Maximum temperature today 20C, minimum 13C. Cloudy and damp but not enough to show in the rain gauge; 11 km/h North-westerly winds with up to 31 km/h gusts.
We have been busy with trailer loads of stone from the 'new' barn and taking them to the dump. (An old interior wall that was under the food troughs). Moving cut wood into the barn. Cutting up figs for dehydration and what seems like dozens of small jobs!
Common wood pigeon (Columba palumbus)...
as above.
Colorado potato beetle larvae (Leptinotarsa decemlineata). I have been hand picking them off the potatoes and dumping them in soapy water - I seem to be winning at the moment!
Frelon asiatique (Vespa velutina) - Asian Hornet.
Note the last two insects have been introduced to France and we really do not want them!
Now this little guy, about 1/4 the size of a normal ladybird, is in quite large numbers on my haricot vert, they do not appear to be doing any damage but maybe I am missing something! If anyone can ID it for me I would be delighted...
They are Southern green shield bug nymphs (Nezara viridula) and are important pests so now I have to find a way to get rid of them without messing up the beans for eating. They are eating all the young beans and the flowers I can now see!!
As above.
Cornflower plus ant.
Cosmos and memories of roadsides full of them in Southern Africa...
as above...
as above, note the bug.
I thought all the poppies were over but suddenly this double appeared.
Californian poppy and hoverfly
Vegetables from the garden today - tomatoes, figs, 1 parsnip, 3 yellow carrots, hazelnuts....
Haricot vert, potatoes, mealies (sweetcorn)
Yum yum. For those that might be worried, I made the zebra table mats from zebra patterned wrapping paper. The table was carved in Zambia (I think) and has the heads of the big 5 carved into the top of it. Elephant, lion, buffalo, rhino and leopard. It has glass over the carving so almost impossible to photograph. You can see part of the elephant here.
and a slightly washed out sunset.
My bird blog
has been updated HERE
Figs cost an arm and a leg here. While we were on vacation in Gaspé recently we bought a whole bunch and indulged ourselves. Now it’s back to local apples!
ReplyDeleteWish I could send you some they are so good warm from the tree. They are still pretty good though when dehydrated and we have them for several more months. Enjoy your week Diane
DeleteI am envious of your impressive crop of vegetables Diane, and your flowers with their little visitors are delightful. Your table is one of a kind and placemats creative. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
ReplyDeleteYes the carved table is certainly one of a kind, so much work has gone into it. The fascinating bit is the 'circular' glass on top is not quite circular and fits in to the wood in only one postition. Not easy to clean underneath and thankfully we do not need to do it often. Take care Diane
DeleteA unique work of art that's for sure. Have a great day Diane :)
DeleteAll the flowers are lovely. The insects are ghastly. The veggies are yummy.
ReplyDeleteYes I agree invasive insects are a massive nuisance. They just cause trouble. The vegetables are good but we were let down this year by the Cucurbitaceae family. No courgettes and usually we have too many, only 3 pumpkins and 2 squash, generally we are about 18 to 20. Take care Diane
DeleteThe garden is producing well Diane. The table must be beautiful!
ReplyDeleteMarie see my comment to Emma re the vegetables. Have a good day Diane
DeleteSuch little bugs... and beautiful flowers! Nicely done Diane :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Lynda, the bugs are a pain, or some of them are! keep well Diane
DeleteWhat beautiful pics. The flowers are still looking great. Sounds as if you have been really busy at the barn and around the place. Would love to see pics of your place so I can get a feel of it all.
ReplyDeletePam if you go back to my birthday post, the one before this, there is a link at the bottom taking you to My Life in the Charente which has all the photos of the barn and the front of our house! Take care Diane
DeleteWell hello my friend - I'm sure that bird in the first pic is looking directly at me ;-)
ReplyDeleteLOL he certainly is watching someone. Take care Cheers Diane
DeleteSo happy to see your plentiful harvest! The pigeon looks well fed and oh my, the beetle larvae overate and it is bulging! I love corn grill with butter and salt!
ReplyDeleteOur garden birds are all well fed, they never go short! We also love corn we had a good crop this year. Take care and enjoy the week Diane
DeleteBeautiful pictures again.I am back to read your blog posts. The dove, we have them here too. They are large. Yesterday one flew against our window. Luckily, he was not injured and flew away immediately.
ReplyDeleteI think those doves are pretty widespread over Europe. I hate cleaning our windows as it alwasy causes a problem for the birds!!! Take care, regards to R. Diane.
DeleteThe wood pidgeon is such a pretty colour Diane, nothing common about that ☺ I know how you feel about the introduced insect species, despite the strictest control we have had intruders also. You are so lucky have such a variety of vegetables fresh from your own garden, yum!
ReplyDeleteIntruders are a worldwide problem and the natural animals suffer for it. The grey squirrel imported to the UK from the USA is taking over from the beautiful smaller red squirrel, which thankfully we still have in France. There are so many stories like this it is sad.
DeleteThe veggie garden has not been as good this year as normal, but we have certainly not gone short.
Hope all is well over there, take care. Cheers Diane
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful!
I loved the vegetables.
Good week.
Thanks so much for your visit and comment, hope you also have a good week Diane
DeleteSure hope you're taking photos of the changes to your new building. I wonder if sprinkling the Colorado potato beetle larvae with cornmeal would work like it did on tomato horn worms. Dries them out dead. Sometimes I think it's futile to have a garden unless one plans to feed the bugs, native or not. Yet you seem to be harvesting a nice amount of edibles for you as well. Ah, the Cosmos, also reminds me of SA. Be well, and don't over work.
ReplyDeleteGaelyn I seem to have succeeded in getting rid of the bugs by dropping them in soapy water and picking them off by hand. I found only one today so think I am almost there. Keep well, Diane
DeleteOh my Diane, I would absolutely love to have your table, lol. It is right up my alley. The tablemats too. Your garden bounty is fantastic.
ReplyDeleteThanks Penny. Although we are low on some veg this the year others have done extraordinary well! Hope all is well Diane
DeleteI have never seen double poppies and yellow carrots, Diane. Wow! Thank you so much for sharing these great photos. Kisses, my friend.
ReplyDeleteYellow, purple and orange carrots this year 😉 It makes for a colourful plate. Keep well Diane
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