Last year we grew about every type of vegetable that you can think of including some more exotic ones like aubergine, chilli and melon. The vegetables last right through the year. Most of them I freeze. The pumpkins I turn into thick, creamy soup and bottle. It is very handy to have it pre-cooked on cold winter nights. Pruning takes a whole week. Cleaning all the pots and making sure the greenhouse is ready for the spring are the children’s jobs after all, I can’t do it all! The children have to help out, as there is always so much to do. We find, though, that they have much more freedom here. They take off for the day on their bikes and Josh, the eldest, often goes fishing in the Loire River. He brings his catch home for dinner.