Back to the future

It felt such a luxury: I actually spent a happy half hour taking sedum cuttings today.  For the first time in ages I’ve actually been thinking about the future. And that’s plant future, not hard landscaping future.

I want to build up my stock of sedums. They are a marvellous plant for this climate. Impervious to drought (although they don’t romp away) and attractive in foliage as well as flower.

And I have lots. But need more.  I’m about two weeks later than I should be, but I have taken pots and pots of cuttings.  Here’s hoping they will take even though they are a bit tall in the stem. You have to take a bit of root when you cut them.

But that was the end of the day task. It did start with the market and I did have a delicious hot chocolate and (free) pain au chocolat with my mates in the morning at the cafe on the square.

It’s not a sublime hot chocolate in the taste department. But it’s the routine, the joshing with the cafe owner as you order it. The sliding into the seat and kissing everyone hello but waiting for them to change the conversation for you to join in.  All the talk is of this weekend’s farm event all over the Ardeche – La Ferme en Ferme.  Manu and her goat farm will be open to all comers.

And there is the routine of going to your local shops – boulangerie, boucher (I had ordered four faux filet steaks, and they told me to come back as they hadn’t finished deboning them), booking appointments, paying bills. Chatting and saying hello to so many people on the way. It’s a scruffy little town but it’s my favourite town. The biggest crowd was at the garden centre and agricultural supply store. I needed a connector for my new automatic watering system.

And that was the morning. Plus a visit to the mayor’s office to drop off the three vases of flowers to the women who run it and pay a bill.

I was into the potager and weeding like mad by 11am.

Alice’s peas are up; sown just two weeks ago. Or was it three?

I weeded every bed and had to come in at luchtime as it was so hot. 20 celsius today.

I went up to the potting shed to water like mad and open more windows. And I moved as many plants as I could up a size.

Poor Artur was flagging in the heat. So why on earth was he lying in the potting shed and not outside in the shade? Silly cat.

I can’t say he was fun company: just plaintive squeaks and croaks as I worked. I swear there were some plaintive mewlings as well. I do hope he isn’t ailing. I bought worm tablets at the pharmacy for him this morning. And as I handed them over to Jean Daniel I wished him luck – I wouldnt want to risk skin and bone trying to give him a tablet morning and night.