Thursday, July 03, 2014

Who needs a gym?

Not me, at least not when I’ve got a battered French garden to get back into shape. Once last weekend’s rain was over and I’d paid my first visit to my Monday afternoon craft group, this week has passed in a flash. I’ve spent much of each day in the fresh air, wrestling the mower over the mess the cattle have made of our ground. Already I feel fitter and ache less in the mornings, so perhaps I shouldn’t be cross with the beasts for doing what comes naturally.

I’m not referring to the inevitable cowpats, since any gardener knows that a bit of well-rotted manure is not to be sniffed at. It’s the inches-deep holes punched by their hooves which have made life so difficult this week. Some of them are big enough to trap the mower’s front wheels, making progress very stop-and-start and sometimes achingly slow and tiring.

It’s only now that most of the grass has had its first, high cut that I can assess the extent of the damage and I use that word advisedly. Mowing our uneven ground has never been easy, but the current unevenness is off the scale in comparison with previous years. In fact a few areas of the garden – under the trees and in the lee of the house – resemble nothing so much as small-scale buffalo wallows, created when the poor animals huddled in what shelter they could find during the terrible weather we (and they) endured last winter.

In order to stop the unwary visitor (or indeed DH and me) ricking an ankle, I’m busy filling all the holes with grass cuttings, topped off with the fine soil the moles have so kindly provided for me. Elegant it isn’t, but the cuttings will rot down and the grass will eventually grow back through, as I’ve proved in various parts of the garden in previous years. In the meantime, much of what passes for our lawn looks like it’s suffering from a virulent attack of measles or smallpox and certainly won’t win any prizes for best-kept garden in the foreseeable future.
 
Humps, bumps and aching muscles

On a  more cheerful note, I’ve given my little flower border a jolly good forking-over and weeding and have planted out the new plants I brought with me. To do this I had to dig holes in parts of the border which have never been thoroughly dug, which has resulted in another fine crop of stones being brought to the surface. It appears to be impossible to stick a fork in the ground here without hitting a stone, so my arm muscles  (and my patience) have been having even more exercise.

New rockery anyone?

Progress IS being made

Now it’s time for a well-earned break. Tomorrow we will be out all day, enjoying what will certainly be an extended lunch with old friends, followed by a concert in the evening featuring an a capella women’s choir in the fine church in Saint Hilaire-du-Harcouët. I shan’t know myself in something other than my gardening clothes.

At the weekend our neighbouring commune up the hill will be celebrating its fête communale and commemorating the 70th anniversary of the liberation of this area. Despite a less than promising weather forecast for Saturday at least, DH and I will enjoy joining in with some of the events, though we draw the line at a dance that doesn’t even start until 11.30pm! We know our limits…


40 comments:

  1. You certainly don't need a gym Perpetua, after all that exercise in the garden. I do hope that, sooner or later, you are able to relax & enjoy the fruit of your labours. The concert on Friday sounds wonderful & I do hope that the weather doesn't disrupt the weekend celebrations.

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    1. You're so right, Ricky. :-) The good thing is that I'm already feeling so much better for the exercise, particularly after being so restricted in what i could do after my two ops last winter. Oh, I will relax and indeed have been doing quite a lot of reading in the evenings, but I really love working outside here. The concert should be great and the weekend's events will happen despite the weather. Normans are stoical people. :-)

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  2. Gardening is even better than being at the gym. There's something very healing about digging in the dirt, even dirt that the moles have got to before you. :-)

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    1. It certainly is for me, Kristie. I've always found the thought of exercise for exercise' sake deeply unappealing, but can work like a navvy for hours in the garden. Mind you, what with the holes and the moles and the stones I've come close to swearing like a navvy at times. :-)

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  3. So much more enjoyable, the garden than the gym...and no lycra!
    I have to admit that the dance (said optimistically) to begin at 11.30 would be too much for me as well....but I'm sure you'll enjoy the comemmoration events - they seem to do these so well.
    So, throw off your wellies and enjoy being so fit!

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    1. The thought of me in lycra makes me blench, Helen, so heaven knows what it would do to the onlooker. :-) No, it's T-shirt and baggy tracksuit trousers with stout shoes for me (too hot for wellies)

      if only the dances would start at a civilised hour we'd be tempted to try one, but I'm falling asleep before they even open. Yet French people a decade or more older than us dance the night away until 4am! They are renaming one of the village streets the rue 6 juin, which I find very touching. The Normans don't forget.

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  4. 'Tis good to know one's limits, especially after forking the garden and filling the grassy holes. How energetic you are, Perpetua, and wise to take time to enjoy dear friend, music, and conversation. I empathize with you for the herd of deer did similar damage this winter with their hooves. I'm sure you and DH will enjoy the concert and find the commemoration of the area's liberation quite moving and meaningful. Just the renaming of a village street the rue 6 juin brings a lump to my throat. As our blogging friend Dee always says, Peace.

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    1. Well, the weather has conspired to make sure I'm taking a break, Penny, as it's very wet today. I just hope it clears up for the commemorative events tomorrow. Such a shame after several days of beautiful sunshine. We drove along the rue 6 juin yesterday on the way to our friends and it has been beautifully spruced-up for its renaming.

      I'm sure deer can do plenty of damage, but they are usually not as heavy as cattle, so don't sink in quite so far. Some of these holes are inches deep and quite wide and really have to be filled before someone does themselves an injury. Onwards and upwards...

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    2. I can only imagine holes several inches deep, Perpetua, and all the hazards they pose.
      Hope the weather clears for the June 6 events. Good thoughts floating your way.

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    3. The worst have now been filled, Penny, though i keep uncovering others in less-frequented parts of the garden. Just think how fit I'm going to be by the end of the summer. :-)

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  5. You are wonderfully full of energy Perpetua, and have found a very cunning solution to the holes made by the cattle. Who would have thought even the moles have come in useful. What a beautiful church, and the concert there sounds blissful. Going to a commemoration of the liberation sounds like such a treat, and I love the way you fit right into the local community as soon as you arrive each year. Lovely post.

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    1. I certainly feel much more energetic after all this healthy exercise, Patricia, and the solution to the holes was born of desperation. There are just so many of them I can't possibly just level all the bumps and fill the holes with the loosened earth with my garden fork.

      As you'll see from my next post, we didn't actually get to the concert, which was a shame, but at least we were at home when the important phone call came. :-)

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  6. Great idea filling the holes with clippings and soil! I can easily imagine the difficulties you encountered with the hoof holes though ... a real trap for those unaware of the damage cattle can do.
    Enjoy your day out; it is well deserved!

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    1. The clippings and soil are doing a great job, though the holes will probably have to be topped up again later when the contents settle. Still, we shouldn't run the risk of serious damage now though we will have to watch where we step for a while.

      The day out was lovely, thanks.

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  7. I admire your perseverance with the garden - it all looks like jolly hard work to me - but I would be just the same needing to get the place ship-shape. Mole hill soil is good stuff, maybe you could transport it on to your borders too. It sounds like there will never be a dull moment with all the activities going on - and I should imagine you are sleeping soundly at night after all your exertions.

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    1. I suppose it is hard work, Elaine, but I enjoy it so much that I don't mind the effort. That said, there is a LOT more work than usual this year because of the cattle damage and I doubt I'll manage to repair it all in one summer. That's a good idea about feeding the border with some of the mole-hill soil. I could mix it with last year's compost. :-) I'm certainly never bored here (or anywhere, come to that) and the only thing that stops me sleeping is when it 's very hot at night. :-)

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  8. Hello Perpetua:

    How we sympathise with the damage done to your garden by the cattle over the weekend. We can well imagine that arriving and finding the ground in such a sorry state must have been at the least a tiny bit depressing. Is there not some means by which you can prevent future incursions or is to try to fence your entire property, or at least a part of it, against stock impractical?

    Beside all of that we do hope that you will have a really enjoyable day with your friends today and that you will have an equally fun time over the weekend with the celebrations of the neighbouring commune.

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    1. Thanks for the sympathy, Jane and Lance, but I'm afraid there was no way to anticipate or prevent the damage. Since we bought the house 11 years ago we've had a friendly agreement with our farmer neighbour that she will graze a few cattle there when we're away. They keep the grass down and make a wonderful burglar deterrent and until last winter they did no damage at all. Unfortunately the months of rain made the usually very hard ground exceptionally soft, hence the hoof-holes all over the place. It's just one of those things....

      We had a lovely relaxing day with our friends and had such a wonderful meal that I've hardly felt hungry since. Now we're looking forward to the commemorations tomorrow.

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  9. A fascinating 'worm's eye' view of your annual (endurance test) visit to your French idyll.
    I love the idea of 'sniffing at' cow pats. Sooner thee than me:)
    Now that you have tamed the wilderness I hope you will enjoy the rest of the time there.

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    1. LOL, Ray! I know it must seem like an endurance test, but it's really very satisfying and I do actually enjoy all the garden work. as it happens there are very few cowpats this year and thanks to all the hoof-holes I've barely given them a glance, let alone a sniff. :-) Eventually I'll lift them with a long-handled fork and put them on the compost heap. I'm having plenty of relaxation too and I'm getting though books at a rate of knots, thanks to the absence of television here.

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  10. Hari Om
    ...stones? Those are darn near boulders woman! I am guessing that there is no way you can fence off the area you call as 'garden'; shared purpose land?

    Enjoy all the community stuff, then come spill the beans to us!!! ;*>
    YAM xx

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    1. Yes, i guess a few of the stones are fairly sizeable, Yam.I nearly bent the prongs of my stout little hand fork levering some of them out of the ground. As I explained to Jane and Lance Hattat above, the cows are in there by intent. It's just that the exceptionally wet winter made the ground softer than I ever imagined it could be. Normally they are there all winter with hardly a dent to show for it.

      We're crossing our fingers for better weather for tomorrow, but come what may we'll be there and photos will be taken.

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  11. Where do you get all of your energy from Perpetua?
    Those stones are similar to the ones we continually dig out of our garden - however, ours are like a continuous pavement so no moles come visiting us.
    Enjoy your lunch and concert today, and the fête communale this weekend.

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    1. I think the extra exercise breeds the energy, Rosemary. I can already do much more in the garden than I could when we arrived less than 2 weeks ago. You garden on chalk if I remember rightly and don't have a great depth of soil. Our soil is deep enough but liberally supplied with loose stones, large and small. So we have stones to dig up AND moles. :-)

      As I mention in my next post, we didn't actually go to the concert, but we shall definitely be there for the fete communale.

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  12. Would it not be better to fence off.!
    I know what cattle can do.. as we used to breed them.
    Its as you say Perpetua.. when its really heavy rain..they just about sink in the mud.
    I use a strimmer here.. Pedro does a good job of my "so called grass".. yours is looking good.
    Enjoy your evening out.
    You are really settled down for summer.
    I did my gym this morning. Pascoa , descided to go through the neighbors fence.. with wellies on due to the snakes..there I plodded to try get her back ..she wont have it.
    I have the electric fence on now.
    wishing you both a wonderful weekend.
    val xx

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    1. Our garden is hedged almost all the way round, Val, but the cattle are there by agreement with our farmer neighbour when we're back in the UK. Normally it's not a problem , but last winter was very far from normal and the usually rock-hard ground must have been incredibly soft and saturated for them to have left such deep hoof marks. Hey-ho, I'll sort it all out eventually, but not today as it's raining again. DH does the strimming where necessary, but I'm the one who wields the mower.

      We're feeling very settled here and had a lovely meal with our friends yesterday. Now hoping for good weather for tomorrow.

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  13. My, you certainly have been busy. I think the way you fill the holes is ingenious. As long as you are happy in your little garden and don't break an ankle, worry not about how it looks to others. Enjoy!

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    1. Busy is good when the sun is shining, Bonnie. I absolutely had to fill the holes and this seemed the best way. I love my garden here and though i pride myself on getting it looking as good as possible while we're here, I've accepted that this year it just ain't going to happen! :-)

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  14. Digging up rocks every time the spade hits the ground?
    Now where have I seen and heard that before?

    Do be careful walking on the hidden grass cuttings. I did that once, slipped and broke my ankle.

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    1. It seems to happen just about anywhere I try to garden, Friko. :-)

      Thanks for the tip about the grass cuttings. They are tucked into the holes in the ground, so hopefully they will stand out from the normal grass around them. As it's only DH and I here almost all the time, we know to be careful.

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  15. Seems like you are *happily* busy getting things as you would like them. As troublesome as the cattle hoof holes are, I can see that you don't blame the poor beasts... sinking into the mud can't be fun for them either (maybe THEY need wellies!). As for the rocks in your garden, I imagine they are big enough to make a garden border...? Anyway, I'm glad things are going well. And I'm with you, there's no way I could attend a dance that late... (actually we're pretty shut down by 8 pm these days).

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    1. Yes, I really am happily busy whenever the weather lets me get outside, Rian. Today is a rest day as it's pouring down, but at least there are no cattle there to make more holes. Wellies for cattle is a lovely thought. :-) I use the stones I dig up to edge my border and in fact replaced some of the existing ones with new and bigger finds.

      I'm glad I'm not the only one who can no longer stay up late for things,. We didn't even make it to the concert yesterday after a poor night's sleep the night before. I need my sleep nowadays...

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  16. I had my first shot at our garden last week. After only 5 minutes there was a bang from the Flymo, followed by a strange whining noise and a hot smell. After 30 minutes the Flymo was in the Small Electrical skip at the tip and we'd bought a new one - and then felt too exhausted to put it together. New mower is still in its box in the shed; the grass was cut by our trusty gardener while we were away in the Hebrides. Shameful, huh?

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    1. Now that's a good way to get out of gardening, Christine. Our mower is a French workhorse, obviously designed with bumpy French orchards in mind, and it seems to be able to tackle anything. Wrestling it across the battlefield that is our grass this year is giving my biceps a wonderful workout. Part of me thinks how nice it would be to have a gardener to take care of it, but the rest of me would miss the challenge - and the exercise.

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  17. After your days of hard work sorting out the garden a relaxing musical evening sounds perfect and the weekend event to mark the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the area will be a meaningful occasion I'm sure.

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    1. Sadly we didn't make it to the relaxing musical evening, Linda, having relaxed so thoroughly over a wonderful meal with our friends what all we could think of was getting home to put our feet up. :-) But we will definitely be there for the commemoration events tomorrow, come rain or shine.

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  18. It sounds like worthy work, or is it lowly work. Maybe the two aren't mutually exclusive. LOL! I think there's something very nurturing about just maintaining our little plots of land, no matter what nature has given us in the way of cattle and moles! Yesterday we spent most of the day just working in our yard. It was blazing hot and all we were about was general yard maintenance, but at the end of the day I felt really good and very proud of ourselves! :-) I hope you improve your garden situation very soon so you can just enjoy while you are at your lovely home in France! It all sounds beautiful to me! :-)

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    1. It's both, Debra, and indeed the two are not mutually exclusive. Getting down to work among plants and trees and getting my hands dirty with soil and tools and equipment is one of the most satisfying activities I know. Your garden and its setting are very different indeed to mine, but the hard work and sheer satisfaction are identical. :-) I will be working in my garden right through the summer, but that doesn't mean I won't be enjoying myself as the gardening itself is such a source of enjoyment. :-)

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  19. Hello Perpetua!
    It's been ages since I've flown here to read your blog. So good to get back into blogging.
    Gardening is a funny thing, I find. I alway tell myself that I'll just yank a few weeds from my garden, and the next thing you know, I'm trimming hedges, pulling vines, and sweeping all the debris into bags. Fifteen minutes warps into 3 hours. Your garden looks not only beautiful, but huge as well!

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    1. Hello Nerima and welcome to the wonderful world of retirement. :-) Yes, gardening is like that. what starts as just doing a bit in one corner somehow spreads in time and area. Our French patch of land is quite big, about a third of an acre, but I don't mow all of that. Instead I leave the back third rough for the wildflowers and butterflies and concentrate on the rest.

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