Kenneth Grahame has a lot to answer for. Having read and loved The Wind in the Willows as a child, I grew up with a roseate image of Mole which I’m now telling you couldn't be further from the truth. If a small, short-sighted, furry creature were ever to show his nose in my Normandy garden, I’d probably chase him away with my garden fork, that being the implement which barely left my hand for much of this summer.
When we arrived at the end of June, the grass in the garden was approaching knee-high, which meant putting my sturdy mower on its highest setting to prevent it clogging up completely. At first all went well, though emptying the capacious grass collector at the end of every couple of passes was hard work, but then I came to the area under the trees. Instantly my relatively smooth progress was punctuated with sudden bursts of metallic clinking as earth and stones spattered the underside of the mower. Yes, I’d hit yet another hidden mole-hill!
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| Who knew what was lurking beneath the green? |
After much cursing and sweating the first cut of the grass was finished and the full extent of the devastation was revealed. I don’t know why the long cold winter and spring were so conducive to mole activity in southern Normandy, but the fact remains that the grass under the fruit trees looked like an ancient battlefield, full of humps and bumps and bare patches of earth. If I wanted to get the grass shorter than the five inches I’d already achieved, I’d have to get down and dirty to clear the concrete-hard mounds laboriously by hand.
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| No faking here and this was only one corner |
It was scant comfort to find at the next garden club meeting that I was by no means the only victim of mole subversion. Garden owners preparing for a visit by the club sent out warnings to the members to wear stout shoes and be prepared for less than perfect lawns this time. The otherwise welcome hot weather didn't help either, as the sun baked the mole-hills to an even stonier consistency, making their levelling a form of not-so-subtle torture to my aching back.
However, Perpetua is made of stern stuff and I refused to let myself be beaten by Monsieur Taupe and his works. By the time DD and her family arrived in early August, every one of the three dozen or so mole-hills which had greeted me had been flattened more or less and the garden could again be used to play our version of crazy boules, though with a few more obstacles than usual.
Because we are only here for a few months of the year, my garden in Normandy will never be more than an expanse of uneven grass and a rather small flower border by the house, which is why I so enjoy the garden visits arranged by the garden club. I only managed to make it to two of the monthly meetings this time, but hopefully a small selection of the photos I took will give you a taste of the wonders achieved by others with far more time, skill and stamina than I possess.
First came a visit to the Manoir de Saussey near the west coast.
What stunning gardens you have visited., Perpetua. As for your own battle with moles...I still am rather fond of them in principle. We were once at Bretton Hall - a beautiful place - that had plenty of mole hills in the grounds. Mateo would have been about 2 and we were explaining about the moles underground. He took a little twig and poked it down one of the holes. Imagine our surprise when the earth beneath heaved and shook and trembled. I think he'd poked a mole on the nose!!
ReplyDeleteI think French moles are perhaps a little less cute?
Axxx
There are some gorgeous gardens around our area, Annie, and I really enjoy visiting them, even if they leave me green with envy. :-) As for Mr Mole, I wouldn't hurt a hair of his little head, but I do wish he'd leave my grass alone and head out into the acres of fields nearby, where there must be millions of juicy worms. I've never actually seen a french mole, but I can testify that there are plenty alive and digging here.
DeleteIndeed Perpetua - Fictitious moles are much more fun than when you experience them in real life. Your complaints about the effects of their activities on your Normandy lawn, echo those I used to hear from the keepers of Finmere Churchyard where they were a real menace for a number of years.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the photographs of your garden visits, both of which look delightful.
I can well imagine the complaints from the members of the churchyard mowing rota, Ricky,. :-) Mowing become really difficult with so many scattered mounds to avoid and clearing mole-hills isn't easy unless you get to them while they are still new and soft. Ours were like concrete!
DeleteGlad you enjoyed the photos. They were both such beautiful gardens in lovely settings.
Yes - moles are cute and lovely in principle but a nuisance if you have them in the garden. I have tried so many ways to keep them away. Have you seen the Jasper Carrot cartoon? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fePU5CIHpas
ReplyDeleteKerry, thank you SO much for the link to the Jasper Carrott sketch. It's so good that I've added it as a postscript to my post, so everyone can enjoy it.
DeleteYou're so right about the difficulty of deterring moles without actually harming them, which I don't think either of us would want to do. Ho-hum.....
Glad you like the Jasper sketch - he is so funny.
DeleteI don't want to hurt the moles I just don't want them digging up the lawn - still makes nice earth for potting up.
Jasper Carrott is one of my favourite comedians and I can't think how I've missed this mole story.
DeleteYes, I too make us of the mole-hill earth, once I've managed to break it up. At least I don't usually have to sieve it for stones, which is a relief in our rather stony garden.
I have never me a mole, and don't understand their habits, other than a vague idea that they live underground. So why the mole-hills? Is it a side-effect of digging burrows? Please enlighten this Australian ignoramus, Perpetua!
ReplyDeleteThe gardens you show are just gorgeous, the Manoir is like something from a story book, and the French knot garden, well who wouldn't want one of those pretty things. lovely post, Perpetua.
Patricia, if you watch the YouTube clip I've just been given and have added to the end of my post, all will be revealed. :-)
DeleteMoles are small burrowing animals which live on earthworms, so are attracted to the fertile soil of gardens. The mole-hills are their spoil heaps and you can often track their progress through your lawn by the placement of the mole-hills. Sigh....
I thought you would enjoy the garden photos. The Manoir is a lovely 17th century house surrounded by typically formal French gardens, as well as some more modern and relaxed plantings. The knot garden belonged to the second house and could be seen from above, which showed off the intricate patterning beautifully.
I remember mole hills from my Surrey childhood - luckily none here in New Zealand (this part anyway). Lovely gardens.
ReplyDeleteNo moles in New Zealand, Susan? It must be a gardener's paradise, unless of course you have other animals with similarly destructive habits. I'm sure both the gardens in my photos have their battles with moles.....
DeleteWhat busy little bees they've been this year, the little buggers. I don't have to worry about moles because my garden is mostly too rocky, being a former garrigue.
ReplyDeleteThey have indeed, Sarah. I've never known them to be half so active in our 10 years here. Perhaps it was the long cold spring.... Gardening on rocky soil must have its own challenges, but be grateful moles aren't one of them. :-)
DeleteWhat super gardens! Thanks for sharing. We're not really plagued by moles here at all. Think there must be easier pickings for them in the woods to the left & right of us.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed them. You are very lucky not to be too bothered by moles and I'm turning green with envy at the thought. I imagine the richness of the leaf-mould must ensure lots of juicy earthworms to tempt the moles away from your garden.
DeleteI think our garden has too little topsoil over the underlying rock for moles - they'd bash their noses! I've been wondering about how your Norman house feels when it's been empty for months - or do you have someone to go in and air it?
ReplyDeleteShallow topsoil would certainly be a deterrent for moles, though not easy for the gardener. No we don't have anyone in during our absence. The house has been drylined which helps enormously to stop it getting damp and the old windows at the front are draughty enough to ensure adequate ventilation so far.
DeleteI know what you mean about the moles. Our friends in Brittany who we stayed with this July are plagued by them. Every single morning there are about 20 new mounds of earth in their lawns, although to be fair they have got a very large garden. But still a nuisance all the same. We have been waking up to small holes in our lawn of late and assumed it was Mr Fox. However we spied the culprit yesterday afternoon. It was our saucy little squirrel who was pinching the birds' peanuts from the hanging feeders and scrambling down onto the lawn and burying his goodies for the winter, when he'll no doubt be back to dig them up again!
ReplyDeletePatricia x
I remember that post well, Patricia and nearly borrowed your photo of the devastation. They say that the presence of moles is a tribute to the fertility of your soil, but I'm guessing its a tribute your friends could happily do without. Let's hope the moles quieten down soon.
DeleteIt must have been rather sweet to see your cheeky squirrel hiding his winter store, but not at the expense of your lawn. It's astonishing to think he will be able to find his caches again almost unerringly, but I bet you hope he doesn't. :-)
The gardens are all very beautiful. As for the moles, all I can say is you have my sympathies. They are very annoying little creatures, and for something so small they can do a lot of damage. We had a type of mole in our backyard in Kamloops and there were some sections of the back lawn that had holes in them like a golf putting green. And there were other places that had mounds of dirt. Mounds! Hopefully this winter will be hard on the mole population in France. And I rather doubt Kenneth Grahame had ever dealt with an infestation of them in his own garden. If he had he would have written mole as a villain.
ReplyDeleteThey were lovely gardens and I've enjoyed sharing them, Kristie. Thanks for the sympathy. Anyone who has ever suffered from the depredations of moles would feel the same. All that hard work brought to nothing by a small furry miner! At least, unlike you, we didn't have holes to worry about, but some of the mole-hills were huge and had completely killed the grass beneath them by the time I came to deal with them. Sigh...
DeleteI do hope your garden at the new house stays free of moles. If they can survive a Canadian winter there's not much hope for us in Western Europe. :-) Kenneth Grahame MUST have had a gardener!
We had the little blighters here last year, and BH thought he'd got rid of them. When we got back from our weekend away last evening, what did we find? You've guessed, another invasion. More camphor tablets seem to be in order - but I doubt whether we'll be able to resuscitate the lawn, as it's in a dire state of uneven-ness, and I daren't walk on it for fear of falling over again! I used to love 'Mole' and 'Ratty', also 'Moldy Warp' in the 'Little Grey Rabbit' books by Alison Uttley, but 'Ratty' (aka water vole) is the only one left.
ReplyDeleteWhat, you too? Poor BH, being faced with a new invasion. I've never bothered trying any kind of deterrence as we're not there long enough and we have such a big patch of grass, but I might just arm myself with a supply of camphor tablets next year. Thanks for the tip. Yes, it's hard to see those once beloved childhood characters in quite the same way once one is trying to create and maintain a lawn. :-)
DeleteLOVE the Jasper Carrott sketch - he's wonderful. BH said, 'I don't think that's funny - I've got moles!' with a pseudo long face!!
DeleteSo do I, Jasper Carrott being one of my very favourite comedians. I'm so glad Kerry gave me the link in her comment.
DeleteHari Om
ReplyDeleteNo doubt about it, there is something incredibly soothing about lush green places. I'm more the frilly edges and cottage garden type myself, but I can admire the style and form such as seen here.
That kitchen garden would be an envy point for yours truly!!
I recall a mole turning up in Dad's vege patch in our Suffolk home once...Dad being dad put out beer for it.
I go with the theory it got disoriented and took a wrong turn beneath the turf thus going to bother the folks in the churchyard. I'm sure it was only home brew. #\. YAM xx
I probably feel the same about the kind of garden I'd want for myself, Yam, but these beautifully planned and cared-for formal gardens were a feast for the eyes and lovely to wander around. The kitchen garden was perfect, with its lovely setting and gentle slope to stop your veggies getting wet feet from water-logged ground.
DeleteI've actually used beer traps to catch slugs before they can eat my plants, but I've never heard of giving beer to a mole. I wonder if my moles in France would prefer a light beer or a nice drop of red wine. :-)
Dear Perpetua, I so enjoyed that comedy routine by Carrott and the animation. It was a hoot! I wish comics here in the United States could be this funny without being course and crass and telling off-color jokes.
ReplyDeleteAs to moles: I've had only one infestation and that was up in my yard in Stillwater, Minnesota. However, one of the cats with whom I lives--Jeremiah--solved the problem. He'd stay out at night and the next morning--more often than not--I'd find a dead mole by the back screen door.
This expression yours just delighted me: "mole subversion." Peace.
I'm glad you enjoyed Jasper Carrott, Dee. He's one of my favourite comedians, but I hadn't come across this animated routine until Kerry told me about it in her link. So funny.
DeleteCats can be very effective mole-catchers, which is probably why we weren't usually bothered by moles in the past in Sales. Sadly the cats that visit our garden in Normandy obviously don't think its part of their duties to deter the subversive moles who also visit. :-)
Dear Perpetua, I just wanted you to know that I left a comment on your August 17th posting also. Peace.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know, Dee. I get all comments sent to me by email so that I don't miss replying to them, so I'll go across there now.
DeleteThey're a nightmare once they get going. If it's any consolation, the soil from mole hills they leave behind is excellent for growing beetroot in. Your pictures are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteTell me about it, Molly. Sigh.... You're right about the soil though. I can't grow any veg as we're not there for long enough, so I use it to pot up my travelling pelargoniums and also to fill in hollows in the grass in a probably vain attempt to level our so-called lawn.
DeleteA mountain out of a molehill if ever there was one, Perpetua.
ReplyDeleteThese gardens are glorious. I'm sure you know how much I would love to see them, Perpetua. Since that isn't going to happen any time soon, I must thank you, profusely, for giving me a glimpse through your eyes.
Indeed, Penny. Some of the bigger mole-hills were a bit mountainous too. :-)
DeleteI thought you would appreciate the gardens. They were wonderful and I hope my photos have done them justice. In case you don't know, by double or even triple-clicking on a photo you'll be taken to Blogger's Lightbox, in which the photos are shown in a larger format against a black background, which does show them off rather well.
I did double click, Perpetua, enjoying your photo show even more.
DeleteThe one photo with the two "noble" trees is really quite an artistic shot. The lighting gives it the feel of a water color. You might consider framing it.
The Lightbox really does enhance photos, Penny and I'm wondering whether I should put something in my sidebar to remind people to do it if they want to see them better.
DeleteIf you like the lime tree photo, you should see the others I took of the same trees, which almost look like abstract art because of the lighting. If you'd like to see them just email me (the link is in my profile) and I'll send them to you. :-)
Your garden pictures are wonderful. And I thoroughly enjoyed your *mole* cartoon. I have never seen a real live mole, but I gather they can be a nuisance.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Rian. They were beautiful gardens and I very much enjoyed my visits. The mole cartoon is great fun and I'm glad Kerry pointed me towards it. I've only once seen a live mole in the flesh, rather than on the screen, despite all the evidence of their activity.
DeleteNo moles here fortunately. They don't seem quite so cute when they are being so destructive do they?
ReplyDeleteBeautiful gardens...fine if you have the time and the energy!
Lucky you! No, cuteness goes out of the window when one sees those mounds of earth popping up everywhere. Still, all the bending must be good for my waistline. :-)
DeleteI loved both the gardens. The Manoir's garden must have had a gardener to look after it and the second was the retirement project of a British couple who are now living in what was their holiday home for many years.
Those fictitious moles are so engaging, real life ones, not so much! It has been a battle, but you're winning and your garden is beautiful!
ReplyDeleteSpot on, Kathy. Our moles keep themselves well hidden, but can't hide the tell-tale signs of their visits. Our garden is very simple, but the combination of trees and grass and a few flowers works well for us as summer visitors.
DeleteNo fear of moles for us, or for that matter rabbits. They would need a pick axe and shovel to cope with our ground. We have a scant covering of soil over our oolitic limestone garden, and it is difficult enough for us to penetrate it.
ReplyDeleteThe gardens nearby in Normandy are charming - have you ever visited the Edwin Lutyen garden (Bois des Moutiers) in Varengeville-sure-Mer, Haute-Normandie? It is well worth a visit. There is a beautiful little church there too situated on the white cliff tops with tombs of famous artists.
No moles AND no rabbits, Rosemary? Lucky you. :-) I know you must wish for deeper soil, but you can grow some wonderful plants that wouldn't thrive at all on our acidic clay soil in Wales or the stony clay soil we have in Normandy.
DeleteThanks for the mention of the Edwin Lutyens garden which I'm afraid I'd never heard of. Perhaps I can suggest a trip by the garden club one year. One of my disappointments at having to come back a month earlier than usual this time is that I'm missing a garden club trip to see Monet's garden at Giverny. Sigh...
A very entertaining post, Perpetua. As always you see the funny side of life although I can imagine the French mole situation cannot be very amusing and difficult to control. The Normandy gardens are beautiful - especially love the knot garden and the large pond.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Linda, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I've always preferred to laugh rather than get angry about things where possible. I think of the mole-hill removal as just another form of healthy exercise, though I do wish it didn't leave such bare patches which take a long time to grass over.
DeleteYou and Mr Gardener would have appreciated the gardens I saw, as both had been created with such skill and love.
Beautiful gardens...I always feel I would love to make something like that and then add up the man hours and carry on with what I have.
ReplyDeleteAs to moles, I enjoyed the sketch immensely now I am free of the wretched little blighters. The damage their molehills did to mower blades was beyond belief.
A good friend is a firm believer in the 12 bore solution, maintaining that moles come near the surface at 11.00 am. He had quite good results too and, being the French countryside no one took any notice.
Welcome back, Helen. I bet you're glad to be home after all your travels.
DeleteEven if we were in one place all the time, I don't think I could ever achieve anything remotely approaching the quality of these two gardens. It's not just the time and energy involved, but the skill and knowledge, all of which I lack in spades. :-)
Gardening in the Loire Valley was obviously as fraught as in southern Normandy. How my poor mower stands up to it all, I'm not sure, but it was obviously designed to cope with French orchard terrain.
The sketch is super, but I don't think I could bring myself to let off a shotgun at all, let alone anywhere near a living mole. Perhaps I need to make friends with a member of the local chasse.....
Oh Perpetua I did have a laugh at your posting, and confess to reading it aloud with emphasis to Significant Other. Then I watched the video, oh dear, that was so very clever. I have no experience of moles but commiserate with you at the damage to your lawn. I hope your 'disposal' methods are not quite as drastic as in the video!!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to have brightened up your day, Shirley. I find laughter is the best way of coping with this kind of frustration and at least clearing all the mole-hills gave me lots of much-needed exercise. :-)
DeleteI've always understood that having moles is a sign of the fertility of one's garden, as they come in search of the earthworms which frequent fertile soil. I just wish they'd realise that there just as many worms in the fields all around our cottage and concentrate their searches there. Think yourself lucky there are no moles in Australia. :-)
I love the sketch, and really appreciate your views on moles. We had them from time to time in Mankinholes......I never worked out what particular conditions led to their invasion of our lawn. Letting our springer spaniel run round the garden, digging at the mounds, may have helped a bit. Anyway, they haven't followed us to our tiny patch in Hebden Bridge.....and I don't think they would stand a chance on the rocky soil here in Caunes.
ReplyDeleteI love the gardens you have visited. It is lovely to look at other people's work and just imagine ....if only I had the time ! Jx
The sketch is super, isn't it, and I was so glad Kerry told me about it. Why you had moles in Mankinholes and don't in Hebden Bridge is one of life's little mysteries. Perhaps it's something to do with the size of your garden or the depth of the soil. Whichever it is, count your blessings. :-) As for Caunes, from what you and Sarah have said, the whole of Languedoc sounds like a mole-free zone. Lucky you!
DeleteNormandy has some beautiful gardens and is a great growing area. In fact quite a lot of the retired British residents I know actually moved there because land is cheap and they are passionate and skilled gardeners, who now have much more scope for their talents than they could ever have afforded in the UK.
I love that French Knot garden and the kitchen garden. They are so different from each other, yet both are very inviting! I had no idea moles "performed" in just that way. I've never seen that amount of damage, and I can understand the conflict created when you have a love for The Wind in the Willows! Quite a ethical conflict! LOL! Debra
ReplyDeleteThe knot garden and kitchen gardens are actually in the same large private garden we visited, which is divided into several very different but equally beautiful areas. A wonderful achievement.
DeleteThe cartoon shows mole activity very accurately, I'm sorry to say, and the damage even a single mole can cause has sometimes to be seen to be believed. I definitely prefer my moles as characters in a book. :-)
Those gardens are exquisite!
ReplyDeleteWe solved our mole problem by paving the whole (really rather small) garden, now it's a perfect sun trap for the whippets to sunbathe in!
Indeed they are, Annie. I loved them both.
DeleteI imagine your paved garden must have a real Mediterranean courtyard feel when the sun shines on the whippets. :-) Certainly any nearby moles will be painfully deterred. Unfortunately it's not a sensible solution for our big patch, so I'll just have to soldier on, muttering under my breath. :-)
Very funny.
ReplyDeleteMoles aren’t nearly as funny, there seem to be hundreds in my garden too this year. I’ve given up the fight.
Glad you enjoyed it. My sympathies on the mole invasion, espeically in your wonderful garden. The little blighters seem to have run riot everywhere this year. Sigh....
DeleteI have never had to deal with moles. I'm glad for that! My goodness, you really did have some work to do to get that ground smooth. So sad that the price of going older and having our own property is putting to death those idealized characters from our childhood. I find myself becoming an enemy of Peter Rabbit and even Bambi. Well, I haven't quite become a Bambi hater. The little fawns that run through my yard are adorable, but they better stop eating my flowers!
ReplyDeleteIn that case thank your lucky stars, sally. Moles can be so frustrating to deal with, as they never seem to know when to stop and yet most of us couldn't bring ourselves to harm them. Sigh.... Thankfully I'm not bothered by either rabbits or deer, though I have friends in Scotland who regularly get deer invading their gardens and eating their precious shrubs and flowers - not just little fawns, either, but full-grown and hungry.
DeleteNo moles here, thank goodness. They might be the 'last straw'! How lucky you are to have access to the beautiful and inspiring gardens in your area. Out here I've been mainly doing the 'pull, whack, slash and make-a-burn-pile' sort of gardening for the last few days. No fun, little beauty, but not a bad activity for one who likes to see solid results.
ReplyDeleteCount your blessings, then, as mole damage can be surprisingly severe. There are several lovely gardens within easy distance of our French cottage and one of the finest in Wales only a few miles away, so we're lucky.
DeleteBut here at home, I'm busily engaged in exactly the kind of slash and burn gardening you mention, as I've described in my latest post. This years the weeds have just taken over in our absence. Sigh....