The veggie patch and poly tunnel today

After the last patch of rotovating was finished yesterday this morning was spent sowing seeds in the veggie patch more broad beans, French beans, lettuce and comfry. A raking over of soil ready for the tomatoes, aubergines and peppers I will buy at a plant fair on Sunday with a patch allocated for kale and cabbages that are small seedlings at the moment. Posts will be banged in for the toms to climb up and a structure? for the runner beans that seem to be coming up in pots in the poly tunnel, this is the first year since 2005 I have grown English beans. Sweet peas are also in pots to companion plant alongside the beans for pollinating. And the first strawberry is red, although I forgot to pick it and as it is pouring with rain now it probably wont stay around tomorrow when the slugs find it.

The poly tunnel has also been rotovated with seeds sown today, lettuce, salad onion, herbs, beetroot, carrots and peas - lots of peas as I am guessing the mice will eat most of them as they have done in the veggie patch where there is one, yes one that has managed to dodge those pesky mice. I put in so many thinking I would loose a few but not the whole row, think I will put some in a drain pipe tomorrow and then plant them out. The last of the potatoes also went under ground in the tunnel, again probably a tasty treat for those mice. The seeds are up high in the hope that mice cant find them ( and the slugs and snails).

The doors each end have been removed in the hope it wont get so hot as in previous years, although the plants do well I don't and get very hot and red past midday.

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2ENJ093 - FRANKLIN

Eight years ago today Franklin came into our family, a rescue dog from the SPA in Rodez we drove to see if they had a dog to re home. He had been there a month after being left tied to a bin in the town centre, chosen because he didn't bark, he came to us to say hello and was completely different from the dog we had lost days before Christmas. 120 Euros he cost, a young boy still a pup, very thin but with a look of take me home please. A collar put round his neck, forms completed, cheque handed over and a kiss from the manager and he was ours. Five minutes down the road in the car he threw up. Five minutes in the house and he had weed up the settee and collected an assortment of treasures including socks, toilet roll inner tubes, tissues and soft toys all placed in a pile under the table and garded. He ate at an amazing speed, fearing he would loose it to our other dogs. Then he started to bark, he has a fine bark on him. He barks for his tea, when a visitor arrives, the ...

Parisot lake

As it is a holiday today here in France (Bastille Day) we took the afternoon off an popped over to Parisot lake for a walk with Sorrel. It has all changed, since the lake was emptied and cleaned up this year you can now swim in it, as well as inflatable toys to play on, a life guard, bikes to hire, a new fenced in play area for small people and a total spruce up. But there is a price we were charged! 3 euros an adult, which I guess is OK if you are using the facilities but Sorrel didn't fancy a dip. The cafe is still open but that would of been too much for Sorrel to cope with being so close to people and music so we opted for a bench to sit on in the shade before walking around the lake. Sorrel opted for being Billy no mates and laying by herself, if be it for a short period of time before bikes and people went by. We are now waiting for the free firework celebrations over the chateau tonight - if we can stay up that late.😃

Lavender

One plant that does grow well around the gites and garden and that I don't seem to be able to kill is lavender. In the summer the bushes are swarming with bees, hummingbird moths, butterflies and other flying insects, lot of holiday photos have been taken by keen photographers, some setting up chairs and waiting for ages with big cameras and lenses waiting for the right moment and right insect to land. It does give a lovely show and smell as well, its picked and placed in vases in the gites by guests. Its very tactile and difficult to pass without a rub of a flower that's if you like the smell. I think its very much like marmite you either love it or hate it, a smell of memories of grans and old aunts who use to get given Yardley's old lavender smellies for presents. I like the smell but it can be quiet overpowering, especially when this year I have finally been able to save the dried flowers. Previous years other things have got in the way and its bee...

The English Paysanne

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