The Newlyweds; and lesser matters.

I've just received a few snaps of my youngest son's wedding out in Oz. I rather liked this one; very relaxed. Please excuse my indulgence.

Our risk of frost is now over. The long term forecast predicts minimums of about 6 C and maximums of up to 26 C for the foreseeable future.

This means that I can now plant-out all those tender plants that risked being ravaged by the cold. The Peppers and Aubergines are now in situ, and I have left my Tomatoes to cope without any overnight protection. The only other plants that risked death were the Courgettes, but they should now be OK too.

Otherwise all my winter greens have been sowed, and will be planted-out when (or if) they get to a respectable size.

All is looking good, and I predict copious crops. The fruit trees are loaded, as are the soft fruit bushes.

Mother Nature has, yet again, looked kindly upon the lowly Magnons, and I thank her profusely. 

In mid-May we shall begin to think about mushrooms. If the sun warms the soil for the next couple of weeks, followed by a really good downpour, we shall have Girolles in abundance. With Haddock's planted, and a few mushrooms in the fridge, all will be well. My winter depression will clear completely, my shorts will be welded on for the duration, and it won't be long before the pool is open for frolics. 

What larks!

Birdies and the Barn Roof.

The above is not very clear, but, believe me, this is a Redstart's nest right up under the eaves of our barn, where the men are hammering the laths into place; it has about 4 or 5 fledglings inside. The mother bird returns each lunchtime and evening to feed them. With all the noise and human activity going on, I'm amazed that she hasn't abandoned them.

It'll all be finished soon, so in a couple of days time they'll be back underneath the tiles again, and she'll have her peace returned.

This is what it looks like up there. I braved the ascent whilst the men were at lunch.

The other side is finished, and on this side it just requires a couple of Velux windows to be fitted,  the tiles to be put in place, and the guttering fixed.

The men have been very efficient; it's only been a week so far. They've continued to work hard both in the rain and the heat of the sun. 

They should be gone by Wednesday.

Death Wish?

                                    

From Coco Chanel to Janis Joplin and now Peaches Geldof; so many have diced with death, and sadly lost.

I can perfectly understand the person who enjoys smoking a bit of weed at the weekend, or has a Gin and Tonic after work each day, but to inject yourself with one of the most dangerously addictive drugs known to mankind, is, frankly, just plain DUMB.

How many people, I wonder, immediately said 'drugs', on hearing that Peaches Geldof had been found dead. Most of us, probably!

The pain of being rich and famous is so often masked or relieved by hard Class A drugs. Did no-one tell young Peaches that Heroin would KILL her?

Having a mother who died of exactly the same thing really should have been a warning. She never got over her own mother's death from Heroin, and I don't suppose her two young sons will get over their mother's either!

Sad, self-centred, and stupid.

Father and Son.

Kimbo and family have spent the week in Germany. K and Eva were married in Eva's home town of Bayreuth on 9. 9. 9. 

I'm posting this photo of Kimbo and Ollie in a smart looking German restaurant, simply because I really like the picture (and I love the two people in it). 

Both Ollie and his older brother Harvey J have been brought up to appreciate eating-out at good restaurants, and I'm pleased to say that not only do they eat what's on offer, but they always behave impeccably.

Oh that all children were thus!

Trachycarpus fortunei.

We have two of these Trachycarpus palms by our pool; one's about 20 years old and very tall, the other much younger (above) and still quite short. They are very decorative trees and each year produce these huge spectacularly gaudy flowers.

But there's a problem. They eventually drop their bloody seeds all over the place; including into the pool itself.

This means that at this time each year I'm obliged to climb into the upper, skin tearing, tops of the trees to cut the wretched flowers off, before they start dropping stuff all over the place. 

No-one tells you this when you buy the trees, or even advises you not to plant them TOO near to a pool.

I urgently need a trained Tree-Surgeon Monkey; either that, or I'll have to get the ladder out. OK I'll get the ladder out.

And here's one of the culprits. Spectacular flowers, but a pain in the rectum.

The Wedding of the Year.

As soon as I'd sat down in front of my laptop yesterday morning (5.30am 1st May), I received a Skype call from Australia. There was a wedding party in full swing.

My youngest son Wills and the lovely Kellogg had just been married in Mullumbimby. In collusion with my daughter Tenpin, they had organised everything in secret (to avoid the Paparazzi) as a surprise for Lady Magnon (and me). The wedding took place in the grounds of the fabulous house that Lady M and Tenpin are renting.

They will repeat the process here in France, where Wills was born, when they are next in Europe.

I wonder if Bunny was a pageboy? 

News from Australia just gets better and better!

Eggs.

A good friend of mine popped round to see me recently, and we discussed my intention to increase the chicken flock.

At present I have just ONE hen (Richard), and she offers me one egg a day. As you can see above, I have a constant stock of about half a dozen eggs in the fridge at any one time.

My intention had been to buy another six hens (black ones), but if they all started laying, it could mean that I have a whopping 49 eggs a week. What the hell would I do with 49 eggs (or even 40; or even 30)!   

We may have to re-think matters.

I do like Richard to wander about at liberty, but she's recently taken this as an opportunity to lay elsewhere than in her designated nesting box. Thank goodness I discovered her well hidden 'wild' nest, as she now refuses to lay anywhere else. I suppose the only way I'll get her to start using her nesting box again will be to deprive her of her liberty. I'm not sure if I want to do that; maybe Lady Magnon will have thoughts about it when she returns, as retrieving the eggs now involves crawling through brambles.