Living and Gardening in Brittany

Not great photos but lovely sculptures.

I recently bought some trees for next year's Autumn colour but have added these photos just to remind me throughout the Winter what I have to look forward to next year.  Hornbeam in November 2013 Red Oak and Silver Birch  Cornus and Copper Maple Behind Glinko Baloba  Cornus through Lime Tree Long View    

I am so proud of my pleached hornbeam

Last Sunday was another birthday. Since there is no way of stopping the passing of time one may as well celebrate it. So-- I invited some friends for lunch on Sunday and I was satisfied with my efforts in the kitchen:-   Starter--mini pizzas Main course -- Stuffed butternut squash with spicy red cabbage Variety of cheese with apricots Dessert -- Apple and blackberry crumble (apples and blackberries from my garden) Coffee   Wine List Kir with starter Red wine with main course and cheese Muscat with dessert Baileys and Sloe Gin to finish   Monday  I  was invited to the cinema and was treated to a Chinese meal beforehand. Tuesday  Tuesday afternoon is Breton Dance class. When it is your birthday one supplies drinks and cakes for everyone - about 30 members. So I took one bottle of orange juice, two bottles of white wine and three bottles of cider made from my apples. A cider press visits most villages and in Merillac ...

  I bought the last 24 trees to complete the circle of hornbeam last Saturday. I have planted them all. I also bought a --- which has lovely leaves in Autumn. This was the first group which I planted in 2010   .  This is the second group which I planted in 2011       This is the third group which I planted in 2012 I planted these in 2013 These are the last 5 trees of Nov. 2013 

How many people do you think are dancing? http://youtu.be/74tdSqT0Na8 100 % 100 %

This is a wonderful sight about imaginative ways of wood stacking  firewood . www.inspirationgreen.com/stacking-firewood   Jenny on woven wooden seat   I did build a seat one year but I had to burn the wood so  sad. I will try again this Winter.  I have all the wood to make a circular seat around one of my trees I just need someone to cut the wood to size. I have a chain saw but am afraid to use it.  Must pluck up the courage. 

When I first moved to Brittany I went to a Breton dance class every fortnight. After many years our prof. retired. He was a great loss. He was an excellent teacher and was helped by live music. The band consisted of a fiddle player, and two melodeon players. I have recently found a new group. It is some distance away. I drive to the next village to meet a friend who then takes me to the next town where we meet a group. We then share cars and it seems to take no time at all. The nice thing is that I know many of the dancers because they too used to go to Robert's class in Broons.  Every year we had a Fez Noz with an invited dance team in costume. Don't you just love the coifs?  The first half of the evening was always devoted to the children who had been taught many dances and delighted in showing us their skill.  

This is my neighbour Simone who is 103 - yes that is correct 103. She still sings at the Club des Ainés (Old folks club) and tells jokes. She lives alone and does cross words. The last time I visited her she was sweeping the ceiling with a long handled broom to remove cobwebs.

St Malo I continued to enjoy the warm weather and joined the monthly coach trip to Les Thermes Marins in St Malo. The journey through the Breton countryside is always a joy. The thalasso is so helpful in  one's aim to keep healthy. I always enjoy the sauna and steam room too. It's a real boost to enable one to prepare for the coming Winter. BUT the best part for me is to take the lift to the restaurant where we enjoy Earl Grey and  chocolate. Through the window we watch the swimmers and surfers in the sea, the children playing on the beach and the many people strolling along the prom.

 It's still warm and sunny, in fact 29 degrees this afternoon. I thought that I wouldn't be able to cope with that heat in my garden so off I went to pick up a friend and head to the coast. This kind of opportunity is one of the main benefits of living here. The only problem was deciding which beach or port to go to.  We decided after much discussion to go to St Cast le Guido. There is a slight problem in Sept and that is, that most restaurants on the coast close at the end of August. However we drove to the port which has recently been completely 'renovated' with a huge complex of four restaurants and a couple of shops, and a very long wide promenade. The walkway winds around the rocks to the beach. The restaurants are going to open throughout the year so today's visit will not be the last. The food was delish and for me nothing beats sitting next to the sea, in the sun, eating a French meal, with of course, a glass of wine. Having eaten we paddled alo...

2013 It was the best of years and the worst of years! It began with warm weather bringing every thing on rather too soon. Next it rained. Then it rained some more. And just as we thought we'd had enough it rained even more. The plants were drowning and the grass was like a bog. Lawnmowers were defeated and their wheels spun until the lawns were ruined. The sun arrived. It remained day after day. It was great. The grass dried out, the lawnmowers were repaired and the grass was cut. The sun remained. Walking on the grass was like walking over concrete. The benefit was no need to cut the grass for weeks. However the newly planted flowers and shrubs sulked and refused to grow. I had used all the water from my rain tub so began watering every evening. Of course tap water is not like rainwater and it just kept the plants alive but they didn't flourish. Then whilst I was in UK for a fortnight it rained and saved many lives including some of the dahlias that I had given up...

I have finally worked out how to navigate the new set up. Probably my own fault for not reading the instructions correctly. When things change especially without warning I panic. Then in a state of panic thinking is impossible so my answer is usually to head for the garden.   The summer has been kind to holiday makers but not so kind to me or the garden. As I am unable to work in the heat I finish work at 11am and only return after the Archers which is 8.15 here in Brittany. I have spent much time, money and energy on watering. This did save the lives of many plants but to be honest they didn't really flourish except for the cosmos. I set the cosmos seeds in the conservatory very early in the year and they grew very straggly. Eventually after a spell in the makeshift greenhouse I planted them out. What poor bedraggled things they looked, tiny plants trying to flower. I wasn't hopeful but kept watering them all the same and behold they paid me back with this long lasting...

I visit this garden twice a year. It is full of trees shrubs and flowers but I take photos of the imaginative use of wood. There are always new constructions. New chairs or sculptures and 'houses'. I