Photo round up

Just mopping up the picture gallery: here are a few themes that I forgot to add to the past ten days of gardening. Can’t quite remember when I did this, but I suspect it was after going down to Valence to buy supplies. I seem to recall the roll of wire netting weighed a tonne (I’m being optimistic about the number of fruit trees we are going to plant this year.)

The new deer proof fence around the new apple tree. The last crop of lovely raspberries. Mind you I am hoping that I will get a few more handfuls tomorrow if I get through the tunnel and back to France.
The roses in the courtyard didn’t mind the drenching. Flowering much later this year than last. But of course I have forgotten to note just when the roses were pruned by Nicolas for their winter sulk. I must do them again this month just to get it tidied.
The other vicitm of the floods was the mulberry tree. But having said that, the damage does not look new. But the tree looks to have split in half. And just sagged apart. Not sure how much of it will live. Frankly I’m amazed it’s alive at all considering how split it is. We will definitely need to prune back with a chainsaw next week. And then just monitor it through the winter. It would be a shame to lose it. (Or have I written that before? I really should read what I have written. Otherwise I will be charged with the sin of repetition. Mind you, gardening is rather repititious, as are the concerns.)
Another success with the rain is the lush new mini lawn I sowed under the blackberry bushes.

The instructions admonished anyone casting seeds in months that did not include autumn and spring. But it was August and I was so keen to stop the weeds from shooting up on the nearly cleared soft fruit orchard. I didn’t hold out great hopes it would take. But hit has. Pretty soon it will knit perfectly with the turf layed beside it. And if we get more rain (haven’t had any for a few weeks since the floods) I will sow more. I bought a bumper bag for the future lawns. Can’t wait to cast and hope.