Loir is the French for dormouse. They are protected in France and you are not allowed to kill them. Almost every French house in the country has Loir, lots of Loir. Our neighbours catch up to 60 every summer. They peek at them in the kitchen from various viewpoints! Well we have our share. They are extremely noisy and very irritating but very cute. So we decided we had to catch some of them. In total we caught five. The rest still live with us but have now gone to sleep so no action needed until next year. We use cheese to catch them and once caught we have to take them a kilometer away and let them out.. We also check they are not following us home!

And that was the last rain we saw until well into September. So no posts as the grass turned brown and to dust and the plants dried up or did not grow. Here is what did flower.

The problem with July is the lack of rain which makes it such a struggle for all the perennials.

Well, today it decided to rain..  not hugely but enough to give the plants a taste of it all.  Hopefully they will now perk up a little, though if the sun now comes out ….

The phloxes have started to come out and the echinops are truly amazing this year.  They have now been in flower for a month!

We also have lots of butterflies (and also lots of buddleias round the house, not for nothing called the butterfly bush).

The first one came with about 6 of his friends and the second one with too many to count!

Every year we get snakes in the pond.  This year is no exception.  Only a baby at the moment but bound to grow and grow..  it seems to like it as it has been in the pond for two days now.

 

This rose was given me by a close friend who lived at the end of our lane.  She was a very special lady and one who I still miss very much.  The story was that it was a descendant from the rose that grew in the churchyard which, so the story went, had been there since the revolution..  it was spring when I was given it and it had been in a bucket of water that froze when the temperatures dropped suddenly.  My friend was mortified and everyone said it would not survive.  Have faith said I it will survive and it has.  Last year I cut it back drastically and this year it thanked me with lots of roses.  Its’ smell is heavenly.

The last unsung hero is alchemilla mollis which is planted at the front of borders, along paths throughout the garden and paired with the hardy geraniums.

Right on time, summer actually arrived!  And there being no in between round here it was suddenly 40 c.  So annoying as that is way too hot and there is no way you can work in the garden, or even go for a walk.

With summer come the daylilies and one by one they are coming out.  Also a knipofia I have had for years and which only ever had maximum two flowers has suddenly produced 11!

It is far too dry and the water restrictions have started already.  Not that I use too much tap water as I rely on the barrels but it is frustrating that you can no longer use a hose!

Anyway, some daylilies, the knipofia and a clematis that climbs up the willow tree opposite the house.

 

More daylilies to follow plus some shots of the veggie garden.