10/06/2018 Still trying to catch up.

Maximum temperature today 24C, minimum 16C.    Rainfall, 20 mm last night; 9 km/h South Westerly winds with up to 27 km/h gusts.

Total rainfall since 1st January; 626 mm.  Storms forecast for today and the next couple of days

Happy Birthday Mum.  She would have been 103 today.

Our arrival in Rhodesia 1953. My brother David 1936-1957, my father, myself and my Mum.

Ladybird in the garden...

Bee...

Speckled wood butterfly (Pararge aegeria).

Bee on the cotoneaster.

Last week we tried out a new restaurant in Marcillac-Lanville called Les Nymphéas...

We arrived early so I took this photo inside before the place filled up.  

Five courses with wine for €13.50.  I will not show you all the courses, I don't want you all to be feeling very hungry 😉

Walking around the town afterwards, this is the Mairie...

the local pub...

the boulangerie...

Watering point...

The hairdresser...

and this mural outside a small shop.  There were two cars parked in front so I had to make a sort of collage so you could see it all in one.  Catching the big fish.

N.B. My bird blog is updated  HERE 

Part 12 of the birds I saw last year in Africa.

04/04/2016 Neighbours and pot making!

Maximum temperature 17C, minimum  6C.    39 km/h S winds.  4 mm rain measured this morning.

Our neighbour's lambs growing up.

Another neighbour spreading manure,

Log pile and a friend's house in the distance.

Dandelions taking over !

Wonder what crop is going in here?

Still wet tracks around.

Hogging the road :-)

Pot making.  This was brought about after seeing Kerry's post on Plus Tranquille

She has a special bit of equipment and her pots appear to be much smaller than mine, but I am happy with my results.  Plants can be planted in the paper, which will later disintegrate.

Newspaper  is best, so I gather.  Cut paper large enough to go around the former (I used a glass) and fold the top over twice to give support to the top of the pot.

Roll it loosely around a former, remember it has to slide off!   Folded edge towards the bottom of the glass.

I used a small strip of sticky paper to hold it easily.

Fold the end into the open glass....

Take the glass out and turn it over, pressing the bottom of the glass onto the folded end to flatten it and keep it together.

I see there are a number of places where you can buy the real thing, and maybe they will work better, but for me this is appears to be doing the job well enough.

04/03/2016 Very rushed as friends coming to dinner tonight.

Maximum temperature 12C, minimum 2C.  73 km/h SW winds. 14 mm of rain measured this morning but we have had lots since.

Snowdrop.

Broad beans flower.

Best leeks we have ever grown this year.

Flower of rocket also known as arugula.

Rosemary.

This little chap is made from seeds and sits in our house :-)

I cheated, these photos were taken yesterday as I knew today would be rushed!

21/02/13 Freezing cold here today and a few desperate photos.

Maximum temperature 6C but with the wind factor feels like 1C. Frost this morning.