Dancing with a hoe

Summat to say...

2012-02-09T10:45:00.001+01:00

"You used to come out with some stuff." Few enough would ever remember much of a word. Saying isn't writing nor is it typing. I mean the same stuff as the words I merely said all those years ago. Getting to a point where folk could "see what Iz meant". There are those who would argue against near on every word that I uttered. Happen summat got lost in the translation.They would have been better off if they just simply understood the intended message delivered in a common tongue. I may not have wasted so much time speaking. For the most part they didn't get it.

2012-02-09T09:47:00.003+01:00

2012-02-09T09:41:00.003+01:00

2012-02-09T09:19:00.003+01:00

Britain is a cold country... don't blame the government.

2012-02-01T21:03:00.004+01:00

A brief glimpse at Yahoo news remind me of the seasonal crisis. "The "return of winter", it didn't go away and then "surprise surprise" it just popped back to finish the job. It is not news that thousands of old people die every winter in Britain. What would be news would be the assurance from both government agencies and the general public will not be allowing the annual tragedy to repeat itself.It is always winter in February. Invite someone in need to share your cosy fire. Folk ought not need telling.
If the same number of predicted untimely deaths were as a result of terrorist action there would be a rare old hue and cry. I doubt that the British population will create much of a fuss when the annual body count is over. You can't blame the government for not caring, they are representative of the peoples will. Retrospective protest wont bring anyones "loved" ones back to life.C'est normal, hey what? Neglect of duty of care renders the whole country culpable.
A recent visit to U.K. introduced me to what were once regarded as "homes fit for heroes", the are now a long way from being fit for healthy human habitation. They were designed to have fire places heated by solid fuel. Now they are sick buildings. As a practicing carpenter I learned that sick buildings make people vulnerable to many illnesses. This is the season of the culling .
They say peace of mind is proportionate to the size of ones woodpile. We cut our fuel in the summer. in preparation for the worste that the year may offer.Wood burning is encouraged by the French government. Wood is a sustainable fuel to hell with turning biomass into car fuel . Get your priorities right. France gives 50% of the price of a wood burning stove back as a tax rebate on the initial purchase of a stove whether a person pays tax or not. When will Britain,we're told it is the fifth richest in the world, announce with the passing of the cold season that "no one died of our neglect this winter". Good luck my darling Albion. If you are passing this way and feeling the chill; don't hesitate to call in and get warm.

Frozen solid...

2012-02-01T11:10:00.003+01:00

Couldn't get the rubble out of the wheel barrow. The spade and hoe just bounce of the soil.Ayup my old blog, long time no see. Filling in the gap would take more than the the day is long. It'll be a while before I put up more photos. You will just have to wait. I've still got a lot to say . Saying out loud isn't the same as pogo typing. You will get some of that when I get a satisfactory audio visual presentation. We still make incremental seasonal progress. The yard project is moving forward again. The round house at the top of the field is on hold till the summer. I am content with just relaxing in warmth and comfort. Looking out of the window with the coming years work staring me in the face.
This is the time for planning the work. Most of the vegetable garden has been manured
it will get turned over just before we plant and sow from early spring. Start warming up a bit of ground in March for early potatoes. . I want to plant garlic but will have to wait till the ground thaws.We still have a few fresh veg in the field Swede, Kale, Leeks, There are some carrots, they are locked in solid ground. Most of our main crop is safely bagged up out of the frost.Plenty of spuds in store.Beetroot is surviving well.We have two enormous cabbages left. Our fuel supply is more than adequate. There is an awful long list of stuff stored in the freezer, It was a good year in Le Breil. As it should be.
I haven't been getting a lot of cheery news from the British media. 'Cept for Toby being on the mend I would get really glum if I started rambling on about the miserable condition I found my lovely old country in on my recent visit. I talked to someone who's peers took to calling the "green guru". Oxford, the city of dreaming spires and lost causes. Reduced "ecology and sustainable development" to blue with a streak of yellow.It sells soap but it doesn't leave you feeling clean.
I will be coming over to Britain again soon on legal business. I will try to ignore as many unhappy details as I can. Concentrate on whats going on that shows some sign of doing some lasting good.
Emma hasn't given brother Toby her new address. She is having a little sulky power play I guess.Someone should give her a word to the wise.
I haven't had her address since she left school. She would be welcome here if she got the bottle to leave the "Big Mistake" behind. Present conduct makes no rational sense .
You have my address Em. You are welcome here any time. We need to talk, long overdue.
The blog can wait Duty calls.

Chestnuts...

2011-10-13T13:20:00.006+02:00

A big subject to be sure.From woodland management to fine woodworking. The tree is a great provider.I am told that posts can last twenty years in the ground It has a timber that exhibits a similar figuring to oak, shimmering medular rays being a prominent feature. The wood is not favoured for an open fire as it has a tendency to spit.What to do with an abundance of sweet marrons, I have yet to learn. The nut was ground down for flour in ancient times , a main staple food before the introduction of wheat.We will be experimenting with marron jam and marrons glacé. In the meantime dryroasting over oak embers is still a popular seasonal favourite. . Bon appetit.

October...

2011-10-04T12:49:00.005+02:00

Seed for next year...
Grandma's old hat oversees the kale...
The work is never ending, it's a warming thought...
If fresh figs is what you fancy, you had better get here soon.

An invitation...

2011-10-04T10:02:00.002+02:00

The work, whether a joyous dance or dour struggle is never ending. It goes with the life.
This October marks the beginning of my sixtieth year. The good sense is piling up around us, as much as we need to carry us forward with a reserve of promise for the future ensuring the sharing of our good fortune will be most pleasant. I feel there is cause for celebration. If you are passing this way, don't hesitate to stop a while . We don't expect a crowd. Not so much a party as a Thanksgiving.For those who brave a strangers hospitality a warm welcome is guaranteed. Jam on it too, most likely.
Stacking firewood is the order of today.Last years pile lasted well, a years worth of stove wood still remains. The "tidy pile" left out in the weather last year is now ready for storing undercover. For the most part we are burning knotty old oak, the tree was diseased from fungal decay becoming a liability in the hedgerow. Nothing is wasted.
The garden is looking a little tired. It has been a good season. There is plenty in store for the coming year and more to come. The cabbage, kale the leeks and swede are the best we have had in the last four years. There is still the maincrop carrots to lift. Parsnips, beetroot and a succession of salad. . We haven't been short of beans in several years. The onions look likely to keep well. We put a punnet or two of our first raspberries into the freezer for later. Our first modest crop of redcurrants were also frozen , promising some delicious desserts over the coming months.
Anne-So has just been picking her way through a small bunch of black grapes, a gift from Marie Therese. Our first figs have been collected , some were bursting on the young tree . There aren't many left on the table. There is a few yet to come from the tree. You had better hurry if that's your fancy. We will gather more chestnuts from some old local trees. We have been invited to help ourselves from a neighbours walnut tree.
There will undoubtably be more tales here of mud and stone and back breaking labours of love. Later. The wood wont stack itself, I'm off out to do a bit.

There are some who claim they wish that I was dead...

2011-09-12T12:37:00.002+02:00

To hide the fact that they wished in truth that they were living.
Join us, it's never too late to start.

Recent visitors...

2011-09-12T12:26:00.003+02:00

Four pictures with rocks in them...

2011-09-12T12:04:00.005+02:00

In service to the common good, the betterment of man and the greater glory of God, whether there provably is one or not.

At last, success with the Savoys...

2011-09-12T11:48:00.003+02:00

The first of this season's cabbage , we are delighted with the results. We will freeze some for later.

Perfect peaches...

2011-09-12T10:27:00.006+02:00

Our first harvest. The small tree,grown from a stone four years ago. Last year it bore us one tiny sample. A tantalising taster. This year it produce two hundred intoxicating sweet delicious fruit. What they cost? Virtually nothing. We pay one Euro tax per year for the land. I don't begrudge it.
We salvaged a few windfalls after a gale the other day. The small bowl of gleanings amounted to more peaches than I had ever managed to afford in the U.K. We will bottle some in syrop and likely make a few jars of conserve. We will eat our fill of fresh. We are happy to give away the excess to our needs. There is more to come, two whole trees full that have not reached the peak of their perfection. The promised anti cyclone will ripen them off. You wont find the bouquet or the flavour by rooting around in the skips, our kid. Home's the place we keep the blessing of our austere abundance.Be there or be square. Wish you were here.

There is no such thing as history...

2011-08-03T13:24:00.004+02:00

The fabled realm is eternal. It is still only a rough stone sketch. We search for more pebbles, large and small. A hundred tonnes or so of rocks and soil might just do the trick. I still have a long way to go I will save the explanations for later. Key words to ponder on evolutive design , transtemporal, organic architecture. (Honest it does it on it's own, must be magic) All's well in the Izdom of Iz.

Puffball...

2011-08-03T12:42:00.003+02:00

What a find, a giant puffball fungus growing beneath the oak trees.
It's fleshy and white inside, you have to catch them before they produce spore. This one is ideal. Anne -So hacks away the inedible bits, the tough root core and a few suspicious looking insect holes.
I prepare the cabbage for a dish my dad taught me.Bhuja The strawberries are another story. They ended up in the conserve.
Voila! Anne-Sophie's Puffball flan. The meal was a masterpiece.

Butterflies in the daisies...

2011-08-03T12:39:00.002+02:00

By evenings fading light...

2011-08-03T12:30:00.003+02:00

Dry stone and cornichon...
Cabbage and marigolds.

The gift of cabbage...

2011-07-23T15:53:00.005+02:00

It's a good one. All credit and thanks to Marie Therese for growing the little darling and leaving it at our door.

Friends ...

2011-07-23T13:50:00.005+02:00

Green Salamander...
Three toads in a hole...
Eurasian Hoopoe.

Images that made me smile...

2011-07-20T16:40:00.008+02:00

There's a lesson to be learned here,the old stonework is outlasting the modern repair.Accidental art, kept catching my eye every time I travelled to Rennes.Now near useless as a working fireplace, the house long since gone, it's historic hospitality remains in service as a thing of beauty for all to enjoy.

It took two photos to get the whole image in , I apologise.
Plums that I can eat at last.Since I visited my grandfather's orchard as a child I have stayed clear of shop bought plums, picked before truly ripe. Sugarless sour and extremely expensive as a gamble.Those days are over .Apricots, tomatoes and strawberries also. You have missed the cherry season, it was delicious.
We are still sorting out the rubble , even the mud is being salvaged, when it's dry it sets like concrete. I will pour it into the stonework as a slurry when the time comes to stick the walls down in their permanent positions. We are still on te lookout for a source of large boulders,there will be time for explanations later.

Having the images smile back sometimes makes the work feel more worthwhile.
Today the ground is saturated from a great deluge, my fingernails are worn quite thin from abrasion, the skin on my hand is cracked from constant exposure to rock and grit. The little I do today wont amount to much, certainly nothing worthy of a photo.
The promise of several more days of heavy rain is not a cheery prospect
, in between downpours I will prepare for the next big effort of work.

2011-06-25T12:54:00.003+02:00

Without facade...

2011-06-23T10:54:00.004+02:00

It probably looks like a confusing mass of rubble. I wont try to convert your way of seeing. The geometry of the finished project is not crystalized as a graphic plan on paper. You may imagine if you like where it is leading .There are many undoubtably with vast experience that might say I am "doing it all wrong". I am doing it, iz all.
The geometry of the invisibuilding is nigh on perfect, The hardcore infill will be consolidated and stablized once the cement slurry is introduced to the voids. Cement in this case will likely be the mud and stone dust mixed with white sand.The sand has a high shell content. Should integrate well with the lime mortar .I will start sticking stones down once my "rough sketch", ongoing at present, is complete.For now I press towards what will in time become my finished working surface. Bridging the gap between what I regard as an historic mistake, and the Utopian vision with which I have come to be both cursed and blessed in equal measure, is a labour of love that would be impossible to abandon.Here's praying that my body doesn't drop off before the task is done.

Jewels from iz treasury...

2011-06-23T10:26:00.003+02:00

Content over style, the method works...

2011-06-09T19:30:00.004+02:00

Tree swallowing a rock...

2011-06-09T19:17:00.004+02:00

The sweet chestnut tree is ancient.A ragged and rotten, hollow trunk but new growth is springing forth from the decayed relic.

I couldn't help but admire this wall...

2011-06-09T18:15:00.006+02:00

The stone stripped and clean , likely as not to be repointed. I like the hungry joints ,envious of the easy to handle small pieces I was, loving both the colour and the form. Grateful for the chance encounter on the journey back from La Roche aux Fées.

La Roche aux Fées...

2011-06-09T16:12:00.005+02:00

Theories abound. Theories don't pull much weight. We don't go out much. It was refreshing to do a little revision. This place will undoubtably be a site of pilgrimage for generations to come. I don't feel too diminished in awe of the engineers of former times. It wasn't the product of just one mans effort. Content I am with the singular result of my own personal journey. We are still on the look out for as many big pebbles as we can find. We will shift them into place by magic if necessary in the event that the application of scientific principles should fail us.Doing the do, the old fashioned way without complex thinking or vaccuous words obstructing the progress.Pointless spilling thcontents of the grail all over the internet, the minor revelations on one's own personal journey are too hard earned to be wasted on coffee table banter. The work is far from academic as it is possible to be. Folk have implied crudely that I must be crazy, perhaps suffering from psychiatric delusions to be attempting to build the journeymans rest. No matter, even if I don't complete the work I have presently in hand. My home site will be a perfect venue from which to impart the benefit of the working experience to date.Pleasant enough prospect for my last mortal days.I have a while and a bit with many miles of grunting under the pressure of the stone burden before that time comes. If you want to gain a practical clue as to what may be involved
build one of your own, or lend a voluntary hand in assistance to someone who is actively engaged in neolithic construction.Let it remain a mystery to all those not prepared to do the do themselves. The knowledge gained through practical experience is simple, none vocal.
We are heading forward in every direction at once. Expanding and improving ever closer to the fabled realm by each passing season. More later.

2011-06-06T16:45:00.003+02:00

Invisibuilding...
A pile of mud sticks and stones...

Many rivers to cross...

Butterfly and walnut leaf...

2011-06-06T16:31:00.004+02:00

In praise of low risk food...

2011-06-06T12:58:00.003+02:00

A choice of shit we've got used to or a brand new killer variety. They call it "organic" I don't buy it.The commercial Eco Lie of the new enlightenment.To be safe, grow your own at home. Die of something more befitting a good and wholesome life, a contented old age. I wonder how many folk naively fooled by the "green" label have taken the trouble to look at what they are putting on the fields these days. Near enough to raw sewage as to make no difference. As long as the packaging and marketing is successful no one gives much of a damn. Ecology is still an important word, to me , as in returning to a state of grace with planet earth. There is more to it than "green"spin on the uncured bullshit.We eat without fear of being poisoned.Zero food miles A no petrol zone.You wont find antibiotics in our soil. Cow manure is unsafe untrust worthy at least.The bacteria appear to be mutating at a faster rate than the pharmacutical "cure". Abandon hope all who live there. There is no cure for a way of life that cannot sustainably live at home. Admittedly we have a long way to go before we may rest on our laurels, in the meantime we are assured that our modest struggle wont be undermined by serving toxic food.Between pogoing the keyboard, a couple of senteces at a time, I pulled some peas and after a bit of weeding unearthed some small new potatoes that were growing wild left over from a previous season.
Yesterday I harvested the broad beans, they are in the freezer now. We still have some of last years to munch through.
After a couple of days of welcome rain the garden is ready for a productive high summer. The runnerbeans , both white and red are about to climb their supporting sticks.The black currant hedge needs relieving of a weight of fruit. I am pleased as punch by the results of propa gating more plants . A white currant hedge is the latest emergent feature. Easily missed this year but just wait. The red currants too are thriving well.Our first taste of raspberries were incorporated into a beautiful sponge cake with the addition of strawberries and whipped cream. The coming season's menu is looking good. Parsnips, carrots, beetroot, cabbage peas several kinds of beans all accelerating as they should.Onions and shallots. Lettuce galore.Endive too.. Tomatoes and aubergines ,capsicum peppers, a variety of squash and courgettes.Cornichon for pickling.I will be sowing turnips and swede this week and taking a chance on chou rave(the English name eludes me for now). Happen there will be much more. Put up with the photos if that's as near to sharing a joy as you dare to venture.
Twenty two people dead the rest able to shit through the eye of a needle at twenty yards. Green, I bet they were.
I wont be moving a single pebble today.That side of things is far from done. This just isn't the day to do.
You have just missed the cherry season. we have several kilos awaiting our serious attention in the fridge.It's all work. Looking forward to our first proper peach harvest. Last year only produced two. There looks to be the promise of more than a hundred. More little trees are being brought on in reserve. They don't have a long productive life but well worth the little effort of cutivation. What's next? A bit of hoeing if the weather stays clear. But first a cup of Royal Ceylon.

Iz at ease...

2011-06-06T12:01:00.005+02:00

I am in the pink. A mellow evening.
The cake was good, I missed you, and now the cake is gone.
The red marker will be moved uphill soon. It wasn't my intention to have it look like a grave stone, it is just a reference point that cant get easily kicked out of place.Next location will be the compost area . When I find the strength.

2011-06-06T11:25:00.003+02:00

In anticipation of June...

2011-05-31T08:25:00.004+02:00

It was four thirty when I dragged myself out of bed this morning. A sleepless night thinking about my two adult children could have been better spent.We are not quite out of May, one day left.Emma's birthday is fast approaching. Fourth of June.There's proof I don't forget.
Yesterday served me with the pleasure of visiting a new baby in the home of Cedric and Julie. Loëlia is her name.Welcome to the world little un. I hope your not disappointed.

The story so far...

2011-05-22T13:16:00.004+02:00

Almost but not quite. We have done a fair bit since this photo was taken. I was heading in this direction over forty years ago. Making up for lost time may yet prove to be a real killer. I am a long way from my destination. This is just a picture of the garden entrance to iz fabled realm. A figment of my mind perhaps. I reckon I wasted years of me good life explaining, few if any really got the point. Here's hoping that others will glean a clue or two from the images. The product will speak for itself when the jobs done. I am getting interesting results so far is the painfully joysome fact. I can't help wanting to share a slice or too. My knees are still hurting from a recent injury, sets me panicking at times that I may not reach completion before I reach the end.
I am sharing the kitchen with a garden shredder at present. It is Sunday, quiet and sunny. The traffic is too far away to be audible.It would be a real shame to spoil it by switching on the machine.
I will do some more shredding tomorrow. I have just gathered some strawberries they will go well with the kefir when Anne-Sophie gets back from work. Home's the place we make the most lasting sense together, it just doesn't feel right when she's away.
Things to do that have been put off for a while, bringing the last of the blue stone to the site, the old barn timber too. A pile of logs need bring from the woodland. Later, me back isn't jumping for joy at the prospect. Without a doubt the jobs need doing like it or not. It will all get done, no one is ignoring the work.
I'd better get on now and do a bit of something practical.Best to keep moving whilst we can.

2011-05-22T12:23:00.006+02:00

2011-05-11T13:43:00.002+02:00

A picture and a pile of words...

2011-05-11T09:44:00.006+02:00

I don't know what folk call progress. Going forward sometimes means staying put. I'llbe out to play soon, putting more small rocks on the straight retaining wall. In time theobvious evidence of my building work will be obscured and camouflaged by tonnes ofsoil, that in turn planted with shrubs and a few small trees. I will leave it to thearchaeologists to work out how they did it in those days. Chances are the foundationswill remain covered for all time once the project is finished. From the street side thework in hand looks much like a pile of rubble. An elegant charming pile none the less. Looking at photos feels like staring into the mid distance with one eye. A flattened mass of details aids little to communicate the significance of the intended meaning or point.No matter, for those that prefer the two dimensional image, I will keep the pictures coming.Explanations of on going work become unnecessarily complex when reduced to the printed word.
After stumbling around in the mass of words for a while some might get the idea of doing a bit of actual for themselves.
I have done a fair old bit of explaining both myself and what I am into and up for. It hasn't exactly left a trail of clear understanding.Folk posed the questions and seemed to forget the answers the moment they were delivered.Let them remain in the deluded domain of fanciful theory and popular opinion. They can argue amongst themsel
ves over who is nearest to right, they are all wrong. Progress and me aren't going anywhere. we are staying at home.Results will deserve a proper look one day. Perhaps a point or two of all past explanations would be got by then. If that happens it'll likely be too late to be of any benefit.
We have had a little rain, the plant life is looking really lush.The first peas are filling up their pods,broad beans flowering, onions are healthy. A heck of a pile and a bit more of stuff that I don't feel prone to list, all growing and thriving.
My interest in blogging the details of our doings here is fast diminishing.I doubt that the illuminated idiocy of the internet will bring those I care most about any nearer the sustainable working reality that I promote.We live debt free. Something you can't see from the pictures.Our home facilities improve as the work continues.A varied healthy diet and stimulating exercise is always available in the garden. We have enough interest in the living environment , we respond to it's needs and it responds to ours. We give thanks it provides well.

There are spies everywhere...

2011-04-30T12:52:00.002+02:00

It was the little fellow in the corner that took my fancy...

2011-04-30T12:43:00.004+02:00

Local beauties, Cornered...

2011-04-30T12:33:00.004+02:00

It's good to know I am not alone...

2011-04-30T12:25:00.003+02:00

Beautiful,toxic,DO NOT TOUCH...

2011-04-30T12:12:00.002+02:00

The juice from this plant will cause irritation and blistering to the skin when exposed to sunlight. Spurges come in many varieties and sizes , they all have the distinctive green flowers. Treat with caution and respect.

Told ya...

2011-04-30T10:25:00.005+02:00

That's the stuff...

2011-04-30T10:14:00.003+02:00

Here's hoping we can get a couple of trailers full of that good muck. It is mainly sand , makes a good wall if it is capped to stop the weather washing it away.

2011-04-30T09:45:00.003+02:00

Durable wholesome progress; frontline activism without the need to protest...

2011-04-27T14:24:00.005+02:00

If...God exists...

2011-04-27T14:15:00.004+02:00

Taking my mind off the all pervading odour of slurry and bonemeal...

2011-04-27T13:15:00.003+02:00

I'll finish erecting the beanpoles when the wind has died down.Yesterdays precious memory will distract for a while. We visited a local baker, Nicolas. He is a doer. A principled frontliner. Grows his wheat from old variety seed. Low gluten bread that even many gluten intolerant customers can enjoy.The four, the great wood fired oven is situated at the rear of his home, fueled by sweet chestnut scantling. A visit to his bakery is verging on a spiritual experience. A privelege to have visited his workplace. A good example of durable organic progress.
I got lots of photos of stone walls. Le Rocher is the name of the village . There's a lot of that stuff there. A nearby Chapel took my fancy, more beautiful still was the splendid ancient yew tree that dwarfed the building beside it.
I got the bottom line of the retaining wall laid . The air was breathable yesterday. Today it makes me feel like retching. An unnecessary stink.Heavy lifting and digging causes me to breath too deeply to ignore the repugnant odours. I will shift some small stones into place ready for sticking down with lime mortar. A job for every occasion. No escaping the work. I'l get on now, happen after another cuppa.

Work in progress...

2011-04-27T11:40:00.003+02:00

'Im an' Iz...

2011-04-27T11:34:00.004+02:00

2011-04-27T11:30:00.003+02:00

Rennaisance baker...

2011-04-27T11:21:00.004+02:00

2011-04-27T11:14:00.001+02:00

2011-04-27T11:04:00.003+02:00

2011-04-27T10:59:00.001+02:00

A spire...

2011-04-27T10:56:00.002+02:00

2011-04-27T10:50:00.002+02:00

2011-04-27T09:59:00.003+02:00

Threshold, lintel and friends...

2011-04-24T03:22:00.004+02:00

My restless leg kicked me out of bed...

2011-04-24T02:47:00.003+02:00

I'll do a bit of this till the problem subsides. Looking forward to daybreak. Seven or eight silver birch seedlings to transplant. They were rescued from a patch of degraded land that regularly gets used as a car park, subjected to occasional mowing. Some will get planted in the haie at the top of the field and some in the hedge at the yard entrance. They are the scrubby type that take well to being coppiced if enough time is allowed. A source of fagots to make besoms.Tapped like maple trees the sap can be used to make wine. I will get a photo of a few of the little darlings tomorrow.They are pioneer trees. Graceful and elegant in their form and habit. Sez it all really they'll fit in well here.

Facing north on the western perimeter...

2011-04-23T19:30:00.005+02:00

The view from halfway,(up,down?). There's a lot in the picture. Absolute front and centre,is a young "Mirabelle" type plum tree. A gift from Joel. Behind that a row of raspberries grown on from one utterly miserable pot bound "throw away" specimen They are short in stature this year but next years fruiting canes will be over a metre tall. It is a four metre row. On the left after the raspberry canes is a thornless bramble, the fruit are sugar sweet three quarters of an inch across.The bramble masks off two small compost bins. Just visible on the left a barrel of comfrey "soup", liquid feed. On the right is a row of early peas, now in their first flower.A patch of comfrey,next , we keep cutting the leaf for use as a mulch on other beds.
Behind that ... I beam with pride at the rhubarb. We brought a small piece of root from our previous garden home in Ireland. It likes it here. Standing near five feet tall already. We will split it this year and give away some good start up plants to a few good homes.
Difficult to see without zooming close, the onion bed and the greengage plum.
The green horizontal mass at the far distance marks the end of the potager. It is the wet end of the garden. Shaded by the neighbours barn for a third of the day. Ideal for the golden ossier hedge cultivated from sticks to provide materials for tissage, basket weaving. I hope you enjoyed the visit. It is a long way from mature but the results are encouraging. You might stop by in reality sometime.

"Don't knock the wrinklies", sez I...

2011-04-23T19:24:00.004+02:00

Anne-Sophie prepares the Tomato bed...

2011-04-23T19:19:00.003+02:00

When they say,"Take it easy"..

2011-04-23T15:18:00.003+02:00

You know they're taking the piss only. It is generally all they have ever done, barring paying someone else to do the heavy.
I have just bashed my knees. It's put me right off me stroke. A heavy stone got the better of me. My luck has been good up to now. First real accident in four years. the weight caused me to overbalance, to avoid the rock crushing my foot and hand I threw myself away from the point of greatest hazzard Both knees smashed against the stoney ground , my chest too impacted squarely,leaving me winded a bit, I beat the ground with my right hand to absorb some of the shock. I could see it all happening in slow motion, but there is no doubt afterwards , acceleration due to gravity is a constant terrestrial law regardless of relative perception of time. OUCH. Only my "standing leg", my left is giving me trouble. When I stand , or walk, when I lift weight , ....or just move.
I hope the knee recovers soon or I am in danger of spinoff back problems from working in unfamiliar positions, awkward as hell.Makes working a real chore.
I do a bit then rest a bit. The seasons work can't be allowed to pile up.The retaining wall needs to be built this year.Winter frost and rain with blow the bank away.The neighbour wouldn't be happy I have a duty to support. The job was left unfinished when a sewage disposal system was put in before our time. Ugly to look at. Long delays and putting off. Good reason when the stones weren't available. I would be hard pressed to come up with a good excuse now save for the physical discomfort. I will nibble away at the diggings till I am ready for the big build up. The "take it easy" advice came from a thirty year old man who has done little else but follow his own well meant counsel for the whole of his life so far. Rankles a bit , does that. I pray he learns to speak my language one day. Bugger all gets done by sitting and looking.
Anne-So is preparing to plant out the tomatoes. She's putting covers on the supports which will be pulled down in the event of a threat of frost. The ground is well composted, that in turn well watered. A straw much will follow once the plants are tucked in and watered once more. We are using seaweed pellets as a standby fertilizer until we have generated enough " home grown" humus.
Marie Therese has just presented us with the last of the stored apples."Don't knock the wrinklies", sez I. Soft of body but fleshy and sweet. They make good compot,(apple sauce). Plenty enough till next apple harvest. There is other fruit to come.

Just add water and stand well back...

2011-04-22T11:40:00.005+02:00

The overworked chattel gradually becomes a place with a personality. The earth rises up to meet us halfway. I have just finished a bit of digging on the centre circle. It will be ready for planting and sowing once it has had a raking. My next task is setting the poles out for runner beans. Yesterday turned up a pair of good purple flagstones, ideal for lintels or threshholds. Moving them exposed a store of composted manure.That has gone towards rebuilding some of the missing ground. The first of a large pile of oak timbers salvaged from a demolished barn, now awaits being carried to the top of the field. When it's cooler.Quiche and salad served me well for lunch. Now tea and a bimble round the garden to stare at the work to come for half an hour. A couple of photos maybe.

The last bit of digging and a quick photo...

2011-04-22T11:17:00.005+02:00

Helping a friend to get established in her new home. The ground was panned down like concrete. Anne-So marked out the beds and Trimmed the edges straight, I did the heavy whilst Anne-So gave advice. A hot day , much tea was drunk. We will see how the new residents cope with this. Pointless breaking more ground than a person can practically manage. Good luck to Martine in her new home.

It is good to know who your friends are...

2011-04-22T11:12:00.004+02:00

A Corner Of Mernel...

2011-04-22T10:39:00.004+02:00

Iz gold...

2011-04-13T10:21:00.003+02:00

Smile...

2011-04-13T10:15:00.003+02:00

A corner of Le Breil...

2011-04-06T12:16:00.004+02:00

HELP !!!

2011-04-06T11:37:00.003+02:00

Praying for westerly winds, weeding the onions...

2011-04-06T10:14:00.003+02:00

TARA !!! Pissenlit...

2011-04-06T10:06:00.004+02:00

2011-04-01T14:24:00.003+02:00

Promise of pears...

2011-04-01T14:03:00.001+02:00

Promise of peas...

2011-04-01T13:41:00.003+02:00

Stoner news...

2011-04-01T10:32:00.005+02:00

So what's next? There's a ton or two of sand to wheel to the top of the field. I'll not get too thrilled about that little prospect. Doesn't feel much like gardening at the moment.
The space between the dry stone wall and the circular foundation will contain the roots of kiwi fruit, grape and wisteria, all being well.Planning seems futile as I can only work with the materials I have to hand. My initial enthusiasm is undiminished but I have a more realistic view of the degree of difficulty.
Over the last century much of the mineral fines have eroded and washed away. It will be a welcome day when I can put some of the bulk back. Ditch diggings will serve well combined with the local red sandstone ballast. We are still on the look out for more stone. Another twenty tonnes would keep me happy for a while. But today ...pushing sand uphill, not my favourite. I'd better get on.

The promise of peaches...

2011-03-29T12:58:00.005+02:00

FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION...

2011-03-10T12:09:00.002+01:00

Well earned...

2011-03-10T12:03:00.004+01:00

Shifted Shome Shims o'Schist today...

2011-03-08T20:20:00.003+01:00

Making light of the hard stuff...

2011-03-08T19:59:00.003+01:00

Ouch!!! Maybe nearer to four hundreweight. Lord knows.Only about 15 to 20 feet was far enough for one session. I did well not to need incontinence pads. Came close.(too much coffee). Not sure where it's going yet, all I know is it isn't going where it's been.
Anne-Sophie has been mulching ground with linen stalks.It doesn't blow away. Straw can be a wasted effort. It has started well this year.good promise for the coming season. Feels like spring at last.I hope yours is shining.

2011-03-08T18:16:00.003+01:00

Piece o' Cake, Really Thick...

2011-03-08T18:11:00.003+01:00

Piece o' Cake,Neolithic...

2011-03-08T18:04:00.002+01:00

Onward...

2011-03-08T17:55:00.004+01:00

Awaiting orders...

2011-03-01T16:57:00.003+01:00

No levers no wheels just the application of a bit of neolithic Rock and Roll...

2011-03-01T16:39:00.003+01:00

The heavy stone I introduced you to at the top of the garden the pink one, couldn't wait any longer for your return. It missed you. One side is now green with a thin layer of seed moss. just a haze of colour nothing much close to looking like a plant. It has decided to move on without you. If it can't find a permanent home at the top Then it will have to chance what ever "perfect placement" that may arise on it's journey back down.
I know it will put me through hell trying to find the ideal position. I am sure you can empathise with it.
At present it is standing to attention waiting for orders. It wont have to wait too much longer.I for sure wont be abandoning it. If I do that the blessed thing would spend all eternity being cursed and abused by every creature whose path it obstructed.The basic laws of applied physics ,mechanics and such like serve better here than all the rhubarb grown under the rarified lamps of quantum theory. Hybrid science hits the wall too many times to be of any earthly good to me..

Some of us have got to stand on our hind legs ...

2011-02-10T19:52:00.004+01:00

Anne- Sophie has just left to attend a meeting in the marie. She wont be allowed to speak but notes will be taken and her presence will be felt if not recorded in the minutes.
The slackness and complacency regarding the continual destruction of the land, our common heritage, gets a blind eye turned towards it , as the soil spews like so much chocolate sauce into the ditches. A great wonder to me that all the members of the marie aren't carrying white sticks.
A great deal of agitating is in order. Embarrassment for some, deep humiliation for some caring traditional families who's progeny now ignore the basic conciegerie, the exercise of duty of care. quick profits being put before the preservation of future generations rural economy and the common amenity for all living creatures.
Excuses abound, they are just that, easily blown out of the water. Speaking of water. The damage caused by the tractor driven ignorance, keeping the local cowboys in beer money once the heavy rain and springtime thaws have taken their toll will cause many thousands of tonnes of mineral and topsoil fines to be scoured away then dumped somewhere downstream, at the expense of some other communes ecology and local economy. Them az duz the naughty doo dooz iz gonna have the doo dooz rubbed in their noses. It is the least we can do, for now, a little more by each season passing.
The only ones in pocket are the farmers and their drivers who dip their bread in Euro funds without responsible care. The damage can and should be avoided.
Who pays for the harm that is done and who pays for the repair, if repair is possible. Everyone from the lowliest landless labourer to the most privileged and exhaulted land owner. Common peasant or bourgoisie.It comes out of the taxes.
Representaions will be made to the local electorate few are wholly awakened to the magnitude of the problem.Association will be formed to give weight to the voice of dissent against the on going neglect.Our back up may have to be the national and the European auditors. Claw backs and penalty for those who deliberately evade their moral and legal obligation.We have many photographs illustrating the results of poor practice, some video footage. Official letter of complaint has been received by the mayor.Attention is being drawn to many other interrelated issues.
Anne-Sophie has a blog expressing the relevant concerns,It's in French,time to practice what you learned in school, a real shame if all that hard earned education money was wasted.

The one eyed camera view gives little intelligence away...

2011-02-09T16:44:00.007+01:00

Three views that don't amount to One worthwhile opinion between them.
How heavy, how hard, how painfully sharp.
You can't lick the working knowledge off the screen. Doing the do, iz the only way to learn.

Two tonnes, thrown and carried...

2011-02-08T19:18:00.007+01:00

You would have to do it to see the sense some of these rocks weigh 10 to 20 kilos. They sit waiting for tomorrow when the will join the pile at the top of the rise. Minimum damage to the garden the weight is borne by the pathway which will be regraded before planting season. You will get no esoteric waffle about arcane knowledge here. Doing the do,debunks all mystery. As it should.

The gift of Topinambour...

2011-02-08T19:05:00.003+01:00

Jean Gerard and I have exchanged less than a couple of dozen words over the last three years.His gift of Jerusalem artichokes says much and means more to me than trivial blah blah in any language. Thanks neighbour.

Tractor driven ignorance...

2011-02-08T18:25:00.005+01:00

At twelve years old I was taught about the causes of soil erosion. Thanks go to Mr. Gosden our Geography master. The benefit of his lesson stayed with me.
The complacency of the bottom lining cowboy culture has to be taken to task. Anne-Sophie is up in arms. Neither of us fear losing friends over this issue.
Check out: www.moncampel.blogspot.com
For news of progress or local opposition to it.

Nice bit of stuff.

2011-02-06T23:19:00.003+01:00

It's hard to keep up...

2011-02-06T22:56:00.006+01:00

DEGRADATION...

2011-02-05T09:42:00.004+01:00

OUCH , and plenty more where that came from...

2011-02-05T09:23:00.005+01:00

Hardcore...

2011-02-04T01:13:00.003+01:00

I've been throwing stone for most of the day. One at a time. I tried barrowing them but it left ugly brown wheel ruts in the grass paths. The by air method works well. It is night now, I feel cheated by the shortness of daylight. Waiting for tomorrow iz not the most satisfying work. More purple slabs will join their friends at the entrance of the top circle. A pretty sight they are. First job after coffee I will fill the crescent with the small stones, a raised field, flat topped and chamfered sides will be blinded off and later covered with a waterproof membrane then topped with small slabs bedded on lime mortar and grouted. That is to be the base of the verandah , the cool place to sit work or just shoot the breeze in the summer.
Once the pile of small hardcore is transfered I will treat it to judicious attention of my sledge hammer. A tonne or so more of purple slabs to move once that little chore is done.
I dare say folk would find it hard to believe that I might be enjoying the work. Loving the labour. Maybe not. I will get some sleep ,I am starting to blether. Hell, this blogging is a real time and energy vampire. I feel worse for doing this than after an afternoon of hard graft. Tomorrow then, another hardcore day.