive red winter stems, but the true beauty happens in May when the variegated white and green leaves turn a vibrant pink. This wonderful colour lasts for weeks, and it is spectacular. To achieve a stronger, bushier plant overall, prune your Hakuro-nishiki back hard in late summer each year. For willows that produce catkins, the time to prune is just after the catkins finish and before the leaves begin to develop. This will ensure there is enough time for the new wood to produce buds that will open as catkins the following year.  

Because of their aggressive roots, contorted willows and pussy willows tend to be an underused garden plant. When containerized or root pruned, they are deserving of a spot in our gardens or on our patios.  

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“Bunker” isn’t the first image that comes to mind when picturing Whistler homes. “Cottage”, sure. “Cabin,” yes. “Chalet”, of course. “House”, absolutely. But bunker?

“It’s unique because it speaks to the design theory of the home, which is basically this giant concrete bunker,” says realtor David Lewis of Angell Hasman & Associates, who’s handling the listing for the property in Whistler’s Bayshores neighbourhood. “The materials used are so over-engineered. There’s too much of everything everywhere, but in such a cool way.”

In addition to everything concrete, steel and glass everywhere, massive century-old, rough-cut timber beams reclaimed from a warehouse on Vancouver Island add warmth and history to the modern home.

Originally built in 2004 by the eighties punk band DOA as a creative space to write and record (hence the concrete), the current owners undertook a full-scale renovation in 2022. And they spared no expense doing it.

“They replaced the plumbing and electrical systems in the whole home,” says Lewis. “They completely revamped, redesigned, and reimagined all the climate control, installed two heat pump systems, and a super high-end radiator recirculating system that they brought in from England. It was previously heated by two wood fireplaces and baseboard heaters, but they didn’t think it was the most efficient way to make this property warm. So, they ran beautiful custom copper lines throughout. It’s basically this giant recirculating radiator system where even the piping feeding the radiators is designed to radiate heat off of the system itself.”

The owners didn’t stop there. Originally from Europe, they leaned heavily on the continent’s manufacturing expertise. In addition to the English radiator system, they installed a $240,000 kitchen from German manufacturer Bulthaup. “I’ve been selling homes in Whistler for 15 years, and this is only the second Bulthaup I’ve seen; the other one was in a $50 million home in [exclusive neighbourhood] Kadenwood,” says Lewis.

One of the owners, a German art dealer, “Is a very detail- oriented person. She has a great eye for this type of stuff. And her mindset was, if you’re going to do it, do it once, do it right.”

The fully renovated bathrooms are equipped with floating toilets and fixtures from German (naturally) maker Duravit, along with heated towel racks connected to the recirculating heat pump radiator system.

To artfully light up their space, they installed Bocci lights throughout the home at $10,000 a piece, and light switches from British company Buster & Punch for $140 each. Their $150,000 furniture package was custom created to fit the rooms.

A suspended catwalk leading from the main entrance over the office and into the kitchen was constructed from the same reclaimed timber as the beams.

The owners then replaced the garage door with a $30,000 custom-built design by a Finland company that makes aircraft hangar doors. “The garage opening is sufficiently wide but not super tall because there’s a huge steel beam [above],” says Lewis. “With a traditional garage door, you would lose about a foot when it rolls up. They had to leave that ceiling height, so the only option was to bring in this crazy custom door that essentially opens up like an accordion.”

The overall scale of what they created is a marvel, says Lewis. “They built an absolute masterpiece and, at this list price, they’re pretty much losing money. If you do a renovation of this calibre, you possibly will renovate yourself out of the market. But there’s an opportunity here to have a sensational home that you would have to do an incredible amount of work to try to replicate today.”

Lewis says the home is technically a duplex, which could accommodate two families or groups of friends. Or it could easily be combined into one big 4,200 square foot home. “The house is shaped like a big U, with two U shapes stacked on top of one another. It’s a very non-traditional duplex layout [but with] separate property identifiers, separate civic addresses, and separate self-contained entrances. Two families could buy it and have full total legal ownership over their part of it. Or you could have a really lovely three-bedroom upper home and rent the two-bedroom lower suite,” which the current owners do, for $6,000 a month.

What’s outside

The private lot is ensconced by a fully fenced lawn and a big sunny garden, as well as a lap pool and barrel sauna. Multiple live grass roofs, as well as a rooftop patio, overlook Alpha Lake and surrounding mountains. There are also other patios and decks around the home.

In the neighbourhood

The property is located in Whistler’s Bayshores neighbourhood, close to Creekside Village and gondola. “So even though you’re in this really nice, hidden, secluded part of Bayshores, you hop in your car and you’re about a two-minute drive to Creekside Village, where there’s a grocery store, liquor store, fine dining, shopping, coffee shops, gym and yoga,” says Lewis.

There are also several parks and hiking/biking trails nearby, as well as two elementary schools. For anything else, says Lewis, “In Whistler, everything is 10 minutes away.”

Location: 2177 Timber Ridge

Listed for: $5,988,000

Year built: 2004

Type: Five bedrooms, five bathrooms

Size: 4,200 square feet

Realtor: Listed by David Lewis, Angell Hasman & Associates Realty Ltd.

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“Would I want my family to live here?” It’s a question Suraj Jhuty asks himself on every home project. “We always try to build as if our own family is going to live there; as if our siblings or our own mother will live in it,” he says.

For Jhuty, co-principal of Vancouver’s Theorem Developments, this is a kind of gut check — and one he came back to often on a recent design-build in Burnaby’s Capitol Hill neighbourhood.

They wanted to get it right. The lot was a slice of prime hilltop on a mature street, with rippling blue views of Burrard Inlet and the North Shore. The owner had approached Jhuty and his team about redeveloping around the same time that the City of Burnaby changed its zoning to allow laneway homes. The moment felt right to rebuild with extra density and sell.

This is Theorem’s sweet spot, Jhuty says: so-called ‘missing-middle’ housing; denser than a single-family home, but smaller than a typical condo development.

In a traditional neighbourhood like Capitol Hill, however, fit matters. Rather than forcing a hulking or showy structure, the team saw a chance to do something different: a main residence, basement suite and laneway home layered onto one property, yet presenting as a single-family home.

“We still wanted to give it a single-family feel, so if you were driving on that street, you wouldn’t know that there were multiple units on the lot,” says Jhuty. “We really wanted to blend in with the neighbourhood.”

Though intentionally modest, the street view is striking, with a brick-accented white stucco facade, warm wood soffits, black accents and a distinctive arch over the entry. “Our approach here was a refined West Coast modern design,” Jhuty says. “We were really adamant about crisp geometric lines.”

Inside, the kitchen takes centre position on the main floor, with living spaces extending on either side. A formal living room with a gas fireplace faces front, while a casual lounge and TV room occupies the back, opposite sliding-glass doors.

Style-wise, interior designer Janice Schulte Woodward struck a balance that’s warm without slipping into rustic vibes and polished without feeling too precious for everyday life.

An oversized, stone-topped island anchors the kitchen, with space to seat six, surrounded by slimline shaker cabinets in stained oak. A hidden pantry under the stairs houses appliances and keeps overflow storage out of sight but within reach.

A mud room at the back entry borrows brick accents from the home’s exterior, positioned off the laneway-side parking to anticipate the most common path into the home. A connected powder room and tiled floor allow for easy cleanup.

“We knew the end user would most likely have kids, just given the size of this main unit,” says Jhuty. “You know, kids, pets, all those things. It gets a little bit messy when they come in through the main entrance.”

The mud room required a small sacrifice of living space, he adds. But this way, the home’s main entrance foyer can remain an uncluttered and welcoming space for visitors, versus a drop zone for everyday life.

Upstairs, there are three full bedrooms with ensuites. Vaulted ceilings create a grand feel in the primary, with windows oriented to frame the views. The primary bath houses a glass-enclosed shower and free-standing tub — a combination that has disappeared in many new builds, Jhuty notes. Not to mention the 65-square-foot walk-in closet, large enough to function as a dressing room.

Another rarity in a single-family neighbourhood: a rooftop patio. Though compact, the space takes full advantage of the northward views, with water, gas and electrical hookups primed for the homeowner’s desired use.

Downstairs, the basement is carefully divided into a media-flex space for the homeowners and a 550-square-foot suite, which is bright, practical and conceived as a mortgage helper or in-law suite.

Out back, the laneway home sits atop a covered carport. Local code prohibited an enclosed garage, so the structure leans on openness instead. Two cars can tuck underneath, while the laneway residence above functions as a self-contained 500-square-foot home.

Surrounding all of this, landscaping softens the structure. Landscape designer Alex Lerner layered plantings designed to mature into a mix of privacy and openness. At night, the front steps become a subtle light installation, with LED strips tucked under each concrete nosing.

The home sold last summer within a week, even as finishing touches were still going in. The new owners (who prefer to remain anonymous) were coming from a condo and needed extra space for their growing family. They say they didn’t expect to find such a homey feel in a new build — or views, which they thought were only possible in a condo. The two rentable suites helped make the purchase viable.

For Jhuty, the project is proof of how much can be done on a single lot without sacrificing the feel of a traditional home. And what happens when you build with real people in mind.

Project construction: Theorem Developments

Interior design: Janice Schulte Woodward, Studio Chesa

Landscape architecture: Alex Lerner, Milieu Landscape Consulting

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During the past year, I was often asked what I thought would happen to Vancouver’s housing market. My response was simple. There is no Vancouver housing market.

There is a downtown highrise market which differs from the Fraser Valley townhouse market. Similarly, there are rental housing markets and ownership markets catering to first-time buyers, move-up buyers and last-time buyers.

That said, industry associations and experts often generalize about overall sales, housing starts and prices.

At the end of 2024, the B.C. Real Estate Association (BCREA) predicted realtors would enjoy a 13 per cent sales jump in 2025 driven by lower mortgage rates and government policies. Prices were expected to rise modestly.

However, due to U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs announced in early February, it soon became apparent sales were falling far short of expectations and BCREA revised its outlook.

It is now estimated that 2025 will be the year during which the Lower Mainland experienced the lowest number of home sales this century.

While home sales dropped off significantly here, it was even worse in Toronto. In October, only twenty-five new condominiums were sold in the city. To put this in perspective, it is less than the number of players on the unforgettable Toronto Blue Jays baseball team.

Trump’s tariffs also impacted new housing starts. In January 2025, MLA Canada, one of B.C.’s most successful project marketing firms, predicted 125 condominium projects would launch across the Lower Mainland.

However, by year end, MLA tracked only forty-nine launches, sixty per cent below their forecast and only half the Lower Mainland’s ten-year average. However, some of these were subsequently put on hold or converted to rental.

MLA has not issued a 2026 forecast. However, it expects that the coming year could look a lot like last year. For one thing, investors are almost non-existent due to declining rents and a plethora of government policies that discourage investment.

Furthermore, Rennie Intelligence, estimates there could be 3,400 completed and unsold condominiums on the market by year end, and many more thousands still under construction but not yet sold.

In 2026, thousands of purpose-built rental units are also scheduled for completion which could further bring down rents. While this is good news for renters, it is bad news for developers.

Dozens of other condominium and rental projects have approvals in place but are not proceeding since they are no longer financially viable. This is due to a low level of consumer confidence, excessive municipal fees and high interest and construction costs.

To encourage some of these projects to get underway, Vancouver recently agreed to a myriad of measures that include reductions in development fees and engineering requirements, and deferred payments of fees.

I agree with this approach, since fees charged to condominium developers are usually passed on to new homeowners. It seems misguided to expect those who do not own homes to finance the costs of growth, rather than those who already own homes. Especially since based on 2021 Census data analyzed by SFU’s Andy Yan, nearly 50 per cent of Vancouver homeowners have no mortgage.

While condominium living offers many benefits, people moving out of these mortgage-free single-family houses are often apprehensive about moving into a development that might be run by a strata council whose president may have wanted to be prime minister of Canada but ended up overseeing eighteen townhouses.

For these reasons, I have been urging governments to make it easier to build ‘fee-simple,’ individually owned townhouses as an alternative to condominium townhouses. Although commonplace in Toronto and elsewhere around the world, they are rarely developed here.

The same applies to duplexes. Many people buy a duplex without realizing they are buying into a strata development. Even though it is made up of only two strata lots, the owners are required to abide by the rules and regulations of the Strata Property Act.

There is a ‘fee-simple’ alternative to the duplex — a ‘semi-detached’ house — one of the most common forms of housing in the U.K. and elsewhere around the world. But like fee-simple townhouses, they will not be built here until municipalities make it easier to subdivide properties into smaller lots and establish reduced permit and hook-up fees.

Now that the provincial government is aggressively mandating small-scale, multi-unit housing throughout the province, fee-simple townhouses and semi-detached homes could be attractive alternatives to strata-titled four- and six-unit multiplexes.

Although fee-simple townhouses did not become popular in 2025, another type of housing which I have often promoted in these year-end columns did finally gain popularity. I refer to factory-built modular housing which was recognized by Prime Minister Mark Carney as an effective way to build new homes.

While we will not likely see the 4,000 modular home starts promised by the Prime Minister, I agree with him and federal Housing Minister Gregor Robertson that factory production offers many benefits in terms of construction quality, speed of erection and cost effectiveness.

I would like to conclude with something completely different.

Last year, several reports surfaced linking reduced fertility rates to a lack of suitably designed and affordable family housing. The result was that Canada’s fertility rate hit a new record low of 1.25 children per woman. This did not surprise me.

For years, young couples have told me they were not having children because they could not afford family friendly two- or three-bedroom apartments. While a house with a basement mortgage-helper would be perfect, that was completely out of their price range.

To address this concern, twenty-five years ago during the planning of SFU’s UniverCity community, I proposed designing apartments with a second or third bedroom with its own door to the corridor that could serve as a basement suite equivalent.

Initially, the suite could be rented out as a mortgage-helper. Over time, as the family grew, it would revert to a second or third bedroom.

Fortunately, the City of Burnaby agreed to change its zoning so that a percentage of the apartments could include these lock-off suites.

Former Tyee journalist Monte Paulsen, who sadly died in 2024, called them ‘basement suites-in-the-sky’ and they have subsequently become quite popular. An increasing number of municipalities now allow them.

In 2026, it is my hope that more developers will consider incorporating lock-off suites in their apartment buildings, especially since lenders now recognize the rental income when determining mortgage amounts. This could allow more households to enjoy future holiday seasons with their children.

On this happy note, my best wishes for a healthy and prosperous 2026.

Michael Geller FCIP, RPP, MLAI, Ret. Architect AIBC is a Vancouver-based planner and real estate consultant. He also serves on SFU’s adjunct faculty. You can reach him at geller@sfu.ca and find his blog at www.gellersworldtravel.blogspot.com.

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Weekly roundup of three properties that recently sold in Metro Vancouver.

18622 64A Ave., Cloverdale

Type: Four-bedroom, three-bathroom detached

Size: 2,395 square feet

B.C. Assessment: $1,474,000

Listed for: $1,299,000

Sold for: $1,255,000

Sold on: Sept. 29

Days on market in this listing: Eight

Listing agent: Shannon Drummond PREC and Pat Drummond at Royal LePage Elite West

Buyers agent: Dave Robles PREC, Stefanie Richardson PREC and Kathryn Iles PREC at ReMax Treeland Realty

The big sell: According to listing agent Shannon Drummond, this four-bedroom Cloverdale home had been owned by the sellers since being built in 1997. It has a cul-de-sac location and an ample driveway that could accommodate several vehicles or an RV or boat. The interior of the house features a family-friendly layout that spans two storeys alongside bright living areas. The kitchen opens to a breakfast nook and family room, while a separate living/dining room for more formal gatherings has a triple aspect and a focal point gas fireplace. In addition, there is a den on the main floor that could be used as a home office, as well as a laundry room, and access to the attached double garage. Upstairs comprises four bedrooms including the primary with its walk-in closet and five-piece ensuite bathroom. Outside, the rear garden is fully fenced and blends mature trees with modern touches such as a dedicated barbecue/fire pit area.

119 — 3031 Williams Rd., Richmond

Type: Four-bedroom, two-bathroom townhouse

Size: 1,460 square feet

B.C. Assessment: $977,300

Listed for: $949,900

Sold for: $920,000

Sold on: October 4

Days on market in this listing: 12

Listing agent: Shafik Ladha PREC and Shamir Charania PREC at ReMax Westcoast

Buyers agent: Fayaz Nanji PREC and Karim Dossa PREC at ReMax Select Properties

The big sell: Edgewater Park is a 137-unit townhouse development that was constructed in the mid 1970s in Richmond’s Seafair district with a variety of recreational facilities on hand for residents including an outdoor swimming pool, playground, basketball courts, and a clubhouse. This particular property has a desirable location offering both a position that backs onto green space with direct access to the West Dyke Trail, as well as ocean views from the second floor. It was updated in 2020 with laminate floors, crown moulding, a stone-surround fireplace, a central island in the white kitchen with Shaker-style cabinets and a tiled backsplash, and a primary bedroom with a private balcony. The newly-renovated backyard has premium composite tiles on the deck, and to the front of the home is a single carport with extra parking available. The unit’s monthly maintenance fee is $450.22, and pets and rentals are permitted by the strata.

514 East 21st St., North Vancouver

Type: Six-bedroom, three-bathroom detached

Size: 2,883 square feet

B.C. Assessment: $1,836,000

Listed for: $2,398,000

Sold for: $2,398,000

Sold on: Sept. 4

Days on market in this listing: Zero

Listing agent: Devon Owen PREC at Royal Pacific Realty

Buyers agent: Jeff Fitzpatrick PREC at Engel & Volkers Vancouver

The big sell: Listing agent Devon Owen reports that she didn’t have a chance to bring this property to market due to the buyer finding out about it via friends and offering the full asking price. What contributed to the appeal? A location in North Vancouver’s Grand Boulevard neighbourhood with myriad amenities lining Lonsdale Avenue nearby, a fully-renovated move-in-ready home with a stylish design, sweeping views, and updates to the roof, plumbing, electrics, kitchens, bathrooms, expansive decks with secure storage, and a legal three-bedroom mortgage-helping suite on the ground floor that is currently run as a short-term rental. The two-level house has vaulted ceilings on the upper floor, a double-sided fireplace, contemporary light fixtures, and a sleek modern kitchen with integrated appliances including a wine fridge.

These transactions were compiled by Nicola Way of BestHomesBC.com.

Realtors — send your recent sales to nicola@besthomesbc.com

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