Sunday 11 February 2018

Looking back to Spring and Summer in France Part 3 ( June )

June started with a beautiful misty morning


June was also the month when all the hard work on the veggie patches started to pay off. The veggies were growing like crazy, you could almost watch them grow. I had a huge amount of parsley, so I made a potato and parsley soup sprinkled with lardons ( small pieces of bacon )

The caulis were coming along nicely, as were the potatoes, and we started harvesting cavolo nero




Of course, the weeds and wildflowers grew like crazy as well :-)

Early June I also found a girlfriend for Gizmo, my son's family's dog, which they had adopted through Paws2Rescue. She came from Romania as well through Paws2Rescue. It was love at first sight, lol, they are inseparable


By the middle of June, there were so many beautiful butterflies and moths around, the lettuces were ready for harvesting, the main crop spuds started flowering, the first cauliflower was ready, and we dug up the first First Earlies, :-)






We went back to the UK for a brief break for some appointments and of course to see the family. Mum was so happy to see us

The dogs are incedibly good in the car. Sometimes they snuggle up together, sometimes Poppy has to watch the world go by while Hector needs a cuddle from me, so he slides his head inbetween the front seats

What a difference ten days make, lol, we came back to many more veggies ready for eating, yellow and green courgettes, radishes, yellow and green climbing beans, potatoes and lettuces, so we were back to our favourite foods, veggies straight from the garden



Of course the flowers had also grown in that time




my dear friend Christine gave me this seed pod, which she had been given by a friend, weird thing, full of huge amounts of fluffy stuff and lots of small seeds, but I failed miserably, they didn't grow, sob sob

Can't remember whether I ever showed you this fabulous old sharpening stone wheel, such an amazing thing


Towards the end of the month, some of the yellow and white patissons were ready as well

And finally, we were able to dig up some beetroot as well. Btw, the beetroot leaves are sooo delicious, I treat them like spinach, so chop them finely and add nutmeg and cream. Baked beetroot, beetroot greens, home grown potatoes ( with pork steaks )

I was very strict with myself and didn't allow myself to go to many vide greniers / brocante, but this one at the end of the month was set in the amazing Roman amphitheater in Autun, and it called me :-). There was one massive stall which must have sourced their stuff from a science department at a school or something like that, there were so many weird and wonderful things to look at, I got totally stuck there




And the month ended with the most stunning view over the valley, a beautiful rainbow way below our cottage


July next :-)
Toodlepip xxx

5 comments:

Fonda said...

I would be thrilled to spend my time at your cottage! Thank you for sharing the experience.

Dorthe said...

Liz, such tempting dishes , wonderful garden results, and wildlife of butterflies. Your flowers, growing so lovely, too- and the doggies, and their humans enjoying it all, very much- Thank you, for showing another months, in your wonderful French life .
Hugs.

Jeanie said...

You inspire me for my visit to England later this year and always to France!

Roosterhead Designs said...

Dear Liz, this 'trip' you are sharing has been a delight! Thank you
for the tour of all your 'highlights;' I have enjoyed this so very much~ <3hugs, Karen O

suziqu's thread works said...

Thanks so much Liz for sharing your wonderful days in France with all your vegies, to see Andy's Mum, and blessed little Gizmo now has a permanent girl friend by his side. Life can't get much better than that for the two of them!
You are amazing!
And I'm so lucky to call you "My Friend"!
xox Suzy