On Sun, 10 Jun 2007 11:18:56 +0200
"David \(Normandy\)" wrote:


I will say that one amusing thing is how wrong meteofrance has been:
throughout the grey patch they kept insisting it was hot and sunny.

--
Emery Davis

Yes, the weather forecasters here seem to be as bad as in the UK.
My wife is always cursing them - she does the washing on the promise of good
drying weather, often for it to rain or be misty all day!

We have the same situation when it comes to getting the kids dressed for
school. Also hard because of our microclimate, it can be very foggy here but
sunny at their school, or vice versa.

As you say - today looks like being a scorcher!

Just had them out helping to weed a bed, now everyone is hot and sweaty,
and once I mow the front I'll set the sprinkler out for them to mess about with.

I see all the garden centres here sell grape vines - is that mainly for
ornamental reasons up the side of a South facing wall or in conservatories
or are they intended for planting outdoors for cropping? We've got climbers
of most varieties so am wondering about growing a grape or two up the old
barn.


In terms of wine grapes I think the problem comes from soil acidity, not to mention
clay content. I've been making inquiries with various vineyards, there do seem to
be some root stock clones that tolerate higher acid (Jasnieres for example, which
is but a skip from us on the other side of Le Mans and you should discover if you
don't know it already) but I haven't gotten very far, or serious about investing in
such a mad scheme.

As for table grapes, I have an unknown Italian variety (that was a gift and planted
sort of as a joke) growing on a south wall, but it doesn't ripen sufficiently. My neighbor
though gets a pretty good crop; I think it's Black Hambourg. He has them growing
on a fence, so clearly a south wall isn't necessary even if it might be a good idea.
But presumably a conservatory is overkill for anything they're selling at the local
Point Vert.

This said I tried apricots for about 10 years before giving up in disgust (the tree got
blight anyway) and never saw a fruit. Nor does anyone I know grow them, although
the garden center will sell you one happily enough. We do well with peaches, though.

The lawn mower beckons...

-E

--
Emery Davis
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