We're at the end of the week with our lovely volunteers. This morning we've been burning huge piles of olive tree prunings and building bridges over the water courses. The quad's stopped working, the bonnet's fallen off the tractor mower, the chainsaw's screeched to a twisted halt, the dogs ran away and came back again and we've used up every last bit of energy. But Chateau Malaudos is looking spectacular. If you'd like to read the guest blogs of our volunteers please have a look at the Chateau Malaudos (Backache Castle) website .

 

Our vollies have hoed, dug, burnt, hauled, sawn, built and cleared, cooked, washed up, supported, laughed and been wonderfully cheerful for a full week. They have done a real service to the ecology of a tiny part of the Languedoc in clearing trailer loads of dumped plastic, glass and iron from the garrigue. They've built structures that will last 50 years using only found materials and their gloved hands. They've rescued abandoned olives and planted 32 trees. They've helped hundreds of vines benefit from nutrients and water.

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you a thousand times over to Sarah, Andrew, Karen, Michelle C, Chris, Sue, Linda, Peter, Sharon, Paula, Poppy, Nicola, Michelle E-G and Alex. You've been absolute troopers. And thanks to Ali for producing prodigious amounts of bread, cheese, ham, soup, tea, coffee and biscuits from one small caravan in a vineyard.  I love you one and all. Next year?