The land and climate here is a challenge for a gardener who wants to produce food year-round like me. But with some ingenuity and watching how nature works, this land is both exhilarating and rewarding.
Longitude 4:03:32E (4.059) Latitude 44:16:01N (44.267)
Height 480 metres above sea level
Climate Mediterranean, and according to Eliot Coleman, the equivalent of an American Zone 9.
First Frost Dates Week 46
Last Frost Dates Week 14
Lowest Temperature in winter temperatures are said to drop as low -15 degrees Celsius (-5F), though we’ve only gone as low -7 (19F) in the last 4 winters.
Highest Temperature in summer can get to a blistering 42 degrees Celsius (108F).
Sunlight over the year we experience an average of 300 days of sunshine. The light can be pure and crisp particularly when the mistral blows.
Wind has a big impact on our garden. The Mistral blows down from the North spreading its icy fingers wide as it reaches the Rhone delta, it can take the temperature down by as much as 10 degrees Celsius when it blows. The Sirocco,a hot drying wind, blows from the south bring particles of Saharan desert sand and the westerlies are a common feature in the garden. We also have the thermal drafts caused by the mountains which mean crazy gusts start in the afternoons in summer and whip around the valleys until sundown.
The house and farmland are sited at the top of small mountain valley, with two steep slopes, one facing due south and the other south west. The slopes are terraced with dry stone retaining walls, sometimes 13ft high, in the traditional Cevenol manner called bancels. The house and a small flower garden are high up on the south facing slope. The terraces below are home to the vegetable patch, verger (orchard), kitchen garden (potager) and our 50ft polytunnel. The remaining land is forested, predominately with Sweet Chestnut and Maritime Pine.
This land was once called Malbos and is still marked on some maps with the name which, literally translates as bad wood. The soil here is shallow, slightly acidic and sandy and has a tendency to dry out in summer. The low rainfall and high temperatures in spring and summer can make it difficult to grow some crops which need a consistent level of moisture to germinate and delicate leafy plants like spinach or lettuces which struggle in the high temperatures over the summer. In winter the winds can be devastating and the high rainfall in October and November can be a problem for overwintering alliums. But learning how to garden on each piece of land is like learning anew and it is really where the fun lies; in summer the place is brimming with heat loving fruiting crops and during our milder winters we can grow lush leafy greens undercover right through the winter.
Mas du Diable is in Cévennes National Park.
Mas du Diable is situated within the outer sphere of the Cévennes National Park. The park was created in 1970 and declared one of five World Biosphere Reserves by UNESCO in 1985. The Cévennes National Park stretches across three Departments (54 % in Lozère, 36% in Gard and 10% in Ardèche). In altitude it rises from 378 to 1,699 metres above sea level with several rivers, including the river Gard or Gardon and Tarn, flowing through it.
The range of vegetation is extreme: the sub-alpine meadows of mont Lozère are home to some species typical of the polar circle, while the warm rocky sheltered valleys of the mediterranean side of the Park are home to species normally found in the sub-tropics.
The richness of the flora (2,250 species) is attributable to the diversity of climate (Oceanic, Continental and Mediterranean), the chemical composition of the soil (granite, limestone and schist) and the range of altitudes in the protected zone (from 378 to 1,699 metres above sea level).
There are three ecological centres within the park: The Ecomusée of mont Lozère, The Ecomusée of the Cévennes, and The Ecomusée of the Causse. Here are a couple of links if you want to read more about the Reserve de biosphere des Cévennes (in French) Or The Cévennes National Park (in English).
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