Beat the Clocks



The clocks go forward this coming weekend.
Here in southwest France, spring is so much more advanced this year than last. A friend of ours, Monsieur Leo, exclaimed that 'this will be a bad year for fruit'! OK, so there's still time for a hard ruinous frost but it may not happen. As ever, most susceptible is the Peach blossom, fingers crossed.



I noticed these Iris blooming along side the road in St. Cyprien. Is it really March 27th? I know some bloom early but these seem extraordinarily so.
For me, Iris are just synonymous with France. They're grown everywhere. In a little over a month or so from now they'll all be in flower.
If you're an Iris lover and want to view some with a French accent, check this video out. It's a short news item featuring a specialist nursery not very far from here in the Lot.




Comments

  1. Anna27 March 2009 at 19:27

    I can't wait to spring forward here :) For some reason there was no picture when I watched the video Rob, although I could hear the commentary. Once again I asked myself why do I find it so much easier to read French than understand the spoken word :) I suppose it must come easier if you live there. You must be fluent by now.

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  2. Anonymous27 March 2009 at 19:59

    Hi Rob, thanks for that delightful video. I was able to see it, and know no French, except jardim? But seeing those fields of iris, and a woman in a sleevelss blouse meant the weather was warm and the flowers need no translation. Black Magic came through loud and clear. Another month at least for our big show, but the plant are looking very healthy. Iris is our state flower in Tennessee. :-)
    Frances

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  3. joey27 March 2009 at 20:31

    Your spring looks delightful, Rob! Thanks for sharing the enjoyable video ~ I love iris, one of my favorite flowers to photograph (of course, I'm of French decent though, shamefully, not fluent in the language)! Happy daylight savings weekend!

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  4. Hermes27 March 2009 at 20:51

    Strange, spring seems a little late here Rob, but the weather is so variable at the moment. Its like winter can't quite let go. Love that Iris though.

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  5. Catherine@AGardenerinProgress27 March 2009 at 20:57

    Interesting that your time change is now. I think the US moved ours up a year or so ago for some reason. It seems early for iris, at least here. They are just starting to come up now. I was impressed with how much high school French I remembered listening to the video.

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  6. Rob (ourfrenchgarden)27 March 2009 at 21:46

    Hi Anna, I don't know why the vid isn't showing?
    Fluent French speaking, erm, well, not bad, not bad.
    PS are you watching the peat debate with Toby tonight?

    Hello Frances, I'm betting there's some wonderful growers in Tennessee. Roll on warmer days.

    Hiya Joey, I have to squint through one eye when I read your blog as I'm on something of a diet. That Salmon made me hungry.

    Hermes, you've had a shocker of a winter this year. We missed the worst.

    Hi Catherine, didn't dates change over there for energy saving?
    I realised when I arrived here that I had very little high school French.

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  7. Unknown28 March 2009 at 00:36

    What a beautiful sight! I have never seen irises in a massed planting like that, and it's just beautiful. Then when I decided to click on your older post about the rose pergola, it motivated me to consider a structure like that! Thank you!

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  8. F Cameron28 March 2009 at 02:43

    Fabulous video! (And great practice for my French refresher.) Now, I do hope the irises at Monet's garden will wait for my visit in early May!

    Cameron

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  9. Phillip Oliver28 March 2009 at 04:55

    I thought we were the only people who changed the time. Ours was a few weeks ago. I took two years of French in college and I'm embarrassed to say that I can barely comprehend any of it. I love to hear it spoken though - beautiful language.

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  10. Anonymous28 March 2009 at 08:46

    I liked the video for the flowers but it was more fun to listen to the romantic language.

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  11. Rob (ourfrenchgarden)28 March 2009 at 11:05

    Tim, go for it, build a structure

    Hi Cameron, It'll be perfect timing.

    Philip, Anna, Sure it's a nice language but like anywhere there's a regional dialect to get used to.

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  12. sweetbay29 March 2009 at 18:09

    Thanks for posting the video Rob. I took French in school and yet I didn't understand anything but magnifique, jardin, and Black Magic. I agree with the people in the video, the iris are magnificent. I bet they do love it there, as well as lavender grows in France. My grandfather used to garden in limestone country and he grow wonderful iris too.

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  13. Nutty Gnome30 March 2009 at 11:27

    Hi Rob. Gorgeous iris, I love them - however, the video does shame me into admitting that my french is nowhere near as fluent as it used to be - and the accent is VERY different from the Mayenne accent tha I am used to. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

    Spring has sprung here and our clocks went forward this weekend - perhaps that's why I'm so shattered this morning (and has nothing to do with hours of lugging soil off the japanese garden!) :)

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  14. Enzie at World Market Portraits30 March 2009 at 23:42

    Everything looks just so beautiful!

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  15. Karen - An Artist's Garden31 March 2009 at 00:34

    Great video, I love iris although I don't grow any here .... yet!
    K

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  16. Jan31 March 2009 at 14:48

    Wow, what a treat to watch the video! I can't imagine tending to so many iris'...but they sure look gorgeous! I only wish the current technology that we enjoy, such as digital cameras and the internet, were available when we lived in Germany for 5 yrs. in the 80's. We toured so many gardens I can't remember most of them! What gems I had at my fingertips, and how few I actually recorded:-( Thank you for this-it brightened my morning!

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  17. Bren Haas1 April 2009 at 04:20

    This is a wonderful collection of spring photos. Thank you for sharing your breathtaking garden with us. Enjoy your spring!

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  18. "Daffodil Planter" Charlotte Germane2 April 2009 at 08:42

    Thank you Rob, for yet another short trip to France!

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  19. Joanne2 April 2009 at 20:14

    Hi Rob

    Love your blog.
    I love Iris but must make time this year to move some as they are getting crowded by other plants.

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  20. JP3 April 2009 at 04:38

    Rob, just happened to visit your blog and I enjoyed reading your posts and pictures. Keep writing...

    Invite you to visit my blog too and leave your comments.

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  21. MNGarden4 April 2009 at 10:32

    I was noticing how fast the iris foliage is spring up. Just a few more days and there will be quite a show. I hope all goes well weather-wise. Last year the whole blooming season was wiped out by freezing weather.

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  22. Wayne Stratz6 April 2009 at 22:33

    I too love how it seems Irises are everywhere all of a sudden. I had some Siberian Irises come and go already, but the larger ones have not arrived. good luck with those peaches

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  23. walk2write6 April 2009 at 22:38

    I'm getting to this post a bit late so I hope you've managed to miss the frosts. I love your site. Everytime I visit I learn something new. This time I noticed the linkwithin widget and decided to try it on my blog. Oh, I miss irises. Used to have them in my midwest gardens. It's a little too warm for most of them here.

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  24. Charlotte Weychan3 May 2010 at 10:01

    Oh Rob, I just can't wait to get to France now. Need suggestions on some gardens to visit in June!!

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