Saturday 7 April 2012

Bath water irrigation



New exciting development after the bathwater butt was put in.
Huge length of swimming pool hose (found in the garden) and some other hoses that were knocking around, joined with a length of discarded downpipe, which reach around the house and over the terrace. Turn water butt tap on, and then have fun making little channels and damming them appropriately for each line of plants.
I think Mark is getting worried about water recap obsession chez moi!

Wednesday 4 April 2012

Resting place



This is my bike that came from the tip about seven years ago, I upgraded it when I bought a fancy newer one from a Vide Grenier a couple of years back. It has no gears and is monstrous heavy—Jane Austin had one just like it—I took it to the bike shop in town to have its pathetic breaks repaired. I know it just sat there for a week, it was exactly in the same place in their workshop when I went back. He charged me five euros for garage space and I took it squeaking and grinching back home, where it sat sadly, propped up against the back of the house—sadder still when I started riding the new one down to get bread.
I steeled myself to take it back to the tip and then thought maybe it could become a post mat feature of the garden. Had to buy a non P.Mat can of spray paint, but it will be only once.
Now it lives on in its new blue incarnation against a quince bush, giving me happy memories of trips to the market, the bread shop and nearly getting squashed under a articulated truck on that awful junction near the fire station.

Make your own . . .earth!



I made a huge pile of weeds in this spot two years ago as I didn't have the energy for another tip run and it was too wet for a bonfire. When I took a more recent layer of weeds away I discovered, not a lost mosaic or the skeleton of a previous gardener, but . . .lovely loamy soil, really GOOD stuff. This my Post mat stone sifter, which I think was a bottle carrier in its previous existence: we have a circular, smaller holed one somewhere, which will no doubt come to light after a garden clear up.