A Riotous Explosion

Having moved from city centre Edinburgh to the beautiful Lot-et-Garonne countryside, intellectually I knew that things grew.

What I wasn't prepared for was the fact that plants don't grow - they explode into life!

It's a fact that was brought home to me this week.

Richard and I had to go back to Edinburgh for a couple of days.  Richard was delivering a final training programme for the guy who bought our business.

So, Sunday morning we took the trip to Bordeaux, Ryanair to Edinburgh and we were back in a world that seemed to be much colder and greyer than it has been in South West France of late. 

Sunday afternoon was lovely.  I got to see my niece and meet my great nephew for the first time - baby Theo is four and a half months old and this was the first time I got to squeeze him.

On Monday Richard went off to the 'office'!  He did say that two days back in the old life was enough - he found himself dropping back into the old rhythm - up, shower, out, walk to work, coffee on the way, over to ASDA to pick up a sandwich for lunch and so on.

Anyway, it was essentially cold in Edinburgh.  At other times it rained, hailed, the sun shone, the sky clouded over - Richard even got snowed on; the old cliché of 'four seasons in one day' was very true on this occasion.  Whilst all this 'weather' was happening in Edinburgh I was keeping an eye on the weather here in Douzains.

Warm and wet is the best way I can describe it.

We arrived back in Bordeaux late-ish Tuesday evening.  It was drizzling but very warm and humid.  It was the same when we got back to Douzains just after midnight.

Naturally it was dark when we went to bed so it wasn't until Wednesday morning that we got to see the effects of the warm rain.

The grass, which had been cut just last Thursday, was knee high.  (I'm exaggerating, but it was very long and covered in dandelions and daisies).  The flowers and weeds in the flower beds where at least six inches taller than two days ago and the colours...

Wow, I would never have believed that trees, bushes, flowers and everything else that grows could produce so much colour so quickly... it's lovely.

Lovely, but ever so slightly out of control.

We need to cut, strim, prune and pull like crazy for the rest of this week (and probably the rest of the summer) to make sure the gardens are spot on for us and guests.  But that's okay - it's a really pleasant job to do.

LATER: I've just checked the weather forecast.  Some rain Saturday but 27 degree temperatures, too.  It's going to be like a jungle out there.