Snap-shot of a March Day

 Posted by Rosie

 

Outside my window - I can see rain.  We need it as March has been very dry and it is perfect for the seeds I sowed earlier in the week plus all the rain butts are all now full.

I am thinking - that I must write this quickly as the boys are waiting for a bedtime story.

From my kitchen - I can see the ingredients for tonight's frittata.

I am wearing - slightly cleaner clothes than the last time I did one of these snapshots.

I am going - Folk Dancing this evening.

I am reading - Animal Farm, in French.  It's a good job I know the story as there are an awful lot of words I don't understand!

I am hearing - the boys arguing - oh the joys of parenthood.

Around the house - there is the usual mess.

One of my favourite things is - my pigs - I love being able to see them now they are in the field.

And here is my picture for thought - one of our hens is currently sitting on 9 Buff Orpington eggs - if all goes well we should have chickens that look like this soon:

 

 

The Polytunnel in March

Posted by Rosie

In previous years I have concentrated on summer crops that benefit from the heat of the polytunnel - tomatoes, aubergines, cucumbers etc. but I have not really taken the full advantage that a polytunnel gives to extending the seasons and protecting plants overwinter.  Now, having purchased The Polytunnel Book I am trying to make much better use of the polytunnel all year round.  With that in mind, I have lots growing in there at the moment and I'm wondering where on earth I am going to put all the tomatoes etc!!

All the following have germinated in the beds and are growing on nicely thanks to the warm sunshine we have had over the last couple of weeks - lots of oriental vegetables, chard, cabbages, rocket, radishes, chicory, turnips, beetroot and carrots.  I am managing to keep sowing lettuces in succession and the first ones are nearly ready to harvest.  I'm harvesting spinach and chard but the last of the beetroot went to the pigs last week.

Overwintering onions/shallots, potatoes, peas, mangetout and broad beans are all growing rapidly - I have been hand pollinating broad bean flowers with a soft paint brush to encourage seed setting.  The peas and mangetout are growing up dogwood twigs but I have an awful feeling that the said twigs have rooted!!  I also have flowers on the strawberry plants so more hand pollinating there.

And this month I have been busy sowing seeds for later transplanting - tomatoes (6 varieties), peppers (3 varieties), sunflowers, nasturtiums, marigolds, basil, spring onions, beetroot and courgettes.  Most have germinated and I'll be busy potting them on over the next week or so.

Plants I overwintered under cover are now hardening off outside and will be planted out as soon as the risk of frost has passed.  If only I knew exactly when that date was, gardening would be so much easier!

Athletics Boy

Posted by Rosie

On a Wednesday Tom goes to athletics at Condé with the local athletics club.  He's a good little runner and enjoys the relay races and games they play.  On Saturday he went to his first athletics competition up at Caen and came home a very proud boy.  His Club came 4th out of 10 teams and for his efforts he got a medal.  Being his first competition he also got a Club T-shirt.

Today the boys have been allowed in to school in fancy dress - Ben went in his pyjamas complete with dressing gown, slippers, a bedtime book and most importantly Barney Bear.  Tom went as ........ an athlete complete with his new T-shirt and medal.

It's Official

Posted by Rosie

Spring is definitely here, a male white leg has been spotted!!

(Simon may actually kill me for this post - I'd better take him a cup of tea ......FAST!!)

Mad Pigs and Englishmen Go Out For a Little Walk

Com' on Pigs

For the last few days we have been introducing our four remaining piglets to the delights of fresh grass.  This means moving them from their pen to one of the fields and, as it can still be quite cold at night, taking them back to there sleeping quarters for the night.  And overall it has gone quite well.  We have had a few little run-a-rounds plus one or two carried, but now they seem to be learning their way and all raced home this evening  They do have a shelter in the field and will eventually use this when the nights are warmer.

And talking of piglets, our friends, C &L, rung us the other day and said the three piglets, that they had from us, have settled in well - eventually.  Eventually?  Yes, eventually - because less than 24 hours after they had put the piglets in their new enclosure there was a knock on the door and a local family asked C & L if they owed 3 pigs. 'Yes we do, why?'  'Well they are in our garden at this moment!' 

So not long after C & L are chasing said piglets around their neighbour's garden - about 500 metres by road from their house.  Eventually one pig is caught but the other two think the grass is greener!  So C decides to put the ensnared pig in the car, before making an attempt to get the others, when he realises he is being followed.  Right thinks C 'I'll walk home and see what happens' and with one piglet tucked under his arm he sets off home and sure enough 2 piglets followed - all the way back through their village to home, and not without one or two amused looks from neighbours.

And I had to interrupt writing this post to help Rosie catch one of the Indian Runner Ducks - who, we were told, do not fly.  They do! 

Our New Ducks

Posted by Rosie

Well if you think Muscovies are ugly ducks then our new Indian Runner ducks are the silliest-looking members of the duck world:

Apparently they come in a range of colours but ours have what I would call traditional feathering, but it isn't their colour that makes them funny; it is their gait.  They look like they are permanently stretching up for something but when the move, they do not waddle but, as their name suggests, they run ..... fast.  So why the funny looking ducks you may ask?  Eggs.  Indian Runners are good egg layers and at 5 months these should come into lay sometime soon.  Duck eggs are brilliant for cake making and in my opinion they make the best meringues ever.  As pavlova is a bit of a family favourite here hopefully the girls will be earning their keep soon. In the meantime they are more than entertaining us with their silly walk and gentle quacking. 

April Rally Special Offer

Posted by Rosie

Fancy a short break in France?

Enjoy car rallies?

 Then Eco-Gites may have the answer.  

We have a short week available from Friday 15th April to Thursday 21st April 2011 which is when the Annual Suisse Normandie Rally takes place directly on our doorstep.  On Sunday 17th April our road is closed for all but the rally cars which hurtle through trying very hard not to be the first car .... in the ditch.  3 other race tracks are set out on local roads over the whole week-end making travelling across country a bit more fun than usual but giving plenty of opportunities to watch the rally action.

With travel thus slightly disrupted we are happy to offer lettings during this week at the following reduced rates:

2 nights - £75

3 nights - £110

4 nights - £140

5 nights - £165

6 nights - £190
 
Click here to go to our website

However, please note that we cannot do a change-over on Sunday 17th April unless you can get to us either before 8am or after 5pm when the road is re-opened.

Offer subject to availability and terms and conditions.

Hubble, Bubble ...

Posted by Rosie

... there are strange bubbling noises in the house tonight.  Simon has a demijohn of wine and a bucket of beer fermenting away and neither the cat nor I can't quite get used to the glugging noises they are making.  He also has a bucket of Seville Oranges doing their bit before hopefully becoming an orange wine.  A necessary result of freezer rearranging such that I managed to put the contents of the smallest freezer in the 2 larger ones with the exception of a bag or oranges, a turkey carcass, one whole chicken and a block of turkey stock.  So, as well as the wine and beer glugging, tomorrow there will be soup and pot of turkey stock bubbling away.  

It did also mean we were rather decadent and had roast chicken on a Monday evening!

Hedges

Rosa Rugosa Hedge

Twice we have tried to grow a beech hedge along a 25 metre bank on our boundary but the success rate has been well below 3%.  Whether the bank was too high, the weather too dry or what, I do not know, but beech is notoriously hard to plant on, so we've given up now and gone down a different route.

Yesterday I pulled up all of the 6 surviving beech trees and then reduced the height of the bank.  Overnight a good downpour soaked the bank and Rosie planted it up with Rosa rugosa.  Not strictly a wildlife hedge but, hopefully, a good crop of rose hips will be produced -  for Rosie's Rose Hip Syrup.

Laid Hedge 2008

Those six poor remaining beech trees I've transplanted into other hedges which have already been laid and/or planted up, with some additional Dog Rose (Rosa canina). Overall the hedges planted 3 years ago and those laid have a success rate of nearly 100% and needed very little gaping up.  The laid hedges are thickening out well and maybe in the future give us some firewood, bean poles and pea sticks.


So, fingers crossed, for third time lucky, with this beech hedge now cum Rosa rugosa hedge!  Hopefully the transferred beech will survive (I don't hold my breath) and, also, the Dog Rose grows.  And of course there are enough rose hips to make Rosie's Rose Hip Syrup - very good for colds. So I am told!

Wine and Pancakes - eventually

Posted by Rosie

OK - so I admit it - we completely forgot to have pancakes on Shrove Tuesday.  However our attempt to rectify this by having them a yesterday was foiled .... by the arrival of a wine rep.  The gentleman and his wife, a local couple we know through our neighbour, insisted we sample the wares such that by the time they left we were in no fit state to attempt to cook pancakes (and a considerable amount of Euros poorer with a several cases of wine ordered!). 

But we finally managed pancakes today.  Smoked salmon, spinach, egg and crème fraîche crêpes for main course followed by thicker American pancakes for afters with yoghurt and stewed fruit or simply the traditional lemon and sugar. Thank you chickens for the eggs, the local farm cows for the milk, the polytunnel for the spinach and the garden/freezer for the stewed fruit.

Our frogspawn has hatched

Posted by Rosie

Over the last few days I have excitedly been watching our pond as the eggs in our lump of spawn have changed from black blob to comma shaped and then into very small tadpoles.  Today I saw something I have never seen before so do not know if it is a normal occurrence or not.  Most of the eggs have successfully hatched but the tiny tadpoles have not left the safety of the spawn, but instead many have gathered in the middle.  Why this is I'm not sure; for warmth maybe or perhaps to glean the last bit of nutrition from the spawn before heading out into the great unknown that is our little pond?  I don't know.

Last night we had quite a severe frost - several degrees in fact, resulting in white grass and frozen water in the pond and water buckets.  However a quick peak at the weather forecast for tonight reveals it should be mild in comparison, giving our little tadpoles an easier start in life. They'll need it. Apparently from each average sized dollop of frog spawn only 4 of the tadpoles make it to breeding age ... and in an average frog spawn there can be 4000 eggs.  Life as a tadpole or young frog is a hard one but as we see plenty of frogs (and toads) around here, it seems a 0.1% success rate is still working for the population as a whole.

Poppy, You Must Be Barking............

Poppy the Sea Dog

.......... mad to go in that water - it may be sunny but it's only a few degrees above zero and then there is the wind chill factor.  As Saari watched on, Poppy time after time had a stick thrown for her as we had a very pleasant walk along the beach at Ouisterham this morning.

Tom & Ben Caught by the Sea

The boys also had a great time with the instruction to remain dry lasting about as long as you can say 'please keep dry'. The game was to lie down on the beach and not get caught by the waves!  I believe by the second go the sea won.  And fortunately parents had had the forethought of packing spare socks and trousers but not underpants - as Ben found out!

We then, eventually, found somewhere for a spot of lunch. Believe it or not, it was not easy in France on a winter's Sunday lunch time on the coast.  So a couple of beaches up in Luc Sur Mer we found the Salon de thé de la Digue - which we think must be renowned for it's croque-monsieur/madam. Whilst Rosie and I had a lovely salad and Tom had a huge Hot Dog, Ben had the biggest croque-madam (with chips) that I've ever seen and so were many of the other customers.

So there is now one sleeping black Labrador warming up in front of the fire and two boys who won't need much feeding this evening, all having enjoyed a very pleasant Sunday outing.

That Firkin Cat!!

Posted by Rosie

Firkin - July 2010

Firkin is a lovely cat.  He is handsome, he loves cuddles and he catches mice.  Firkin is also a VERY BAD CAT who thinks there is no finer place to enjoy the Spring sunshine than ON TOP of the polytunnel.  A week or so ago I caught him climbing up the side when I was working inside and yesterday I found him happily sat on top of it with out a care in the world and oblivious to the fact that climbing up is resulting in a rash of claw holes up the side.  

Polytunnel plastic does not come cheap and other than 2 small holes I made with the tomato supports and a bit of a tear at the front, the plastic is surviving well.  That will not be the case if Firkin continues to sunbathe on high.  Luckily (if you can say that), he only appears to have scrambling up at one point, thus minimising the area of damage.  I'm about to go out, now the sun has dried the plastic, and stick polytunnel tape over each claw mark I can find.  I am also arming myself with a water squirter so if I do see him up there again maybe a quick shower will deter him in the future.  If not, I am at a loss as to how to stop him.  He really is a Firkin cat at times!!

Simon's UK Trip

Posted by Simon

Chestnut Coppice

Today I'm staying at a friends near Poole in Dorset before catching the ferry back to France tomorrow morning.  Apart from catching up with friends I'm spending some time shopping for the 'all English' food supplies.  Some of this things are available in France but are expensive.  On the list is cheddar cheese, marmite, bran flakes and Bramley apples plus a few other things may have, accidentally, fallen into the shopping trolley on the way round the aisles - beer (bitter) and bacon for example. 

I have been in the UK for just over a week helping a friend coppicing chestnut trees in a lovely old coppiced woodland.  The weather was mixed but fortunately we did not get too wet this time and definitely not snowed on.  Plus - like taking coals to Newcastle - I have filled up the back of the pick-up with loads of firewood.  This will probably get me some strange looks at the port tomorrow but getting free firewood makes sense to me.

Wasps v Saracens

As the coppicing is very heavy work we now work Thursday, Friday and Saturday, then Monday and Tuesday.  This gives the poor old muscles a rest on the Sunday. Plus it seems a good excuse to get to a rugby match.  This time we went to see Wasps v Saracens at High Wycombe. Again it was a good entertaining afternoon of rugby, although a little cold.

Well I have a few more items to get from the shopping list, and may even sneak in a pint of decent bitter, before getting packed and ready for my early start tomorrow morning.

One chicken

Posted by Rosie

Sept 2010 - Photo by Sian

 

The largest of the cockerels that was slaughtered last year found his way to the top of the freezer and on into the kitchen at the weekend.  From this one chook we have had roast dinner for 5, chicken stew for 3, chicken and leek risotto for 4 and enough stock for both the risotto and a small pan of soup.  Oh and the lucky dogs got the skin after making the stock and we still have a big bag of chicken livers in the freezer.  It may "appear" better value to buy a cheap supermarket chicken but this fellow had a great free-range life, a quick end and gave as loads of very tasty meals.  Chicken as it really should taste like and very few food miles to boot.