This seems as good a time as any for this post as its been raining all day and bad weather is forecast for the next couple of days! In fact a day has past since I started this post and now the garden is looking particularly wintery….AGAIN though a couple of days ago it was 23C (73F). Thats one of the challenges of gardening at altitude I suppose.
But the description of spring still holds…..
We started this garden in earnest when we moved over permanently to France in September of last year. Looking back at the pictures of the garden then its amazing to see how much we have achieved, which is instructive as I often get frustrated with how much there is still to do.
The joy of the garden at the moment are in the signs of spring all around. Coal Tits are here in large numbers nesting and their chatter is a constant when doing any gardening. Cuckoos are also in evidence whose cry along with the Green and Black Woodpeckers echoes around the surrounding slopes and hills.
The fruit trees we planted in the autumn have all survived the winter and are now all in bud burst, the garden is going to look very different when all eight trees are in full leaf.
We still have a bit of a problem with couch grass, so some thick weed suppressant material is going to be deployed to try to keep it under control.
At the moment the area I am most pleased with is the small strawberry and flower bed created out of a rock strewn area full of weeds.
However a massive amount of work went into the creation of the raised beds and with garlic, shallots, broad beans, beetroot, turnip and potatoes all planted, I can feel a lot of satisfaction in the progress there has been from uncultivated land
750 metres 
I love looking at the gardens people have tilled out of unfavourable conditions. Your post is giving me fantasies of a hilltop garden in France…
Thanks for the comment Siobhan, its hard work but very rewarding. Its been a long first winter for us with a lot of snow compared to England, but Spring is now definitely here!
Your garden looks great, I love that rock wall. It’s nice to have a feeling of accomplishment when looking back at all you’ve done.
Here’s my response to writing prompt #3… <a href="http://www.getbusygardening.com/2013/04/my-gardens-right-now.html">My Gardens Right Now</a>
Amy
Thanks Amy. The rocks for the rock wall all came out of that same patch…… a very tiring days work!
The third picture is going to be fantastic when the plants fill in. It’s already great looking with all the stone!