The last weekend of April 2016 was full of spring activity here in Powell River...
In one short weekend, our community enjoyed the Trash Bash community clean-up, the CJMP Reuseathon, the Ecoutoure Fashion Show, the garden club plant and the 3rd Annual Powell River Home & Garden Show!
LISTEN TO THE AUDIO HERE
Powell River is by no means a huge city, but the enthusiasm this little town has for gardening and home maintenance & renovation is really quite astounding!
At the show, I ran into Matt Zaste, a young horticultural entrepreneur and botanical enthusiast. I first met Matt when he came to Powell River a year ago, visiting this small town to decide whether he would be living here; it's very exciting seeing young people moving to Powell River and starting up original businesses. Check out Plants Canada
The Home & Garden Show had some interesting ideas from other towns as well; I wandered over to a nearby booth and chatted with Dylan Armour, a representative of a Surrey-based company focusing on live plant wall systems. Very neat idea!
When it comes to nature and technology, it`s pretty amazing how far we've come! I was very impressed by the Vegetated Wall Systems; according to Dylan, these living walls are safer, longer-lasting, and more environmentally sustainable than concrete... it seems like wall-building technology has come a long way! Speaking of technology, I wandered over to the next booth, and saw something I had never seen before... something out of a science fiction movie, only real, and right here in front of me at the Home & Garden Show...
I thanked Dana from the Thunder Bay Saw Shop for letting me interview him about the Automower and I wandered through the Home & Garden show, daydreaming about the things that I wanted to grow. As I chatted with other vendors, I discovered that plants aren't the only thing growing in Powell River; there are all sorts of communities growing as well! As I wandered over to the next booth, I was very fortunate to gain some insight into a particular scene that's quickly growing Powell River... the climbing community! Listen in for an interview!

Shout-out to Leah Rourke of Relish Interiors, and to all other Home & Garden Show organizers! I feel very lucky to make my home and garden in Powell River, BC. Thank you for showcasing and celebrating our local creativity, talent and resources!
--Ioni Wais
Hand-built home display by Bert and Lil Baillie |