Rural Life

Day 29 of lockdown - but spring is still springing!

Last night the President addressed the nation and told us lockdown was extended to 11th May, and even then, things would not be back to normal straight away.  Restaurants and bars - such a key part of French life - will not be reopening then, although some schools might.  The borders remain closed.  So there are at least 27 more days of this - not sure how that makes me feel.  We've been doing OK so far, not least as we are still able to work, either remotely (when I do my UK work) or in isolation (when doing work in France in isolated gardens), and we are able to access nice food and drink.  But I am beginning to miss family - last year I seemed to spend every other day in Chinon until my brother arrived, at which point it was a day every week.  Not that I miss the A85 having said that!!  We also miss friends and the Friday night at the pub sessions will not be happening for a lot longer than four weeks it seems.

So human life is in limbo in many ways, and the days could start to resemble each other, until you pay attention to nature and how spring is carrying on regardless.  I had to feed the country cats today, so was able to admire the antics of a ginger cat in the sun with a nice, earth-filled hole.

Then there was the lovely surprise of a lilac bush I'd not seen before, flanked by a cherry tree and a hawthorn, both in full flower.

And then there was the chance to look closely at what we believe to be a lady orchid (still could be corrected on that one) as it gets towards peak perfection.

So really, in the scale of things, it is not all bad at all!

 

Day 28 of lockdown - apparently it's a bank holiday

Today it really is quiet.  Normally on Easter Monday we would be able to hear the funfair in Baugé Place de l'Europe, and would discuss whether we were going to go in to see the crowds and the market, and most years deciding that we won't.  But this year there is no choice.  So quiet, that even though it is a day to feed the cats in the country, we haven't dared to go out to do that!

This morning I did go out on an abortive attempt to buy croissants and baguette, not realising that our bakers are now closed on a Monday.  Still it did mean I got out for a short walk this morning.  It was grey and dull but not cold and I never really tire of this particular view.

There should be a photo of the road leading down to the pub and the lake but it doesn't seem to want to load today!  O wait, I've got it sorted!

We did useful things in the garden in the morning and then in the afternoon I finished sewing all the pieces together of the new cover for the pergola.  Now I have to think about how it is going to be attached to the frame and where I can get any necessary supplies from!

And I want to put in a picture of the full donut of the cover - so far it hasn't worked...  sixth time lucky!

The quince is now in full bloom which looks rather lovely.

And I am now fed up with fighting technology.  Enjoy the rest of your bank holiday!

 

Day 27 of lockdown - there's thunder in the air

Happy Easter to all - I hope the Easter Bunny was able to find a local elf to ensure you had some chocolate today!  Thanks for the messages about this blog too by the way - it really does help to know people are reading it, if only to keep me on my toes about fact checking and the like.

Although there are now storms rumbling around, this morning was lovely with not a cloud in the sky.  I have been surprised at how quickly the ounces are piling on (and after 27 days, ounces mount up) - I guess I didn't really realise how much good the long Sunday walk, the (in my dreams) weekly trip to swim at la Flèche and the Monday evening yoga sessions all did me.  Anyway, this morning I left John doing bad things to the artichokes that have taken over the potager, and went for my permitted up to 1 hour of solitary exercise no more than 1km from my front door.  Actually at the furthest point I fear I was actually 1.05km from my front door, but no one stopped me!

The following six photos are from my walk.  I want over the Couasnon twice and hoped to see kingfishers, but sadly no.  I did see swallows however - they arrived during the week and are now being delightful as only swallows can be.  I did see a couple of big trout in the stream, but no chance of getting a photo with my phone.  Coming back into the village, I noticed that the laburnum is now out, so shouldn't be surprised that my hay fever symptoms are starting to ramp up.  I do need to ration the antihistamines though as it will be a while before I can get more.

Anyway, enjoy the stroll in the quiet of the countryside!

 

Day 24 of lockdown - a funny thing happened on the way to work

I got stopped and my papers checked by the police today.  I was driving down a tiny back road and they were coming in the opposite direction, and probably assumed I was without the relevant attestations.  We both needed to pull over anyway, as the road was only 1.5 cars wide. 

Windows down - "Madam do you have your attestations?" 

"Yes, officer, several actually!"  So I started with the standard one, where I had ticked the work box -

"You are British Madam?" 

"Um well yes, I am." 

"And what is this work you are going to do?" 

"Well, at a second home, where there is gardening work to be done and cats to be fed, and I've got my employee attestation and a note from the owner and everything." <Gulp!> 

"A second home and cats to be fed?" 

"Yes <gabbling now a bit> and then I've got to go to another second home and mow the lawns there, and I've got the attestations for that too!"

"Ah, Madam, you are going about your professional work, that's fine, have a nice day!"

And off they went.  While I was waving all the other attestations around, they didn't want to see any of them.  Actually the younger cop was nodding happily when I said I was going to feed cats, but I think I've met that one before...  So anyway, I now have confirmation that what I do is right and legal, so that's all good.

So once the cats were fed, I beat the bounds at that property and found three nice spears of asparagus for dinner and the first of the wild orchids to show its flower spike this year.  I photographed it for you, but in a week or so it will be much more dramatic.

Then I went on to the other property and mowed.  There is a lake there, and today I noticed a rather unpleasant and worrying phenomenon on the surface of the lake - look at all that pollen!  I think it is a mix of rape and birch, but the grass won't be too far behind.

A friend shared a photo of her tree peony with me on Facebook, so I am pleased that I did finally remember today to photograph mine, which is now out in front of the house.  It might look a bit weedy, but it has been growing in a pot for about 7 years - I probably ought to repot it once the flowers are over.

And as for that watched orchid that should surely be open by now?  Well this is where we are at today!

 

Day 23 of lockdown - bits and bobs to delight and fright

A couple of days ago I mentioned my orchid that was torturing me with how slowly the flower buds develop and when would the blasted thing open.  Still not open today of course, but getting jolly close - see!

So there I was this morning, standing at a safe distance from the person in front of me and the person behind me in the queue to get into the market at la Flèche.  As I looked around, I noticed a lovely display of flowers - most likely hyacinths that have been around for a few years - on the roof of an outbuilding.  It is probably an old outside loo - my Mum has one very similar in Chinon.  It was so pretty to look at this morning though.

The apply blossom is starting to come out - this spray of flowers is from the Granny Smith tree, which is ahead of the Reine de Reinette.  There are unlikely to be any flowers at all on the Belle de Boskoop.

And finally, I present to you a bowl of eggs.  The big white one is a goose egg - geese are big.  The other three are from our chickens.  That one top left is scary.  Just think about laying that one, boys and girls.

Day 22 of lockdown - more plants

Before I get on to the nice flora related bits of this post, I need to get something off my chest.  Where do self-important Facebook know-it-alls get off and why don't they get slapped down? 

I was looking at the most recent advice from the British Embassy in France about travel documents, and while there were some interesting questions and clarifications, there was also a thread about how the current attestations aren't totally easy for the self-employed, and it can be useful to have a note from your client as well.  Some silly cow offered her opinion, finishing off the comment with "The self-employed should not be working at the moment anyway."  How wrong can you be in one simple statement?  GPs and district nurses here are self-employed in general for example, as are many farmers, lawyers, and all sorts of people who can work from home.  In addition, there are the quasi-emergency services such as electricians, plumbers, people who empty your septic tank, take you to hospital in their taxis - all of whom tend to be self-employed.  Sadly no one from the Embassy had managed to correct that statement in the hour since it was posted, but I hope they get round to it soon!

By the way, the French Government have given clarification as to what the self-employed put on their attestations - and it is perfectly OK.

And having vented and put that rant out there, I am now nicely zen again and would like to show some of the lovely and happy things in the natural world.  First off the quince is just coming out - in my opinion the most beautiful of the fruit blossom, my only worry is that it is about a month early.  But so pretty!

Close inspection of the broad beans shows that they are starting to set - four to six weeks and they will be delicious!

And a technical one.  A few years ago, I wrote this post about a nasty new invasive non-native species, a form of gall wasp that attacked the buds of new growth on sweet chestnuts, deforming leaves, destroying flowers and weakening the tree.  It was all through our One Acre Wood and a client had it on their young chestnut trees - many did not survive, but some did.  There was a quiet release of a targeted predator for the cynips chestnut gall wasp in the area, and it seems to be winning the battle.  On these twigs you can see some of last year's distorted buds which hosted wasp larvae, and you can see beautiful new buds with no galls at all.  There is hope!

Day 20 of lockdown - the battle with the Asian hornet

Before we get onto that - just a reminder of how on edge people are.  A banal but heated discussion between someone with a right to park in the shared courtyard, and someone else whose right is pretty well non-existent escalated into a heated exchange between four neighbours yesterday evening.  One person with nothing to do with the conversation got right in there and started hurling accusations around in a very heated manner.  Now while I admit that the person in question would beat herself up if put in a paper bag on her own, it is evidence of the short fuse people are on, and when given the opportunity to get stuck into something that is non-Covid-19 related, will do just that.  Walk away people!  It ruined a lovely evening.

But on to more interesting things - the fight against the Asian hornet.  Before anyone says anything about "nature", these are an invasive non-native species that can eat their way through a hive of honey bees in about a week.  There is no up side to them.  We were recruited in February to be part of an "observatoire", made up of 56 sites across our district, to try to trap queens in the period up to mid-May when they are laying and nurturing the queens that will create the big nests of the summer.  Stopping one queen now prevents between 10 and 20 nests of hornets later in the summer, each of which can overwinter a further 5 queens.  Think of all those social distancing tree diagrams you've seen recently.

Anyway, we are hosts to 3 traps, one at home, one where the cats are and one with a client who has had trouble with hornets in the past.  The traps are designed to entice the queens in, but not let them out again (although their efficacy in that is also part of the test). 

In the trap you put a pot of bait with a lot of pebbles or similar, so that good insects don't drown in the bait which is made up of a third dark, sweet beer, a third fruit syrup ideally blackcurrant or grenadine (in our case out of date Ribena), and a third dry white wine, to keep bees away from it.

Today, John checked the one with the cats, as they needed feeding, and we think we have caught one!  The photo below has been sent to the main man running the observatoire for his views, so I will confirm if we have been successful properly when he gets back to me.  We are ever so excited though.

 

Day 17 of lockdown - supermarket hell?

I've fought off the temptation for over two weeks now, but with 7 hungry mouths to feed and a husband without beer, I had to do it, I had to go to the supermarket today.  I tried to find out when the quiet time might be but all I could find on social media locally was a lot of complaints about the owner of our local store, so I just guessed that 3pm on a Thursday might be a good time.  I also put a small bottle of hand sanitizer in the door of the car.

I gather there was a pretty nasty article in The Times today about how French society is about to collapse and has sunk to the low of the Vichy regime.  As I don't have a subscription, I can't comment one way or another, other than to say that the friend who told me about it was steaming angry and showed me her response, which seemed to imply that there is open war in your average French supermarket.

Ours is a distinctly average French supermarket, and wasn't busy when I was there.  People behaved well.  Where were the gaps in the shelves?  Cat food, chicken food, rabbit food (really - rabbit food not salads), beer in the meths drinkers category, some of the cheaper types of rice, and chocolate.

On the way home, I was stopped by the Gendarmes and my attestation was checked, and I was told fine but go straight home, which I said I would.

It was a lot better than it might have been and very civilised.

There is nothing interesting to photograph in and around a supermarket, so another picture of cherry blossom to close.

Day 16 of lockdown - time for me

So, the report has gone and no reaction from the client - I took that as a sign that today was me time!  Actually that started yesterday with a profligate glass of sherry (it will be months until I can get my hands on another bottle) and trying out a new recipe - banana bread.  Excellent recipe and it turned out well - sorry, no photos, so you'll just have to imagine it!

This morning was market day at la Flèche, and as word had got out that it was going ahead, there were more stalls and more punters.  Don't believe the French don't know how to queue - if it is something they want (fresh vegetables, fish, cheese etc), they will queue and they will behave.  Well outside Paris anyway!  See!

This afternoon I was able to take time to look closely at cherry blossom and admire the bee going about her business.  It was wonderful to watch, but she didn't have many colleagues.  The tree should have been alive with bees, not like a social distancing market!

I'm not convinced how well the garlic is going to do this year - it keeps getting squished by a silly cat!

After that, I thought I would try the first of my yoga teacher's videos.  I do yoga for seniors, but after a gentle start, she moved on to stuff I'd not done before plus I had cat help.  As I now ache rather a lot, I'm calling it a day!

 

Day 15 of lockdown - working from home

Call it working from home, call it télétravail, it's what I've been doing for the past 15 years now.  As a freelancer, I am used to the loneliness of the long distance report writer, and the mad rush to meet a deadline, even on the best planned projects.  This one was well planned, and it wasn't that much of a panic, as lockdown and the Bise (the North East wind) had concentrated the mind nicely, so the draft report that I sent 10 minutes ago (and about half an hour early) was actually in much better shape than a normal first draft.  It even had a nice contents page.

We are promised the end of the Bise tonight, and it can't go soon enough for me, but more importantly for this summer's fruit crop.  The peach blossom is nearly over, and the tiny fruitlets can be seen, and they just don't need frost!  There were only about 15 flowers on the plum tree and I've not dared to look to see if any have set, while the pear is in full flower, and we need pears.

As well as the final blossoms, the peach is also starting to show its leaves, and so far they seem unaffected by the dreaded peach leaf curl, which is surprising given all the rain we have had.  I might not be saying that in a week's time.

Many things are too early this year, including the irises - my favourite flowers.  This is the first out in our garden, but they are already out in quantity in some very sheltered spots.  Later in the season we will have the spectacular red ones, but for now I revel in the purple ones.