Grower’s digest - October 2018

A sucker for a gadget

As trees shed their leaves, so the annual battle to keep lawns and driveways feuille-free begins. Apart from the manual option of a rateau (rake) or balai à feuilles (leaf sweeper) there are plenty of mechanical leaf-blowers and collectors available in French garden centres, for hard surfaces as well as grassed areas.

For the ultimate all-in-one gadget, look for a souffleur-aspirateur-broyeur, which blows, sucks, collects and even crushes your leaves, ready for composting. Model shown is a 3,000Watt Black and Decker, priced €119.90 from Leroy Merlin.

Howea the lads

When a certain Swedish homewares behemoth declares that a combination of ‘millennial pink’ and house plants is still about de rigueur, then we must listen.

So why not contrast your pale pink sofa, throw, rug or curtains with a deep green and handsome Howea, an indoor palm tree from palm family Arecaeae.

It can survive its owner’s forgetfulness when it comes to excessive heating or lack of watering.

Available from GammVert for €33.95.

Succulents in the city

Living in a town or city with only a small window box is no excuse to not enjoy plants and flowers. Fleur En Ville, a company owned by Truffaut, allows you to purchase a high quality Lechuza pot (complete with built-in water reserve) and plants online and have your chosen mini garden installed by an expert. The plants are specially selected to suit urban living and French-grown ones are prioritised. See https://fleurenville.com

Insta-jardins

Social media app Instagram is a brilliant way to enjoy other people’s gardens in France, with everyone from chateau visitors to chambre d’hôtes owners posting seasonal snaps of their gardens (users can search using the hashtag #jardins). This month’s pick features Château de Chamerolles in Loiret, Centre-Val-de-Loire by enroute_marcelle