water rat

If you do this conversion make sure the gap between the tiles ,slates etc is completely filled in .We lost our whole flock to a beech marten one night which managed to move a few tiles and squeeze in a gap only a couple of cms deep. We keep the new ones in ( at night ) in a cage built at the end of a stable block and the dogs also sleep in there at night. So far so good...... W Rat

This is a v boring subject for this thread. Breakfast should be included in the price of the room for CDH That's it!! enough!! W Rat

So if your're getting such little sleep ,why are you on here?! W Rat

Thanks Clair W Rat

Sorry about the link,but it seems to work if it's googled. You're right about informing the authorities and the pompiers were at the lecture I attended in Chateauroux (36) They were worried because they had no experience of dealing with them and also where was the finance coming from? BTW the lecture lasted all day! I needed matchsticks to keep my eyes open. The hornets make enormous nests which hang from branches and the locals, apparently, deal with them by taking aim with a gun! As you can imagine this was not advised by the experts. One can make a trap near the hive which will stop the scout,but the sizes of the openings are so crucial, I would find it difficult. As yet no company is making traps commercialy. W Rat  

We were informed at the club that they had reached La Souterraine. W Rat

if that was a buddist monk it was an asian hornet( vespa velutina) and the danger these hornets bring cannot be underestimated.I have just acquired a hive after attending Bee club for 2 years and are being bombarded with info about it. It's been accidently imported here in furniture and is now making it's way across france.It's v aggressive and can wipe out a hive in a couple of hours and is also dangerous to humans. The asian bees have found a way of attacking it by "cooking " the scout which is sent out on a sorti so never returns to inform the others . European bees havn't learnt this yet  The site for more info is www.velutina.terralias.com Water Rat link repaired by a mod

Yes,it's easy. Just don't do anything. I have missed many Ryanair flights because I book any that are cheap enough or free. Have recently booked a fortnight away in Blighty during November that has cost just the price of using the credit card ,8 euros return. If at the time I decide not to go I'll just not turn up. If you're flexible with dates ,you can use the system to your advantage. Just keep a regular eye on the website. W Rat

Recently ,while out riding I passed by a wheat field and a doe leapt away. Immediately a terrible screaming commenced from the hollow in the wheat which was quite close to the bridle path. Normally I wouldn't have interfered as I could see the doe's ears above the corn at a distance,but I was worried my dog was worrying the fawn. I dismounted quickly ,and me and the horse went along the tramline to investigate , all the time the screaming continued . I didn't get too close ,just enough to make sure my dog wasn't there and I could see the spotted coat in the wheat. I made my retreat ,hoping the mother would return shortly and met my dog much further on the way back home. It seems to go againt all the rules of mother nature for the baby to bring attention to itself in such a way and I wondered if anyone had experienced this ,  My neighbour seemed to think the fawn was perhaps brain damaged. I went back the next day to find just the hollow in the wheat. I'm hoping it was a happy outcome. W Rat

Bonjour parsnips luvvers, thought you'd like an update on the situation, can't seem to find the original thread.If you remember ,way back in feb/march some of us were trying the damp paper towel method and I managed to acheive 100% germination. Well, I carefully planted them out  ,but we had an almighty storm which washed them all away. Not to be daunted I did it all again with further success and planted at a later ,more clement period. D'you Know ,not one b,gger came up! Have now resorted to traditional method and have a decent healthy crop So, not sure now if I believe it is the germination that is the problem. Any successes out there with the pre_germination method? W Rat

we're in the Indre 36 near Ste Sévère. Don't all come at once! W Rat

We usually get good quality burgers , sausages, pork and chicken fillets marinaded in various ways.Fish is lovely with fresh herbs olive oil, lemon, then wrapped in foil.I like to be a bit imaginative with the salads  maybe greek or morrrocan ,and how I serve the spuds ,maybe dauphinoise or layered with onions and a light stock (completely forgotton the name of it!). A local recipe is warm potato salad with lentils, bacon and goats cheese which we also do as a normal starter.Couscous is  good with lots of spices to soak up the meat juices, yum!! Carribbean bananas are v popular for pud and also cooked on the BBQ. When the main cooking is finished and the fire is less fierce. Peel a banana then wrap in foil with a good slosh of rum to keep it company along with lemon juice,brown sugar and cinnamon. Our BBQ is in an australian styleee ,with proper wood fire and steel plate over it  so there's no grill to drop through. if you ever get any venison given to you ( it could happen!!) the steaks are fantastic just shown to the fire. Sorry I could go on forever! W Rat

We do BBQ's as table d'hote and charge the same price. It's v popular,but lots more washing up! Works particularly well if everyone is already acquainted. W Rat

has anyone ever had success with pak choi? Its our first effort and they are all bolting at just a couple of inches high.I"ve looked through t'internet and there are scores of posts about it (wished I'd looked before sowing) but numerous ans varied reasons for the problem . We have no trouble growing brassicas here.  I blame Bob Flowerdew, it was his idea! W Rat

Yes, it was definitely one of our resident pair of buzzards which take snakes ,of which we have quite a lot in the area judging by the amount I see squished on the road. W Rat

Yes I've had first hand experience ,when a buzzard came down into the garden to take one of our chicks. Not a pleasant experience,but I wouldn't be without them. Now we keep the chicks enclosed until they're big enough. I've also seen them flying off with quite large snakes in their talons. W Rat

Will you lot stop complaining about your amount of guests . We're having a hard time of it here in the centre ,with the weather 'an all. W Rat

We have 2 local breed dogs "ratiers" and 3 french cats . They are all major league assassins  re moles and we could have made a gorgeous pair of trousers from the pelts caught thus far. Yet the moles continue to be more successful than the "A team". I dont believe there is a permanent solution. W Rat

Bonjour Cassis,  you got me all excited about soucing cheaper GdeF signage so I requested the said brochure and pored over the many cheap and pretty designs ,but blow me down ,if there in the small print it says "minimum order of 10".  I suppose I could find some others to share with, but to no avail so far. Does any know about purchasing old second hand GdeF signage? I've heard it exists! W Rat

Please don't cut them. The half cut leaves look terrible and do the plant no good. Just enjoy the spears after the flowers have finished. They still add a different texture to the garden and are a good background for later flowers. If you have room in front of them ,just bung in some marigold or cosmos seeds. Today is the day to do it with the new moon.. Bon Courage irisluvva

I tried making bread with it, but it was only good for the chooks!

We've had a few guests like that at our chambres d'hote.Breakfast being a particular nightmare. I experimented with pancakes made from Sarrasin flour ( buck wheat, which isn't wheat!) mixed with a bit of cornflour ( maizena). they turned out so well ,the other guests were requesting them for breakfast and can be used as a base for sweet or savoury fillings. Perhaps you could try it for lasagne sheets?. The basic mix is sarrazin, cornflour, egg,a splash of oil and water. there's usually a recipe on the bag of sarrazin, just replace the wheat flour with more sarrasin and  cornflour.A note of caution, the sarrasin doesn't work on it's own. Bon appétit!

Every year our experience of growing parsnips is different. 2006 and they looked like prize specimens, it must have been the perfect weather for them. 2007 saw just 2 make it through the atrocious summer, but mon dieu! Each was the size and shape of a football, I kid you not! We were going to ditch them 'cos we thought they would be woody, but I cooked a bit of one as an experiment and they were tender and delicious. I just sliced some off every time we wanted a bit .  I suppose in the end they were about the same amount as a normal crop. Wonder what we'll get this year?

I did mine far too early and had to plant them out . They've probably died so I'm doing it again. I had an incredible 100% germination on the parsnips. I used one of those plastic carrot boxes from the supermarket. Laid a double thickness of damp paper towel on the bottom. Placed the seeds individually ( this can be a bit fiddley ,but saves more work later) then cover the box with more damp paper towel, the box not the seeds. Put them in a black plastic bag with gentle bottom heat. Make sure to keep the towel damp.They'll sprout in a few days. I did 300 seeds the first time --I don't like parsnips that much! I'll do about 50 this  time. Bon courage! Water Rat

Bonjour, We have a problem with mice in our gas oven. They've eaten ,spat upon and worse!the insulation. we just discovered it after lighting the oven for the first time after using the wood cuisiniere for the winter. Can you imagine the pong! Replacing the insulation won't be a problem, but I can't find anywhere to buy specific oven insulation. There must be someone out there who's had this happen. kind regards Doreen PS The 3 cats are in the dog house