Another Drought?

Once again we haven't had rain for weeks. This is the middle of April and our 'lawn' looks like this....
I had to water plants in pots in March!! Unreal. I'm hoping that it's not another sécheresse like the past two years but if it is then we're much better equipped to deal with it this year. We have mulches everywhere; we have drip hoses running under the mulches and they are linked to our rain water collecting butts; we have a comprehensive rainwater harvesting system (see here); we have swales out in the fields to keep the rainwater from running straight off the hill. Yes I have learned many, many things since becoming interested in permaculture. I have learned to work with nature thereby reducing our own workload and protecting valuable resources. I only wish I had known of these things earlier in life.

Farm Hands

That's what I've got now, farm hands. No that doesn't mean that I have lots of helpers here - indeed we are WWOOFer-less at the moment and will remain so until May. It means that my hands are now permanently engrained with dirt. Clean dirt obviously that I soak and wash to try to get off but the marks of my occupation cannot be removed. I don't have any blisters because those tender places have been replaced by callouses. Yes, tough working hands I have now - farm hands. But I love it and wouldn't change a thing. The work isn't hard but it is very constant. There's a compelling pressure to be 'out there'. Nature doesn't wait.

Money Back

Gosh what a surprise today - we got some money back from the French authorities. They gave us a reimbursement of 40% of our land tax thanks to 'reduction of harvests due to the drought of Summer 2010'. How nice!