Berlioz

I have a lot of new garden and a bad back, my flymo strimmer/edger is too heavy, the black n'decker sent me to the chiropractor (twice).  I know there was a thread on professional trimmers although I cannot find it (net is rubbish in new house)  I need things electric and very light...........   I have a great Gardener to do the large areas of grass with the ride on mower monthly so I just need to zap under the hedge, around the pool and veg beds etc to keep things tidy. My Hover mower has also given up hovering, I need machines where I do not have to support the weight.  Suggestions please ?

It has been so rainy and damp that I am all ready spraying Bordeaux mixture on my Ferline (blight resistant) tomato plants. I have never seen such huge slugs and snails!  I bought 3 tubs of Feramol (eco friendly) slug killer when last in the UK and need to find some in France.  Being totally organic just isn't working here so I'm having to adapt to the local conditions. I would rather do this than give up .

I have checked out the local 'Tissus a metre' shops but they do not seem to have a very large range.  Does anyone know of/ordered from an on-line store that is either French or delivers to France?    Merci, B

I have the same dark brown stained ceilings in the house we are hoping to buy. If the mortgage ever comes through.....................!  In the UK I used 'Zinsser' which is excellent, there are various types depending on what you need to cover up .  I googled it and France and found :  http://www.britpaints.co.uk/Zinsser/zinsserpaintsfro.html   I haven't looked for it in any of the Brico sheds yet (although I found a fact sheet on the Zinisser  main website with a link to a french .pdf spec (which I have managed to lose, sorry!) So I suspect it must be stocked somewhere in France. Due to a tendon problem in my shoulder I'm unable to manage much hand sanding and have to rely on light power tools and specialist primers for as much preparation as possible. B.  

I found this: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=A1&xml=/gardening/2008/02/26/garden-beans126.xml 'Climbing French beans are increasing in popularity because they set bumper crops in our hotter, drier summers. Runner beans, on the other hand, are predominantly pollinated by bees, so if it is too cold for the insects to fly, you get little action, while hot summer nights (two consecutive nights of above 16C) prevent runner beans setting and produce sparse crops too'. I think this explaines why my runner beans were so dismal last summer  and why your system of planting later works Clive!     

I will try normal time/planting later on as suggested and see what happens.

I will do as suggested and ask the farmer close by about his and also check out the UV. Thanks all, B

hoverfrog I like to raise seeds indoors, and do several 'batches' so like to start in March, much too cold outside only 4c today and very windy.  I use the utility room which has good light but not much space (I'm a seedaholic and very untidy gardener!)  I have huge cold frames to harden everything off so that isn't a problem.  I would also really like to grow more Autumn/Winter crops undercover.  I will ask at the nursery about the plastic etc.  I know what you mean about the UV and the plastic, the bubble wrap inside the cold frames didn't last very long but I thought the poly covers were UV stable? B.

I am thinking of getting a largish polytunnel to double as greenhouse/potting shed.  In the UK I had a greenhouse which I really miss but only need something  here for spring/autumn .  My husband will probably divorce me if I fill the house up with hundreds of seedlings again this year! If you have one please can you tell me: A) Do they need permission/permit from the Hotel de Ville  like a shed or greenhouses? B) What make do you have and would you recommend it (or not) ?? C) Is it better to buy direct online or from a Garden centre, we have all the big chains in the area. D) How does it stand up to strong wind? E) How long should a cover last? Merci B        

The Surveyor has just reported that the roof is suspect and there is a structural problem so we may not go ahead with the purchase after all [:(] Looks like painting was the least of my worries!

Good! 

Leo Thank you for the description, at least I know there will be lots and lots of dust !  I do like to know exactly things are done BEFORE getting quotes from tradesmen.  We both have back/shoulder problems so the most energetic my DIY gets these days is painting the shutters etc!  The entire ceiling is covered in dark wooden panelling between the huge beams (whole trees) would I be committing a sin to paint it white in between the beams?  The room has only one small window low down in the wall and is very dark and dingy. B

Hi Aly The bedroom is about 4.8m x 5m (ish) and it looks really thick...........   roof is quite low to the back and front. There are also other areas but I can live with them for a while :-) It's like artex gone mad! B.  

Hello All, After renting for 2 years we are in the process of buying a previously renovated but  'tired' Farmhouse.  Several of the bedrooms (and all of the exterior) have been rendered in that spikey beige render and we want to get back to  smooth walls to paint in light colours in breathable paint. Does anyone have any experience of dealing it it and know what it is correctly called,  is it cement based?  is it best to skim over it or sand it down.  An idea of approx cost per room for a professional to sort it out would be really  helpful. Merci    

Yes, exactly like onions.  I left mine on the sunny covered patio for a week or so until the skins were not so soft.   I planted them out approx 2 feet apart in a raised bed and grew the vines up canes, they had pretty pink/lilac flowers too. The purple skinned ones didn't climb much.

They are really easy to sprout at home. I did this as the organic gardening catalogue would not deliver to me here. I sprouted my own last year from a few supermarket bought ones. Some of the usual ones with orange flesh (which were bigger and more productive) and some with purple skin and white flesh.   I started the slips either half in a pot of compost for just in a shallow tray of water, in the propagator or on top of the fridge both, methods worked equally as well.  I potted them up in 3inc pots when about 6inches high and kept them in the warm. I planted out with my butternut plants in a bed with lots of compost and dug them up in October.  I was amazed at how many I had with some really large ones too!   The skins need to be 'cured' in a very warm place for a few days.  They kept for months in the garage (which isn't very cold)  They seem to need a lot of water as the ones furthest from the leaky pipe irrigation were all very small.  I am doing the same this year.

Does anyone know if this treaty has been ratified yet?  I have been searching the web all afternoon HMRC, google, previous postings but cannot find the answer.  A lot of IR links appear to be out of date.  

Andy, I did mist the flowers but it didn't make much difference. [:(]  The only one that was any good was a 'wild' Mergoles growing through a tomato on the ground, I'll use up the old seed as 'pinched out' dwarfs and see if that helps! I shall also order some Neckarkonigin from the Graines & Baumaux catalogue which has just arrived, the do look good, thanks for the tip Meg.

I had blight on my Toms except the 'Ferline' which are blight resistant.  I sprayed the rest with bordeaux mixture every 2-3 weeks after I spotted it on a 'tigerella' and didn't lose a single plant. I didn't spray the peppers or aubergines and they didn't catch it. I would rather spray  than not grow any. I rotate anyway. I don't have a greenhouse here as it would be too hot.  I was 99.9% organic in the UK but am having to revise this a bit after finding just about every fly, blight, disease, pest etc in my new plot this year (probably imported in the 1 tonne of  municipal compost).       

Thankyou Tony I have added some to my seed order. I will let you know how I get on! B

Has anyone found a Dwarf or climbing French Bean that is similar in taste/texture to a stringless runner bean?  I have grown them for years in Uk without problems. I had heard they don't grow well here (I'm W of Toulouse) but tried anyway.  There seem to be hundreds of varieties of beans to choose from in France. This year I grew Blue Lake, Ferari and Masterpeice without problems but none were anything like runners. My runners (Lady Di, Mergoles, White Embargo) failed to set well despite being planted in compost trenches, watering & sweet peas grown alongside.  I didn't see may bees either so guess that pollination was a problem too!  

Our internet has been down, but I have managed to finally e-mail for advice as you suggested. Thank you.

My sweetcorn is about 3 feet high, has male flowers at the top but I cannot see any female cobs/ears on any of the plants.  I have checked my Garden Expert , other books and on line but cannot find out why!  I have grown sweetcorn before in the UK and havn't had this problem before.  We have had A LOT of rain recently. The plants are in blocks, 18" apart with courgettes, butternut squash and climbing beans on some but not all the sweetcorn plants. Any ideas????

Hello, sorry for the long post but I do hope that someone can help me. On 31st May our new Accountant phoned to say we had to collect our first tax returns (one each from when we arrived in the summer to  when we got married and a joint one from then until 31st Dec) We took them to the tax office that afternoon although I was not happy to be rushed into this. Husband:  Has an E106, works 2 weeks per month in London for UK company does not work in France. Salary paid and some dividends as he is a Director. She said he had no tax but approx 1000 EUR of social charges due in October, is this correct? If so should I try and get him covered on my E121 rather than apply for another E106? He speaks good French but is not up to speed with French tax law yet. I have looked back at previous threads today but must admit to being unsure about the whole thing which is why we used an accountant in the first place ! If she has made mistakes what do we need to do? An idea of which boxes should contain what would really help !! D    

Oh good, I look forward to it being back to normal.  Thanks for the prompt replies. D