Sward play

How about this for an absurdly lush garden?

This just doesn’t happen in normal Ardeche summers.  But we are all learning that there is no normal any more.

But in previous summers this large lawn would be beige and crispy by now.

And we certainly wouldn’t be needing to mow it every week.

Why, it’s just like a British lawn. As it is trying to be.  This is our only large flat terrace on this mountain, and it feels strange to have such an expanse of green.

If it were up to me I’d probably plant the entire space to within in inch of its borders, so a bit of a pause is no bad thing.

I was supposed to be delving deeply into a research project today, but I just couldn’t resist doing something physical and outdoors after being cooped up for a week.

And just getting out the mower means I can be guaranteed a few good hours of walking and mowing.  I did four hours.

That means the orchard, the track, the duck pond lawn and the main lawn. A quick trip along the path of the potager, a tidy around the compost bins, down in front of the house; and up to the east garden verges.

I managed to get the car parking area mown as there were no vehicles in the way, and then did the walnut path and around the hedges.

I was tempted to work my way down the road and go and mow the first long terrace.  But sense prevailed. That would have made it an extra two hour bolt 0n. And I needed to get on.

But it is so pleasing to look out and see lush lawns and tamed grass.  I may get to do the terrace below the road on the weekend.  It’s vexing as it’s the main lawn that I see when I look out my office window. And I see sneaky verbascum weeds trying to evade the mower blade’s capture. I will prevail.