Found these holes in the poly tunnel this morning near the base of one of the tomato plants. I'm thinking Frog or Toad, can anyone confirm?

Most of you probably already know this, but there is a new shop in Montmorillion selling all sorts of stuff very cheaply.

It's obviously not Poundland (or is it?) but the range of stuff is incredible.  And cheap.  And loads of brand names.  Obviously factory "seconds" or stuff where the label went on askew.

One of the servants mentioned it to me after he had been sent off to buy household cleaning items.  He was very impressed and recommended a visit.

Must say, I only hope it puts some competition into the market and the supermarkets, who have had it their own way for far too long, have to pull their socks up and start cutting some of their ridiculously high prices.

Goes by the name of ACTION, boasts that it is the Retailer of the Year (Europe) 2016-2017 and is located near Super U.

No fresh food but everything from gardening to motoring to interior deco to paint, to strangely-flavoured packets of peanuts, snacks, biscuits, choccy bars, really cheap Heinz tommy sauce, to garlic infused olive oil, salad dresings etc etc.

Hardly headline news I know, but the fact a new shop has opened in Monty - a veritable estate agents wasteland - is a great joy.  Well, it is to me.

A word of warning.

If you've noticed your pine trees/hedges going brown in places, it's not the heat.  Which is what I assumed.

It's a nasty little bug that burrows into the heartwood to release the sap - which it loves.

I thought our miniature pines were burning in places because of the intensity of the sun/lack of water.

Not so according to a French chum.

This little bug is rampant in this area at the moment, so he says.  Even more good news....... there is no cure.

He did tell me its name but the French/Latin pronunciation baffled me.

I'm easily baffled at my age.

Can anyone help identify this bug please? I've searched the internet and a couple of bug sites but can't seem to find an exact match.

It's on a creeping ivy weed thing, we haven't found any in the garden so I'm leaving them till I found out what they are. I'm thinking some type of caterpillar as he has 6 legs at the front, but I need to find out if they're good or bad for the garden.

Sorry not great photos but it's the best I could get with my little camera if you zoom in you can see them better.







Edit a zoomed in image.

Don't know if this is of any help but our printer always runs out of ink just when you want to use it. (Apparently they do dry up over time)

As I only make a couple of copies per year and the cartridges are far to expensive I decided to put a 3 page document I needed printing on a USB. There is a place at Poiters that will do them and we are going up there soon so I thought I would give it a try

But the other day we were passing through Lathus and there is a little Tabac shop next to the Spar and I thouhgt maybe they could do it, so I popped in and asked if they could print from a USB. And the young lady in there was very helpful and indeed she can print from a USB.

She printed my three crystal clear pages for 30 Cts  

So I won't be buying any more printer cartridges. I'll keep the printer as it scans too, but for my occasional printing I will go to the nice young lady in Lathus.

We are looking for a responsible trustworthy person / persons to housesit / catsit in the centre of Montmorillon from 2nd June -- 8th June  / 15th June -- 19th June. Must be a catlover and be prepared to water the garden.

We are paying 20 euros per day.

I can thoroughly recommend a repeat of a super day out we had last week.........
lunch in Angouleme, then a guided tour round Chateau de la Mercerie at Magnac Lavalette 16320.
It`s a fascinating place....a chateau and huge folly, being renovated by volunteers, and still very much a "work in progress".
On Tuesdays at 14.30pm there is an English tour guide (other times are French speaking only). It`s not cheap (10 euros a head), although that obviously helps towards the ongoing renovations, and was thoroughly enjoyable.

Today I did not believe my eyes!

We stopped in the centre of Sillars as we had seen what purported to be a bagette machine dispnsing fresh bagettes for one Euro. Surely not I thought, it's the end of the Republic as we known it. Had we had the right change I would have tried my luck and seen what one Euro would have brought forth.

Can it be true? Does it work? Is it edible?

Chris

and Good Afternoon!

We appear to have a partial blockage in the piping from our kitchen sink.  It's clear through to the outside of the house where the kitchen sink waste pipe enters the ground but is partially blocked some distance underground.  If I pour some boiling water down the sink, it gurgles like mad and does drain instantly and the gurgling is some of the water water coming back to the surface around the pipe outside at ground level.

My understanding is that we are on mains drainage so ..... as it's outside, is it our responsibility to get a plumber in (any recommendations?) or is it Service des eaux?

Thanks
Chris

Always thinking ahead to another project, and although not quite ready to do the job yet, can anyone tell me the cheapest place around to buy gravel please?

I've just added another year to the Around Montmorillon domain.

I'm pleased to see the forum is still getting used, so keep it up and I'll keep renewing.

Be warned there are people knocking on doors trying to scam you by using the new insulation rule that came into place 01/01/2017.

Décret n° 2016-711 says that if you are renovating more than 50% of your roof or outside walls you must install insulation. The rule also applies to buildings being turned into habitation.

There are people knocking on doors telling you it is an obligation and they have to come in your house and tell you about the rules.

Don't fall for it, you can check on the new rules and make your own mind up buy going here:

https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/eli/decre...613394D/jo

If you do want insulation by all means get it done, but ask someone like Soregies to recommend professional companies as they will also advise about what discounts are available.

OK,wise ones!! I`ve bought some veg plants,but more significantly tomatoes. So WHEN exactly should I plant them out ????

Out on my travels the other day I noticed the Union Jack was missing from the Montmorillon roundabout near Leader Price.

You may know it's the one with all the EU flags on poles around the roundabout, well there is now one pole without a flag on and the Union Jack is missing.

So can anyone solve the mystery?    

#1 Has it blown away.

#2 Has someone pinched it.

#3 Is it being repaired.

#4 Has it been removed now Article 50 has been triggered.

Also what about the one at the Camp Sight is that still there?

Don't forget to complete your tax return: https://www.impots.gouv.fr/portail/

Last dates are.....

Internet: 06 June 2017

Paper: 17 May

In case anyone is interested in seeing how different regions/departments/towns voted, there's a useful website run by the FranceInfo TV channel. Here are the results for Montmorillon.

A lovely hour spent in Montmorillon today,at the jardin de passion.Bought 3 clematis, and some super clothes upstairs at Jane`s shop near the bridge. It`s all open again tomorrow, so don`t miss it.