Author: telboy2

Travelling to Marseille

We arrived at Saint Brieuc in good time but unfortunately the train did not. Due to either signaling failure or hitting an animal on the line, or both, the train was an hour late.

We missed our connection to Marseille by three minutes despite a rush through the metro. So we have spent a little more time at Gare de Lyon.

Lucy again one day

The wall is done

So now the re-pointing is finished. The mud between the stones has been replaced by beautiful lime mortar.

It took us 4 weeks each of work. So quite a substantial effort and a learning experience along the way as we learned and adapted the techniques for applying the mortar. The stones needed a good clean at the end and it was clear the applying and smoothing of the mortar improved as experience was gained.

Now will be the time to turn it into a better entertainment area and zone space. We will see.

Notre Dame

Nice walk this morning in the mist and cool weather before the rain came in.

We have driven past “La Fontaine’ many times but never stopped. Today we were up close and visited the chapel for the first time.

More like autumn

End if the day after working in the open barn.

It is colder today after some unseasonable warm weather. It has been raining and the wind has taken more of the leaves off the trees.

Hive gone

I opened the hive that I have been concerned about for a while.

Things had gone seriously wrong and there were very few bees still there and the hive had become infested with white moth.

Interestingly the queen was still present and being protected by the workers.

The white moth takes hold when the colony is failing. There ware no honey stores left and only dead larval stage bees.

I think the queen has been a poor producer and the final outcome was lack of food as not enough foragers to go out and then not enough food to develop young.

Other hive continues to look good. I am fighting the yellow legged hornets.

Flowers

We seeded these sections late , hence, the ongoing activity. The bees love them- more so the bumblebee and others that I think are hairy-footed flower bee.

They nest in the grass in a group.

Information here.