etcetera magazine October 2021 by etcetera-France

etcetera I’M FREE - TAKE ME, KEEP ME!

YOUR COMPANION FOR LIFE IN THE FRENCH COMMUNITY

Venoms & Poisons

OCTOBER 2021

FRIGHTFULLY

FUN CREATIONS SPOOKY SHADOW BOX

Nature’s Weapons

Witchcraft

In the Court of King Louis Wicked Winter Squash WHAT’S ON • PUZZLES • HEALTH • CLASSIFIED

hello & welcome

Contents 3

A note from the editors

What’s on

Craft

latest news

HEALTH PASS FOR 12-17 YEAR OLDS From the 30th September, children and teenagers aged between 12 and 17 will need to show their Pass Sanitaire to access restaurants, cinemas, sporting facilities, museums etc. The health pass means proof of being fully vaccinated (paper or app), or a negative PCR test from within the past 72 hours, or proof of recent recovery from Covid. A health pass will not be needed for school. Rules are constantly changing at there is currently talk of areas with lower rates of transmission having some restrictions lifted. Please keep an eye on the news for updates.

Check Vehicle Fuel Prices With fuel prices rising back up (having fallen dramatically due the Covid and lockdowns) don’t forget to check out the best price for fuel on the government website www.prix-carburants.gouv.fr. Simply type in your area and you will be shown an up-to-date listing of nearby stations and their fuel prices.

BRITISH IN EUROPE CAMPAIGN GROUP British in Europe (BiE) have been an umbrella campaign group for many associations, all of them fighting for our rights as British Citizens in Europe. Founded in 2017, the group and all associations and organisations involved have worked incredibly hard

POSSIBLE HELP - ENERGY BILLS Households across Europe face a jump in energy bills this winter thanks to a worldwide surge in wholesale power and gas prices. At the time of print, there is talk in the French press of low income families receiving vouchers this December to help them them deal with the increase.

campaigning for our rights across Europe following the UK’s exit from the EU. Sadly, a lack of funds has left them no choice other than to slowly close down the group. We thank them enormously for their tireless work in helping British residents in the EU over the last 4 years.

PCR TESTS The 15th of October will see the end of the free ‘comfort’ PCR and anti-gen tests. From this date, if you don’t have a prescription from your doctor, it has been reported you will have to pay 49€ per test (for example, if you want to go to a restaurant, or travel on a flight and are not vaccinated).

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food

Winter Squash TEMPERATURES MIGHT BE DROPPING OUTSIDE BUT WITH THAT COMES DELICIOUS WINTER SQUASH IN OUR GARDENS AND LOCAL SHOPS. THEY STORE WELL, ARE PACKED FULL OF NUTRITION AND SO TASTY!

2 tsp cumin powder

Curried Pumpkin Soup

400ml tin, coconut milk 1 tbsp lime juice Small handful of coriander, chopped

750g pumpkin flesh (or squash), chopped into 2cm cubes

Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped 4-5cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated 1-2 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped 1 tbsp curry powder or paste

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By Beli n

da Prin ce

www.chateaumareuil.com

1 litre vegetable stock

Ingredients (Serves 4-6)

2 onions, chopped

Belinda, the ‘Accidental Chatelaine’ loves to cook at any opportunity and is delighted to be able to share that love with you

Method 1. Heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium/low heat; add the onions and sauté for a few minutes until soft and translucent. Add the garlic, ginger, chillies, curry powder and cumin and stir together for a minute. 2. Add the pumpkin or squash cubes and stir to coat with the spicy onion mixture. Season with salt and pepper and add the stock, increasing the heat to bring to a simmer. Cook gently for

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about 15 minutes, until the pumpkin or squash is tender. 3. Remove the pan from the heat, leave to cool slightly, then purée in a food processor or blender, or with a stick blender until nice and smooth. Return to the pan, add the coconut milk and warm through gently. 4. Add the lime juice and coriander off the heat; taste and adjust for seasoning. Serve and garnish with a topping of your choice!

Butternut Squash Salad Ingredients (Serves 4-6 as a main) 1 small butternut squash (1/2 large one, approx 1kg) 250g green lentils 500ml vegetable stock 1 red onion, finely chopped Large handful rocket for the dressing 3 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp cider vinegar 1tsp Dijon mustard 1 garlic clove, crushed Pre-heat the oven to 190ºC Method 1. Peel, halve and de-seed the squash. Cut into chunks (approx 2-3cm), place in a roasting tin, drizzle generously with olive oil and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast for about 40 mins, turning once until tender and beginning to brown at the edges. 2.

While the squash is roasting, put the lentils in a pan, add plenty of water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 1 minute, then drain. Return the lentils to the pan and pour on just enough stock to cover them. Bring to a very low simmer and cook slowly for about 30 minutes, until tender but

not mushy. You may need to add a bit more stock. 3.

For the dressing, whisk all the ingredients together thoroughly with some salt and pepper. Drain the lentils if necessary. While still hot, toss the lentils with the dressing, mix in the onion and carefully fold in the roasted squash.

Scatter over the rocket to garnish. You can finish each serving with a scoop of goat’s cheese and a handful of toasted chopped hazelnuts. Serve at room temperature. You can finish each serving with a scoop of goat cheese and a handful of toasted chopped hazelnuts if you wanted to pack in some more flavour and protein.

Squash Chilli Ingredients (Serves 4-5) 1 small butternut or other squash (1/2 large one, approx 1kg) 1 red pepper, cored, seeded and chopped 3 onions 2-3 green chillies 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 250g mushrooms, roughly chopped 2 tbsp olive oil 2 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp chilli powder 2 tbsp tomato purée 400g tin, chopped tomatoes

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food 400g tin, red kidney beans

sweat, stirring occasionally until soft and beginning to take on some colour. Add the chopped chillies, garlic, cumin, chilli powder and stir for a minute to combine.

100ml red wine (or vegetable stock) Small bunch parsley, finely chopped Small bunch coriander, finely chopped Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

Add the red pepper and mushrooms and stir to coat in the spicy onion mix. Add the tomato purée, chopped tomatoes, kidney beans, wine or stock and fresh chopped herbs. Pour over 200ml water and season. Simmer gently for 25-30 mins, adding the roasted squash for the last 5 minutes or so stir from time to time.

When everything is nice and tender, taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary.

Pre-heat the oven to 190ºC Method 1.

Peel, halve and de-seed the squash. Cut into chunks (approx 2-3cm), place in a roasting tin, drizzle with olive oil and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast for about 30-40 mins, turning once until tender and beginning to brown at the edges. While the squash is roasting, heat the oil in a sauté pan over a medium heat. Add the onions and

Serve with rice and pita bread. Top with avocado and/or grated cheese. Enjoy!

Sweet Pumpkin Pie Ingredients (Serves 8) 1 pack ready-made short crust pastry (pâte brisée) 1kg pumpkin, peeled & roughly chopped 100ml milk 200g soft brown sugar (sucre de canne) Pinch ground cinnamon ½ tsp grated nutmeg 100ml double cream (crème entière) 2 eggs 1 tbsp cornflour caster sugar for sprinkling Method 1. Butter a 23cm pie or flan dish and dust with caster sugar. 2. Put the pumpkin in a pan with the milk, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Cover and cook gently for 1 hour, the drain off any liquid. Leave to cool in a sieve over a bowl. 3. Heat the oven to 200ºc/180ºc fan. Line the pie or flan dish with the pastry, trimming off the edges. 4. Once the pumpkin is cool, mash it and beat in the cream, eggs and the cornflour. Pour the mixture into the pastry lined dish. Sprinkle with some caster sugar and a little more nutmeg. 5. Bake for 1 hour, covering the edges of the pastry with foil if they begin to brown too quickly. Cool a little before serving; some caramel sauce is a lovely accompaniment!

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food Travelers' Choice Best of the Best Award

6th Year Running

Wednesday to Saturday

12h-14h & 18h-21h Outside uncovered seating available. Reservation strongly advised

2 Avenue De St. Germain 16500 Confolens

Celebrating 10 years! Château Mareuil History, Beauty, Tradition… Come and visit our medieval château Luxury Holidays with Private Pool - Chambres d’Hôtes - Parties, Celebrations & Weddings Wine Tasting & Private Dining

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etcetera 15

opinion

Brian White lives in south Indre with his wife, too many moles and not enough guitars

n February 1951 she boarded the MV Cheshire in Liverpool, bound for Australia. Twenty-seven years old, Jean was travelling alone and her £10 ticket had consumed all her savings. She knew nobody at her destination and little about the country itself. But this was no young woman’s adventure, stepping out to make her mark in the world. Jean was fleeing. Along with her meagre luggage, she bore two gifts from her parents: the middle name Antoinette, bestowed by her mother’s love of historical novels, and the scars across her back, made by a belt buckle, from her father’s tendency to violence. Had she stayed, Jean told me many years later, her father would have eventually killed her or else she would have murdered him as he slept. The Assisted Passage scheme was her escape; (with grim irony, the Australian government’s policy was known as "Populate or Perish"). Moving elsewhere in Britain was no option, the first imploring letter from her mother would have pulled her back home. It had to be Australia: not even he could punch that far.

Distant Voices

So, seventy years ago, a family fractured panorama for me here in France. I on the Liverpool dockside. Along with her wondered what on earth Jean – and all the weeping parents, (her father wailing, “My other ‘£10 Poms’ – would have made of baby!”), Jean left behind her six younger this science-fiction made real. siblings, one of whom was my father. It would take eight weeks at sea to reach Those of us who have chosen to make a Australia, in those days a one-way ticket to new life abroad can speculate: Would we the moon. No still have done so if telephone calls, contact with loved Those of us who have chosen to make replies to letters ones meant only a new life abroad can speculate: would take stamps, envelopes months. Decades Would we still have done so if contact and long delays? would pass before with loved ones meant only stamps, Without the she saw her birth cornucopia of envelopes and long delays? country again. gadgets to keep in touch with our families, everywhere, all Although I know her story well, I still gasp the time, would Mrs W and I have moved at its enormity for a young woman alone. I here in 2015? Hmmm . . . thought of my aunty Jean again recently as I was gazing out over the bay of We live in a farmhouse around a century Llandudno, the picture-postcard seaside old, the quintessential ‘retirement to town where I grew up. The headland of the France’, tranquil and picturesque. Yet Great Orme, whose goats famously peek inside this ‘maison ancienne’ and it’s sauntered around the streets during the the Starship Enterprise. Wi-fi wafts first lockdown, overlooks the Victorian everywhere, a laptop connects us to the pier in a tableau both familiar yet now World Wide Web; our TV draws down strangely foreign. I hadn’t laid eyes on my emissions from orbiting satellites as we hometown for two years. surround ourselves with automatic this But here’s the thing: I wasn’t actually there. I was chatting with my son over WhatsApp as he strolled on the promenade with his two (of course) gorgeous children, scanning his phone through 360 degrees and displaying the

16 etcetera

and remote-controlled that. In the kitchen, Alexa perches on top of the fridge, eager to read you an audio book, time your boiled egg or calculate how many fluid ounces there are in a kilometre, (“I’m sorry, I don’t know that one”, she purrs

coquettishly). I mean, I grew up in a house with a Bakelite telephone the size of a breeze block, a ‘party line’ shared with other people who could listen in to your conversations. I know! I notice, incidentally, that most media articles describe Brits living overseas as ‘expats’, a genteel word somehow reminiscent of the colonial days of old. Meanwhile, others whose journeys abroad involve dinghies, international shipping lanes and blind terror, are tagged as ‘migrants’, a de-humanising term often favoured by those who would make the denial of compassion respectable. Anyway, what of aunty Jean? She settled in Melbourne and married a veteran of the Royal Australian Airforce who lost his sight in WW2. Despite vowing never to have children herself, (another legacy from my grandfather), she became a mum to his daughters, who adored her. Today’s hi-speed communication dramatically shrinks the space which lies between us. Or at least it appears to, which, over this past year and a half, has had to suffice. But I doff my cap, tip my hat and raise a glass to all those who chose a new life abroad in those long-ago days when absence was total and distance conquered all.

language & assistance

Parlez Français French conversation, vocabulary & traditions

La Toussaint et Halloween

Broaden your horizons with CONTINENTAL HORIZONS! Bonne fête et à bientôt !

Isabelle

n se perd un peu aujourd’hui entre Halloween (dans la nuit du 31 octobre au 1er novembre), la Toussaint (1er novembre) et la fête des morts (2 novembre). Le 1er novembre, ce jour-là on célèbre tous les saints. L’Église catholique reconnait aujourd’hui plus de 40 000 saints, mais il peut en exister bien d’autres, d’où ce jour dédié à tous, officiels et inconnus. Présents depuis plus d’un millénaire dans les noms de nos villes, villages, dans nos prénoms,

les saints marquent aussi les jours du calendrier. Par exemple, on pouvait entendre « à la Saint-Martin, je paierai la moitié de ma dette et le solde à la SaintAndré ». Par contre payer à la Saint Glinglin, cela veut dire « jamais » ! Le lendemain, le 02 novembre, c’est la fête de tous les morts. À cette occasion, les Français vont dans les cimetières déposer des fleurs sur les tombes, et en particulier des chrysanthèmes. Effectivement, le chrysanthème est la fleur de la Toussaint,

Broaden your horizons with CONTINENTAL HORIZONS! Mob. : 06 20 10 34 49 Email : continentalhorizons@free.fr Isabelle works for CONTINENTAL HORIZONS Language Centre in L’Isle Jourdain and teaches French as a Foreign Language every day in their many classrooms. Do not hesitate to contact her on 05 49 84 17 73. www.continental-horizons.com

etcetera 17

language & assistance il résiste très bien au froid et fleurit les tombes le jour de la fête des morts. Que vient faire Halloween dans l’histoire ? Contraction de l’anglais, « All Hallows’ Eve » signifiant veillée de la Toussaint, Halloween se fêtait donc la veille, le 31 octobre soir, en Irlande, en Ecosse et au Pays de Galles. La tradition de créer des lanternes fantastiques à partir de légumes creusés (rutabagas, betteraves, navets, citrouilles) éclairés de l’intérieur vient d’un conte irlandais moyenâgeux : une lanterne végétale similaire aurait été fabriquée par un vieil ivrogne acariâtre condamné à errer éternellement dans le noir entre Enfer et Paradis jusqu’au jour du Jugement Dernier. Importée par les Irlandais aux Etats-Unis vers 1850, Halloween y prend de l’importance dans les années 1920, avec l’organisation de tournées de quête des enfants

Importée par les Irlandais aux Etats-Unis vers 1850, Halloween y prend de l’importance dans les années 1920, avec l’organisation de tournées de quête des enfants réclamant des friandises (bonbons) de maison en maison réclamant des friandises (bonbons) de maison en maison. A partir des années 1960, Halloween devient de plus en plus une fête commerciale : promotion de film d’horreur, de décors et masques de sorcières, fantômes, squelettes, araignées, etc. etc. Ce commerce passe des Etats-Unis en France vers 1990. De nos jours, Halloween est toujours fêté en France, et plus particulièrement par les enfants. On trouve beaucoup d’accessoires dans les magasins. Les enfants se déguisent et viennent frapper aux portes en demandant un bonbon sinon ils nous jettent un sort en disant « un bonbon ou un sort ! », en anglais : «trick or a treat !». Amusez-vous bien ! N’ayez pas peur ! Aaaaaahhhhhhhhh !

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language & assistance

la Toussaint All Saints’ Day

creusé (adj) dug

une friandise a delicacy, a sweet

un mort a dead

un rutabaga a swede

à partir de from

célébrer (verb) to celebrate

une betterave a beetroot

les années 1960 the 60s

un saint a saint

un navet a turnip

un film d’horreur a horror film

dédié (adj) dedicated

une citrouille a pumpkin

une sorcière a witch

inconnu (adj) unknown

éclairé (adj) lit up

un fantôme a ghost

un millénaire one thousand years

un conte a tale

un squelette a skeleton

une dette a debt

moyenâgeux (adj) medieval

une araignée a spider

le solde the balance

un ivrogne a drunkard

fêter (verb) to celebrate

jamais never

acariâtre (adj) bad-tempered

le lendemain the day after

condamné (adj) sentenced

se déguiser (verb) to dress up, to disguise oneself

à cette occasion on this occasion

errer (verb) to wander about

un cimetière a cemetery

éternellement eternally, for ever

déposer (verb) to lay

l’Enfer Hell

une tombe a grave

le Paradis Heaven

un chrysanthème a chrysanthemum

le Jugement Dernier the Last Judgement

résister (verb) to resist / to withstand

une tournée a round

fleurir (verb) to flower

une quête a collection

la veille the day before

frapper (verb) à la porte to knock on the door jeter (verb) un sort to cast a spell s’amuser (verb) to enjoy oneself N’ayez pas peur ! Don’t be afraid!

réclamer (verb) to demand

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business FINANCE

HELEN BOOTH

Retiring Abroad

INDEPENDENT FINANCIAL ADVISER deVere France

re you planning on retiring in Europe soon or are already here? There are a few aspects you need to investigate, as it may affect how your pension is paid out to you. Firstly, the effect Brexit has had on your pension. Secondly, it is possible to get a state pension from two countries if you also worked in the EU for several years. Your money will get paid directly into your UK bank or EU bank account in the local currency, cutting out transfer fees and bank charges. Private pensions are normally paid into your UK bank account in sterling. You would then have to transfer it into an EU bank account which would incur forex fees. Using a forex broker would reduce these charges. Speak to your deVere

20 etcetera

France adviser about the forex services deVere offers – they offer reduced fee transactions and you can freeze your exchange rate for future transactions. You could set up an international account with your existing bank. Having sterling and euro accounts shouldn’t incur any fees when you transfer between them. If you retire in the UK, you are usually entitled to a 25% tax free pension commencement lump sum. If you are already based in an EU country and then retire, you might have to pay tax on the lump sum depending on the country’s tax laws. France fortunately does have a double taxation treaty with the UK to prevent double tax on your pension.

Your pension is normally taxed in the country of your residence* ‘In the UK, you are permitted to withdraw up to 25% of your pension savings 'taxfree' up to the lifetime limit. If this occurs before you leave, there should be no problem, but not all foreign tax regimes have the same rules.’ - www.which.co.uk It is always recommended to chat to your deVere France adviser about the implications of retiring outside of the UK in Europe. helen.booth@devere-france.fr * www.which.co.uk Please note, the above is for education purposes only and does not constitute advice. You should always contact your deVere France adviser for a personal consultation. * No liability can be accepted for any actions taken or refrained from being taken, as a result of reading the above.

business

The Power of a CTA A

Call to Action (or CTA) is an urgent, immediate instruction encouraging activity to do something specific. When used in marketing, CTAs inform your audience what to do next if they are interested in what you are offering. For example, you might see ‘sign up for our newsletter’ on a website or on e-commerce sites ‘purchase now and get a 20% discount’. Every day we are exposed to CTAs from the television, direct mail in our letterboxes and online. Each avenue has its approach as to how you encourage an audience to take action to do something. Why you might need to use it − You might have stock to get rid of and need to encourage sales − You may have a new service that you want your customers to learn more about − You may have a new product and wish to promote a brief introductory discount − You may want to grow your newsletter subscriber list

− You may have a website that does not encourage readers to do anything − You may have a new blog article that you want your readers to share − You may have holiday accommodation or a restaurant and want people to book now − You may have a trades service and want more enquiries − You may have an event or webinar that you want people to sign up to − You have customers that exit your online shop and abandon their baskets − Your social media activity lacks encouragement to do anything − Your flyers or adverts lack strong calls to action A good call to action will direct your audience to the right place and make the result clear. Look at TV adverts for inspiration. Sift through the publicity that lands in your letterbox, look at websites and their CTAs. Get creative. Understand your audience. What would motivate them to take action? Your CTA needs to stand out and offer concise instruction, using strong, actionable words and include what

MARKETING

MICALA WILKINS ALACIM SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING you want people to do and what will happen when they do. Make sure it is evident as to what the recipient is getting. How long is the offer to last? Is there a sense of urgency? Is there a specific timeframe? What are you doing in your business that potentially has room for a CTA? After reading through where you might need to use it, you might identify areas of your marketing and include calls to action where relevant. We cannot control what audiences do, but we can help close some gaps with the right message at the right time to encourage our audience to take action. Take some time to identify where/how potential customers are not connecting with you and address those gaps. A call to action is a great chance to motivate and encourage your audience to take actionable steps to become your business's customer or client.

Let’s talk currency Sue Cook Regional Coordinator Centre Ouest 87600 Rochechouart +33 (0)555 036 669 +33 (0)689 992 889 E: sue.c@currenciesdirect.com www.currenciesdirect.com/france Siret: 444 729 008 00011

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TONY FARRELL INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL ADVISER The Spectrum IFA Group, with over 20 years’ experience advising expatriates throughout Europe on all aspects of financial planning T: 05 55 89 57 94 E: tony.farrell@spectrum-ifa.com TSG Insurance Services S.A.R.L. Siège Social: 34 Bd des Italiens, 75009 Paris. R.C.S. Paris B 447 609 108 (2003B04384). Société de Courtage d’assurances. Intermédiaire en opération de Banque et Services de Paiement. Numéro d’immatriculation 07 025 332 – www.orias.fr Conseiller en investissements financiers, référencé sous le numéro E002440 par ANACOFI-CIF, association agréée par l’Autorité des Marchés Financiers

Advertise Your Business Contact Sam or Gayle: editors.etcetera@gmail.com etcetera 21

business INSURANCE

ISABELLE WANT

Life Insurance

BH ASSURANCES

PROTECTING YOUR NEAREST AND DEAREST

The amount can be between 1 800 and 50 000 per year.

stupid bet, or suicide during the first year of the subscription.

Dreaded Diseases: If you are diagnosed with one of the diseases on our list, you get an amount of money to enjoy before you die. Disease such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, cancer, leukaemia, etc (ask for the detailed list if you are interested). You can choose this option instead of the life insurance or on top of it.

Premium: For someone aged 44, nonsmoker, it would be 17 euro per month to be insured for 100 000 euro in case of death (any causes). If you add 100 000 euro cover for the dreaded diseases option, it is 43 euro per month. 57 euro per month if you do life insurance of 100K and Rente Spouse option of 12 000 per year.

Daily Compensation: If you have an accident and/or without a disease you can choose to be covered for a daily amount to compensate for your loss of earning. This only works if you actually have an earning by working (self-employed or salaried)!!

For someone born in 1972, non-smoker, it would be 23 euro per month for a life insurance of 100K, 38 euro per month if you add the Rente education option of 4 000 euro per year. 184 euro per month if you also add the Rente spouse option of 12 000 euro per year.

ost of us insure our house and cars but not often do we think of what will happen to our closest ones if we die. Life insurance contracts are made for that. So, here is what you can get with the Allianz Prevoyance contract: Death insurance: Well, that is the main purpose of this type of insurance. You can have cover for any amount above 15 000 euro. For death by accident only or for death by any cause. Note that you must be below 74 years old when you take out the contract and that the cover stops when you reach 76 years old (the day before in fact). Yes, if you don’t die before you reach 76, you would have paid the premium for nothing. Just like if your house does not burn down or if you never have a claim on your car insurance. But that is the point of insurance - they are made to protect you in case something happens which you hope won’t! You are covered straight away (there is a health questionnaire to take it out). PTIA: That is the loss for good of your autonomy. And this is an option you can add to the life insurance so that if you become non compos mentis, we give you the amount you are insured for. Rente education: If you die or are PTIA, a yearly income is given to help provide for the children. The amount can go from 900 to 50 000 euro per year and per child. You can choose this option instead of the life insurance or on top of it.

Hospital cover: You get an amount of between 15 and 100 euro per day you are in hospital. Only works if you are in But that is the point of hospital for more than 2 insurance - they are made nights and limited to 730 to protect you in case days or 100 nights per year for psychiatric something happens which or re-education. you hope won’t! Rente invalidity: Payment of a yearly amount to compensate for loss of earning if you become an invalid following an accident and/or without disease. Minimum 7 500 euro per year. You can only take out this option if you also take out the daily compensation option.

The amount can be different for each child.

Invalidity insurance: You get a capital lump sum if you become an invalid following an accident and/or without disease. Minimum 15 000 euro. Excludes back and psychiatric problems.

Rente Spouse: If you die or are PTIA, a yearly income is given to help provide for your spouse. You can choose this option instead of the life insurance or on top of it.

Exclusions: If you have taken part in a war or terrorism, in a criminal activity, having died due to alcoholism or drugs, following dying from taking part in a

Obviously premiums can vary depending on what type of work you do, if you smoke, do any dangerous sport, etc so please contact me for a quote.

Conclusion: Well, why put it off any longer. If you love your family and want to make sure they will be fine if something happens to you, you should ask for a free quote, so contact me! And remember to check out our web site www.bh-assurances.fr/en for all my previous articles and register to receive our monthly newsletter. You can also follow us on Facebook: “Allianz Jacques Boulesteix et Romain Lesterpt”. And don’t hesitate to contact me for any other information or quote on subjects such as funeral cover, inheritance law, investments, car, house, professional and top up health insurance, etc…

Isabelle Want 06 17 30 39 11 Email: isabelle.want @bh-assurances.fr

N° Orias 07021727/16005974

22 etcetera

22 rue Jean Jaures. 16700 Ruffec Tél:+33 (0)5 45 31 01 61

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10 Bd du 8 mai 1945 16110 La Rochefoucauld Tél:+33 (0)5 45 63 54 31

2 Avenue de la Gare 16270 Roumazieres-Loubert Tél:+33(0)5 45 71 17 79

business

HOME IMPROVEMENT T

here has been a fundamental change in the right to help with home improvements over the last couple of years. That is why I thought it essential to explain new criteria and organisations. Principle If you are fiscally domiciled in France, you could benefit from a tax credit or financial aid on certain of your home improvement expenses that conform to government policy. Some expenses in 2021 can allow you tax credits and be reclaimed in your personal tax return next May. Other improvements require the completion of a dossier to benefit from a grant. The expenses covered are in two main groups; energy efficiency improvements and improvements to allow seniors to stay at home. Tax credits You can benefit from a tax credit, if you are a home owner and a French tax payer. The property must be in France, be used as a home and be more than two years old. Warning: in order to benefit from a crédit d'impôt, the equipment, materials and instruments must correspond to precise technical characteristics.

SMALL BUSINESS ADVICE

LINDSEY QUERIAUD OWNER: CAST T: 05 45 84 14 94 lindseyqueriaud@outlook.com

However, your income can not exceed per fiscal part

27 706

1.5

35 915

44 124

2.5

50 281

56 438

3.5

62 595

68 752

For each ½ part +

+6 157

Fiscal parts are not the same as persons. You can have a disability for example and be apportioned an extra ½ part. Your first and second child are given ½ part each, whereas every child after is given a whole part.

Heat pump for 1 euro The Government is offering to households that don’t pay income tax to install an air/water heat pump for 1 euro. To qualify you need to currently have gas or fuel central heating. You need to approach an RGE registered business. Global expenses limitations – tax credits Your claimed expenses, over a period of 5 consecutive years between the 1st January 2017 and the 31st December 2021, cannot go over certain limits, depending on your family situation:

This means that the tax credits on home improvements are more beneficial to lower middle class households. Expenses entitled to tax credits include a number of energy improvements. Here is a brief list of some of the expenses. ▪ Thermal insulation materials in opaque facades – inside and outside ▪ Equipment for connecting to a heat source

2400 € for one person,

▪ Heating apparatus using wood or another biomass product

4800 € for a couple subject to common taxation.

▪ Heat pump - air/air

This is increased by 120 € per dependant person (60 € for a child on alternative residency).

▪ Heat pump - geothermic

To be able to reclaim your tax credit, you will need to produce a copy of the invoice for the work, indicating the value of the materials or equipment installed and the installation separately. The artisan will need to specify certain technical details for the demand to be validated. The artisan will need to be RGE registered.

▪ Heat pump for the production of hot water ▪ (windmill, hydraulic, solar water heating, etc.) ▪ Electric car charging system You can also claim as a senior for certain home improvements to allow you to stay at home such as a stairlift.

INCOME LIMITATIONS

Ma Prime Rénov

These tax credits are open to those households on what the Government calls ‘intermediary’ incomes. Income must exceed the following criteria to be eligible for tax credits:

The Government has tried to simplify the access to information and financial aid via a new concept called Ma Prime Rénov. This is managed by an organisation called ANAH. If you have any improvement project where you are on low or ‘intermediary’ incomes, you can either pass directly by l’ANAH (best if you have multiple improvements) or the accredited company that is doing the installation will complete a demand for aid.

25 068

19 074

36 792

27 896

44 188

33 547

51 597

39 192

59 026

44 860

Per person +

7 422

5 651

* Départements 75, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 77, 78

These aids cover pretty much all the areas entitled to tax credits and more. To start the ball rolling, you go on line and fill out a questionnaire and then an advisor from l’ANAH will get back to you, after a certain time, to go through your project and your rights. This is run on a département level. Check this out on https://anah.aides-enligne.com/

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health health

NOT ALL CALORIES ARE EQUAL!

By Louise Cotton

Louise works with the Fit for Life Association as a Clinical Weight Loss Coach. She is also a Hypnotherapy Practitioner Specialising in Hypnotic Gastric Band Therapy email: louise@fitforlife.one

WHEN IT COMES TO THE WORLD OF DIETING, THERE IS NOTHING VERY NEW OUT THERE

limming World swapped from red days and green days to food optimisation and Weight Watchers changed their name to WW. The Keto Diet continues to interest people, but in my view is not sustainable in the long run. Noom focuses on the psychology of why we eat the way we do and the habits behind our eating and what drives us to eat certain foods at certain times. This is also dealt with in the book ‘Turning off the Tap” by Sara Best. The 5:2 Diet has been updated and together with the Blood Sugar Diets are two of the best weight loss and maintenance programmes out there. A lot of people are finding that by eating sensibly for 5 days and either fasting or reducing their food intake significantly for 2 days each week that they are able to remain in control of their weight. For some they have found that their weight may not be decreasing drastically, but inches/centimetres are dropping off their waist or they are dropping ‘dress’ sizes, demonstrating that they are losing internal fat. The one new thing that has struck me is the move away from counting calories and the belief that when it comes to losing weight this does necessarily not work. I for one am becoming a convert. Why, you may ask? Surely, if we eat less calories than we use up in our day-to-day activity we should be able to lose weight. Basically, this is true. However, I do not think that all calories are created equal. Now time for a little bit of science… What is a calorie? There are many definitions out there, but this one seemed to make the most sense to me in terms of calories and food. A calorie is a unit of measurement. It is a unit of energy. When it is said that something contains 100 calories, it's a way

24 etcetera

of describing how much energy your body could get from eating or drinking it. OK, so why do I think that all calories are not created equal? This would be disagreeing with years of scientific evidence. Surely 100 calories of cake are equal to 100 calories of chicken. Yes, they are. However, they have one fundamental difference. This is the way the body metabolises them and this is where I believe that solely counting calories is not the be all and end all to losing weight. Ok, just a little bit more science! The definition of metabolism. Metabolism: The whole range of biochemical processes that occur within a living organism. Metabolism consists of anabolism (the build-up of substances) and catabolism (the breakdown of substances). The term metabolism is commonly used to refer specifically to the breakdown of food and its transformation into energy. With me so far? Now back to our ‘diet’. The calories actually taken in by the body from the 100 calories of chicken become

less than the 100 calories of cake because the metabolic pathway the body uses is more efficient. The bottom line is that you will probably only absorb 75 calories of the chicken as the rest have been used by the body to process it. In many cases, simple changes in the food you decide to eat can lead to the same or better results than restricting your calorie intake. By increasing your protein levels and reducing your carbohydrate and refined sugar intake another benefit is that you may see a drastic reduction in your appetite which can help with weight loss. Different calorie sources can have vastly different effects on hunger, hormones, energy levels. If your energy levels go up this should mean that you are able to increase your movement and expend more calories. A win-win situation! Even though calories are important, counting them or even being consciously aware of them is not the be all and end all to losing weight. It can be a simple case of eating the right source of calories in the right portions that suit your body. You would not put the wrong fuel in your car. If you want the best performance from any engine, you would put in the best fuel possible. Your body is an engine – treat it accordingly.

health

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health

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health

‘Boocha’ Kombucha Tea By Amanda

YOU’VE PROBABLY HEARD OF IT. KOMBUCHA HAS SPRUNG INTO POPULARITY OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS IN MANY HEALTH FOOD SHOPS AND THERE ARE NOW MANY POPULAR BRANDS AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE, SOMETIMES EVEN IN YOUR LOCAL SUPERMARKET

reduces cancer. One thing is for certain, including a daily drink of kombucha will benefit your health in innumerable ways.

If you haven’t discovered Kombucha yet then prepare to be astonished at how easy this beneficial, simple probiotic elixir is to make.

So how do you begin? Firstly you need to either buy a scoby online or you need to know someone who ferments the tea. You are welcome to email me (see my email address underneath my photo, above) if you would like to be directed to a supplier. Then follow the recipe below and grow your own wonder tea. As your tea ferments you will see little stringy floating sediments at the top and bottom of your bottle/jar; this is a good thing. The sediments show that the yeasts in the tea are growing and you can filter these out of the tea at the end.

t’s expensive to buy though. A small bottle of 250cl can cost around 3-5 euros, the larger 500ml up to 8 euros. If, like many people, you have discovered it and you love drinking Kombucha, then you can save a lot of money by making your own. It’s inexpensive and so easy to do.

Kombucha is thought to originate in Russia or China. It is, at its most simple, a fermented green tea; fizzy, refreshing, delicious and excellent for your health. Unlike other ferments, the Like live yoghurt, the bacteria Follow this simple yeasts involved are not present naturally on the in Kombucha colonise the gut recipe for basic Kombucha tea and green tea itself, rather we which stabilise the when you feel more add the yeasts and bacteria microbiome which in turn confident, there are in with something called a boosts your health numerous recipes ‘scoby’ - this stands for online for changing Symbiotic Colony Of the flavour to include ginger, or berries, or Bacteria and Yeasts. Sometimes the scoby edible flowers to add flavour and is called a 'mushroom' or ‘The Mother’. additional nutrition. There is a great book Kombucha tea ferments anaerobically, called ‘The Kombucha Revolution’ for meaning without oxygen. So the scoby is more advanced recipes. placed on top of the tea creating a barrier between the air and the fermenting Equipment: Kombucha tea. The benefits are said to be − Large glass jar or wide necked bottle numerous. Like live yoghurt, the bacteria (you need to be able to get the scoby in Kombucha colonise the gut which out when your tea is ready. stabilise the microbiome which in turn boosts your health. Green tea has been − Strainer shown to lead to a huge reduction of both − Kettle LDL and HDL cholesterol and can reduce Ingredients: (Makes 3 cups): your chances of developing heart disease by up to 31%. Improved mood is a natural − 3 cups of water consequence of a healthy microbiome − 2 tbsp loose green tea (organic since the gut is said to be the ’second preferably) brain’ and many feel good hormones like − 3 tbsp granulated sugar serotonin, originate in the gut. Think of − 1/2 cup Kombucha starter tea the expression ‘gut feeling’. We know that green tea itself benefits the liver as it is full − scoby 1/4 inch thick. of antioxidants. Leaving your Kombucha Instructions: tea to ferment for longer can leave a small amount of alcohol 1-2% in the finished 1. Make sure that all of your jars and ferment as the scoby converts the sugar in equipment are sterilised prior to the tea into ascetic acid (a kind of vinegar) starting. Placing the jars in boiling and ethanol (alcohol). Some studies have water and leaving it for 5 minutes will even claimed that Kombucha tea even do the trick.

King

Amanda lives near Ruffec and is in the final year of an Advanced Diploma in Naturopathic Nutrition with the College of Naturopathic Medicine in London. She holds a BSc in Human Biology and Counselling /Psychology. Amanda is passionate about living in harmony with nature and innate wellness.

amandakingnutrition@gmail.com

In a separate container put the loose tea and cover with hot boiled water. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. When cooled, strain off the tea leaves and place into the jar.

Do not add the starter tea and scoby until your sweet tea mixture is at room temperature. Once the tea is cooled, add the starter tea and place the scoby on top. Don’t worry if the scoby sinks, the fermentation process will create little air bubbles that will push the scoby back to the top of the tea within a couple of days (providing the opening is wide enough) if the jar is too wide for the scoby don’t worry as the scoby will grow to exactly fit the opening in time.

Leave the tea in an accessible place where you can easily keep an eye on it, out of direct sunlight and at room temperature. Covering the lid of the jar or bottle with a muslin is ideal, to stop unwanted bacteria getting in and to allow for airflow so that the gases from the fermentation process can escape.

After 4-5 days begin tasting your Kombucha - you will find that it changes from sweet to a more sour taste. You can drink the tea at any point but 14 days is optimal. Once you are ready to decant your tea for storage in the fridge, sterilise your strainer and storage bottles in boiling water. Then strain off 3 cups of the tea into your bottle. Make another batch of tea according to these instructions and start the process again. The tea that you leave should be around 1/2 cup and that will serve as your starter tea for the next batch. You can of course double up on this recipe or make as much as you like with the ratios. You will find that layers of new scoby will grow and it will thicken. You can either discard them or pass them on to your friends along with 1/2 cup of starter tea and they can also make their own.

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health

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garden Mexican Giant Hyssop (Agastache mexicana 'Sangria')

Decorative Fruit Tree Forms CORDON, ESPALIER AND FAN TRAINED TREES ARE BOTH PRODUCTIVE AND DECORATIVE AND CAN BE USED AS DESIGN FEATURES TO DIVIDE DIFFERENT AREAS OF THE GARDEN AROUND THE POTAGER OR THEY CAN BE USED AS A BOUNDARY

hey are great for smaller gardens where there is not enough space for an extensive orchard as you can fit more different varieties of fruit in a smaller space. To achieve one of these ‘restricted’ forms your fruit tree needs to be grafted onto a ‘dwarfing’ rootstock – these are specialist root systems that restrict the eventual height of the tree and increase productivity. A young grafted ‘maiden’ tree of one to two years old is the best choice for starting to train your restricted form. There are several other key principles involved, the main one being that we can influence the direction of growth and the type of growth that the young trees produce by pruning and training them in a

certain way to balance and control the main growth hormone known as auxin. Auxin is responsible for instigating cell division at the growing points and therefore the elongation of the stems. It is produced in abundance at the start of the growing season. Left to its own devices it works mainly on the leading branch systems promoting upright vegetative (leafy) growth. It is affected by gravity and by laying the stems down at an angle or horizontally the influence of auxin changes. The vigorous vegetative growth from the leading branch systems is reduced and more lateral branches are produced. Pruned in the right way these can be encouraged to produce flowering and fruiting spurs along the length of the branches creating a decorative but productive small tree.

By Caroline Wright

Caroline has been a lecturer in horticulture for 20 years and is now running a nursery and 'garden craft' courses in the Haute-Vienne at Le jardin creatif Lejardincreatif.net

Espaliers are highly decorative and can be trained to produce 3 or more layers or ‘tiers’. They are usually grown on a system of horizontal wires supported by posts. The lowest wire should be 60cm above the ground, the second 60cm above that, and further horizontal wires are added at 60cm intervals depending on how many tiers you desire. Apple and pear varieties that produce their fruits on short spurs are most suitable for this type of training, they also benefit from a post and wire system because they need good air flow around the branches and developing fruit and they also need a period of ‘chilling’ in the winter to promote flower bud formation, so they are best grown away from the protection of a wall etc. The best time of year to plant young trees is in the autumn or late winter. Plant your

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garden

Pineapple Sage

Cut to tip to a healthy bud just above the wire

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Cut to tip 3 healthy tobranches a healthy bud just ready for above the training wire

garden

Cut to tip Lower to a healthy branches have bud just been laid above the down wire young tree so that the main stem is a couple of cm away from the wires. Look for a healthy bud just above the position of the lowest wire and cut the top off the main shoot just above that bud. This will promote strong growth from the buds at the top of the stem. During the first growing season you should let three lateral branches grow – usually this will be from the top 3 buds. At the end of the first gently pull down the two lower branches and tie them to canes attached to the wire. Then train the upper stem vertically, cut the top off to a healthy bud around the position of the second wire. Each year you will start to develop another tier until you have reached the height that you want. At the same time you will find that the branches on the tiers that you have already started to develop will begin to grow many shoots from the buds along the length of the horizontal branch. The branch will also continue to grow in length. To promote this, in late winter you should cut back the tip of the main branches on each tier by 10-20cm to a healthy bud. This will actually promote the buds to burst all the way along and also extension growth at the tip. By early summer you should have quite a few upright/vertical young stems arising from the horizontal tier. During July these need to be cut back to two buds (usually around 5-10cm) - by doing this you will start to encourage flower/fruit buds at the base of them, which will start producing the following year. Over time these will develop into fruiting spurs that will produce several

fruits per year on each one. They may also produce some vigorous vegetative (non-flowering) growth that needs cutting back to one or two buds each summer and again in February. Cordons These are the simplest form to produce. The young tree is planted at an angle and the main stem is trained at 45 degrees for an ‘oblique cordon’ - this slows down the auxin and promotes lateral branches to develop along the length of the stem. These are summer and winter pruned to create fruiting spurs along the entire length. You can also have fun with double and multiple cordons. Fan training is more suitable for the stone fruits such as apricots, peaches and nectarines. It is slightly more complex than the espalier or cordon and is often carried out on wires attached to a wall which also offers some protection and additional reflected heat which these fruits benefit from. You can see many examples of restricted forms of fruit trees at Le Jardin Créatif and we are happy to explain the methods we have used to our nursery customers on Saturdays. In late winter we run a range of orchard pruning and training courses and workshops. We have a range of maiden apple trees for sale – all English heritage varieties, grafted by ourselves from our own collection of heritage varieties. Check out our website for news of our courses and events: https://lejardincreatif.net/

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garden

A View for All Seasons MANY OF THE VEGETABLES AND FLOWERS ARE COMING TO AN END BUT IT'S ALSO TIME TO START PREPARING FOR EARLY FROSTS!

ow is also the time to plan and look forward to 2022, with the excitement, interest and challenges that another year in the garden will bring. A chance to plan for a garden with a view for all seasons one which will give some colour and interest all year and importantly support the pollinating insects that visit our gardens throughout the year, and which helps us to be active in our gardens throughout the year. To achieve these aims takes a little planning and managing. Firstly, in considering a view for all seasons, many people think of adding evergreen trees and shrubs, and yes, these certainly provide a green backdrop that evolves over the seasons. But large shrubs, climbers and mature trees will provide pollen and nectar for adult pollinators – bees, wasps, hoverflies, butterflies are extremely mobile and can make use of the flowers high up in the tree canopy. They can also offer nesting sites for a variety of birds and insects.

collection will flower at slightly different times, giving nectar at different times of the year. Personally, I love to see butterflies feeding on buddleia bushes at almost any time of the summer. But there are also winter flowering shrubs and climbers that offer nectar for the insects that venture out on sunny winter days. Most of these shrubs have the bonus for us gardeners of their perfume, frequently very intense to attract insects. These can include ones such as mahonia, viburnum, winter jasmine, daphne odorata and another, which is one of my favourites, sarcococca confusa, that smells of chocolate! And don’t forget the humble ivy; if allowed to grow and flower it is a veritable feast for winter insects.

There is an array of perennials, grasses and bulbs that will change dynamically over the year, keeping the garden picture moving. This does not mean just seeking out plants with a long flowering season, consider also the seed heads of many garden flowers. I have several dierama of Shrubs as stand-alone plants, in groups or differing colours; these provide me with as hedges, carry a range of benefits for our evergreen tall slender arching leaves that gardens, no matter how small or large the move with the wind, in the summer they plot is. Additionally, they don’t need offer panicles of flowers. One in particular replanting every has spectacular panicles of year! Most hedging deep purple flowers that plants, even the Grasses change through the last for several weeks, and humble privet, will seasons and offer interest at the end of the summer flower if permitted, over a long season, I have the flowers are replaced by and provide brown capsules of seeds only recently come under plentiful nectar and that hang low from the the spell of grasses pollen for wiry flower stems. pollinating insects. Grasses change through the seasons and Some also provide winter colour and food offer interest over a long season, I have for birds from hips and berries. To get the only recently come under the spell of flowers which will provide the pollen and grasses. I only started growing them three later give the hips and berries you do need years ago, but now would not be without to know something about the plants in them. Evergreen grasses such as festuca your hedge. For example, forsythia and play a very useful role plugging spaces and escallonia are best pruned after flowering filling gaps, but for me it’s the deciduous to promote new growth for flowers the grasses, such as miscanthus and molinia, following year. On the other hand, others that keep changing throughout the year such as holly and hawthorn are unlikely to with fresh green leaves as they start to flower if well-trimmed annually, as they grow in the spring, tall waving stems and flower on older wood. billowing flower heads which can last right Some shrubs offer glorious colour arrays through the winter. in spring or summer to attract insects as Then there are the perennials, the hardy they come out of hibernation or are newly plants that serve us well year after year, if hatched - azaleas, magnolias, camelias, we care for them. Within this group I buddleias and many more. Even this small

34 etcetera

Sarcococca confusa

By Ronnie Ogier

Ronnie is a passionate gardener and now loves sharing her years of experience of success and failures in her own garden and sharing it with you. Also a keen runner, having been bitten by the ‘Couch to 5K’ bug!

think it is possible to find one species of plant that can offer flowers for every season of the year. Winter-flowering plants are perfect for adding a splash of colour to the garden in the coldest, darkest months. There’s plenty of winter flowering plants to grow; climbers such as winter clematis; hellebore; winter-flowering heathers are particularly useful for bringing colour to winter gardens, and these will gradually spread, inhibiting weeds as they go; and finally bedding plants like pansies and winter aconites. There’s something to flower for every spot in every garden. Most winter-flowering plants also benefit pollinators, such as winter bees. Nearly all make good cut flowers. Once we get into April the season really starts. The garden really surges into growth during April, with an abundance of fresh foliage and spring flowers – aubretia, primula, pulmonaria and aquilegia to name but a few. If you want to brighten your beds and borders at this time of year there’s no shortage of options to consider. The main factor when choosing your plants is to check that they’re well suited to the conditions in your garden. The summer and autumn almost take care of themselves, with abundant supplies of plants offering a wide range of sizes and colours.

garden

Hellebore

Winter flowering heather

And finally, there are bulbs and corms. These hardy little workers offer colour, perfume and nectar throughout the year starting with the incredible variety of snowdrops. Keep a look out for the Open Gardens/Jardins Ouverts opening, usually in February in the cold and wet of a garden in Arnac la Poste where the owner displays 200 different varieties of snowdrop including Grumpy, Lady Beatrice Stanley and Crinkle Crankle. A display to inspire everyone. We are all very familiar with the more well-known spring bulbs – daffodils, crocus, hyacinth – but bulbs go on throughout the year going through iris, crocosmia, galtonia, gladiolus and agapanthus. Going into the autumn one of my favourites is the Guernsey Lily, the nerine. This gives several tall stems topped with a crown of pink flowers, but its real bonus is that it flowers from October, when most other plants are beginning to die back.

Miscanthus Winter jasmine

Well, I think I have given you plenty to consider, so take stock of this year’s garden to see how you can add colour and insect food to your garden all year. You may not get it all done in one year but perhaps aim to find one new plant for each season, at least as a starter! As days get shorter it is a good time of year to reflect on what you have done this year – what has worked and what could be better - and then plan for next year. It’s also a good time to be looking at seed and summer bulb catalogues to order for 2022. Don’t forget all the photos you’ve taken, look back at them and enjoy your summer in the garden. And, while you can still ‘work’ in the garden, put compost from containers onto borders as a mulch and shred the leaves you have collected for your compost heap. Happy Gardening!

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free time

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Witch 2

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history

Witchcraft in France

By Mik

e Geo r ge

Mike George is our regular contributor on wildlife and the countryside in France. He is a geologist and naturalist, living in the Jurassic area of the Charente

AS IN MOST COUNTRIES, RURAL WORKERS AND LOWER-CLASS TOWNSFOLK HAD FOR CENTURIES RELIED ON ‘WISE WOMEN’ TO MAKE LIFE A LITTLE EASIER

any of these did a really good service by their knowledge of “simples” or botanical sources of healing drugs. Others made a bit of money by using their “skills” to locate lost objects or people, probably by means of listening to gossip and putting two-and-two together, at least to find missing people. Yet others ran a sort of Citizens’ Advice service, but with a more basic and earthy brief than would be the case in today’s government offices! However, when in the late Middle Ages the world began to get a bit smaller, and commerce raised its ugly head, business men and professional charlatans began to view such procedures as competition. What was the easiest way to stifle this competition? Have it declared illegal, or, better, accursed and contrary to religion! It could also be politically useful, too. Most English and all French people know Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc), who was tried and convicted of, among other things, witchcraft. Incidentally, it was not the English who put her on trial but the Burgundian French, who themselves had no desire for the return of the Old French Monarchy (although certainly the English interests were in sympathy with the trial). In England, the witchcraft approach began to take hold. Parliament became interested, and there was a Witchcraft Act. Then the King began to take an interest. Up until then, most English monarchs were concerned with politics and foreign foes and staying alive, but James 1st found himself with sufficient leisure and interest to have a go at more homely matters, like tobacco-smoking and witchcraft. Despite much that has been written to the contrary, English witches were rarely ‘Burned at the Stake’. That was the punishment for treason or for being a Catholic. Witches were usually hanged – much quicker and less costly. In France, however, burning was considered far more suitable, and was widely used. Sadly, the political and geographic state of France meant that control of these matters was far from central. Also, no Witchcraft Act or its equivalent was ever passed, so there was no proper prescription for what constituted

witchcraft or how it should be punished. People and courts made it up very much as they went along, and court records were either not kept or deliberately destroyed ‘for the good of the populace’. All we have to go on are records of executions and registrations of death.

windowless room and therefore had to be lit at all times by flaming torches.

Chambre Ardente (the Court of Fire) because it was held in a large and

Louis lived until 1715, despite his paranoia.

At first all went well. Suspicion fell on Marie-Madeleine-Marguerite d'Aubray, Marquise de Brinvilliers, and her contact, one Gaudin de Sainte-Croix, who had learned the secrets and methods of poison administration in prison from one Egidio So it rumbled on for a few hundred years Exili, an Italian with a very doubtful past. until a really big case hit the French These two were tried and executed by headlines. Louis 14th, the ‘Sun King’, was burning, but the problem was not solved. a self-absorbed monarch with three major Strange deaths continued. The situation obsessions: his personal image, his became so critical that King Louis’ foodprowess in bed and his paranoia about his taster himself hired a taster to taste first own safety. The court was a hotbed (in what he, as taster, was supposed to taste. every sense) of intrigue and scheming for It is said that the reason Vichyssoise Soup position and preferment, and in such an is today served cold is that, by the time all environment, extreme measures could be the tasting had been done, cold was the – and were – taken. only way that the King Louis had been on knew the soup! No Witchcraft Act or its the throne since equivalent was ever passed, so Eventually another 1643. By the mid1670s, the court there was no proper prescription potential source of poisoning knowledge was was described as for what constituted witchcraft identified, one Catherine ‘The most libertine or how it should be punished Monvoisin, known as ‘La Court in Europe’ Voisin’, a member of the and Louis was quite Parisian underworld who sold all sorts of happy with that. Then strange strange materials to anyone who wanted things began to happen. them. Under interrogation she started to Poisoning had always been looked upon as name her contacts, and by the time she an Italian pastime (see Lucrezia Borgia), was burned to death a few months later, but now members of the Court of France Police Chief La Reynie knew just how began suffering from strange maladies, of widespread was the problem. However, which they subsequently died. What this threw up a worse problem for Louis. autopsies there were merely reported that, One of the people that Madame La Voisin ‘The internal organs seemed blackened named was Françoise Athénaïs de and corroded’. Of course, someone was Rochechouart de Mortemart, Marquise of solving a few problems with a dose or two Montespan, Louis’ favourite mistress! So of, probably, arsenic, but such a thing was fond was he of her that he had not understood in those days and besides, acknowledged her sons as his own, and one couldn’t admit that the Court of the heaped position and status upon them. Sun King harboured murderers! But a bit Faced with the possibility of his favourite’s of witchcraft… crimes, Louis temporised, wavered, and Louis summoned Gabriel Nicolas de la finally declared that it was all a mistake. Reynie, the Paris Chief of Police, who had The Chambre Ardente was wound up in made a name for himself by ‘cleaning up’ 1682, and all its records destroyed. Poor Paris. Now he had an even tougher brief: old Chief La Reynie was probably glad to root out the problems that were woven go back to old-fashioned, comprehensible through the French court like threads in crime. It is estimated that, in the course of a tapestry. the investigation, 442 people were charged with crimes, of which 23 were With Louis’s agreement, a special banished and 34 executed. commission was set up. It was called La

etcetera 39

angling

RING THE CHANGES FOR PREDATORS WELL, THAT’S SUMMER OVER. FOR THOSE OF YOU WITH SHORT MEMORIES, SUMMER WAS THREE DAYS IN EARLY AUGUST! By Clive Kenyon

o, what do I talk about this year given that normally October heralds cooler weather and prompts a pre-winter feeding frenzy for some species? I can’t see that happening this year.

colours, thicknesses, profiles and sizes cheaply at vide greniers or brocantes as well as the charity shops. Once the handle is cut off a couple of drilled holes allows the swivel and hooks to be fitted using split rings, all available online. These homemade spoon lures are brilliant for pike fishing. There is no point showing the fish the same old lures they have so far avoided all year.

Many of us regard the onset of winter with predator fishing. Pike anglers would look to October as the start of their season when it comes to dead baiting and live baiting for pike. French anglers however are keen to get started lure fishing for Another tactic that isn’t used by many predators as soon as the season opens at local predator anglers is drift fishing dead the end of April. If you have never been on baits. French pêcheurs tend to put up a a river in this region early in a morning predator rod as an afterthought when you will not be aware of just how many fishing for roach or other silvers. In most lure fishers there are in these parts. They cases the dead bait or live bait is left seem to favour early mornings and will be anchored to the bottom to fish for itself a off the water by 10 o’clock. Most of them few metres away from the pêcheur who is are very mobile, usually concentrating on his covering a long other rod. Fishing a dead My most successful lure to bait under a float so that the stretch of bank using light lure rods armed date is an old Voblex that I bait is suspended just above with jig-heads. These the bottom allows the wind found stuck onto an old are latex lures submerged branch at the side to take the float over a much mounted on a long larger area and is more of the River Vienne hook with a lead likely to come to the head. This puts me attention of any pike that off using the same type of lure for perch, might be present. Again, this method is pike and zander as by this time of year any unlikely to have been used much and may fish remaining that haven’t already been well entice the wise old brochet into cooked and eaten will have seen every taking your bait. latex lure in the Decathlon catalogue. I Zander seem to be on the increase in the prefer to use old-fashioned spinners such local rivers. Small zander can be seen in as Ondex and good quality plugs made by many parts of the middle Charente and Rapala. The fish won’t have seen many, if they are regularly caught in the Vienne. any, of these lures and I have had good Zander have some of the characteristics of success with them. My most successful perch in that they will harry shoals of lure to date is an old Voblex that I found small fish and strike into the shoal to stuck onto an old submerged branch at wound and disable as many fish as the side of the River Vienne. I have no possible before mopping up the casualties. idea how long that spinner had been in the The larger ones however tend to be more river, but the treble hook needed replacing like pike and are found lurking near to the as they were almost rusted through. The bottom waiting to pounce on any small rest of the lure, the brass blade and rubber fish that comes their way. As the water head were sound. Once the hooks had temperature cools they are less likely to be been changed the old lure has accounted actively chasing prey and more likely to for numerous catfish up to around 25lb as lay in ambush. A couple of years ago I well as the perch and pike that it had been fished for zander using normal barbel designed for. Another favourite is a lure of quiver tip gear, but with a wire trace, mine made from an old desert spoon. You can pick up spoons of different weights, small treble hook and small fish such as a

40 etcetera

sardine as bait. Casting to the deeper parts of the river or under bridges brought some results especially when using a cage feeder filled with a mixture of mashed sardines and bread crumbs. Any twitch or knock on the quiver tip should be struck immediately. If you can obtain a quantity of lobworms then you could try for a large perch using a roving approach. Being ambush specialists, perch can be found near to cover such as weed beds, pilings and under trees. They also lurk at the edge of faster currents where the water flows slower and deeper. Where fishing is allowed, lock gates and the high walls of locks, bridge pilings and weirs may also hold large perch, but check the regulations before fishing there. Last Gasp Silure Continuing the predator theme I have found October to be the most likely month for some zoo creature to make a monkey of me and my carp or barbel tackle. The sheer power of a large silure, or wels catfish is something to behold when you only have a 6lb hook link and 1.5lb test curve rod. I still wince at the thought of my thumb burning as I tried to stop one whilst using an old centrepin reel. In all cases the hook bait that attracted the unwanted silures were cubes of luncheon meat or prawn tails. Not the conventional 3lb carp or bream dead baits normally associated with these monster predators. In August I failed in my quest for a large silure due to weather, work and other commitments, managing just one fruitless trip afloat using a large dead bait on one rod and a massive squid lure that would be more at home on a charter boat out of Brixham on the other. Half of September is written off due to holidays and work so from the last week of September to the end of October I shall be all out to beat my personal best catfish weight and hopefully get my own back on one of the tackle robbing pests that have plagued my previous October fishing sessions.

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Support www.ciwf.fr etcetera 41

nature farm life

October ON THE SMALLHOLDING

Tamsin Cooper is a smallholder and writer with a keen interest in animal behaviour and welfare By Tam s

in Coop er

www.goatwriter.com

THIS IS A GOOD MONTH TO GET READY FOR WINTER, ENSURING ANIMALS HAVE THE FOOD AND SHELTER THEY WILL NEED.

ll farm animals need protection from the elements, especially from wind and damp. Now is a good time to check for leaking roofs and draughts. Bedding must stay dry during winter months, as moisture encourages respiratory disease and hoof disorders.

tolerate closeness far better than goats and do not mind sheltering in close proximity. Goats and some chickens need their personal space, and dominant members may drive weaker animals out. For goats, partitions can be added to allow hiding space, and for chickens, extra perches. It is also good to check fences regularly, to make sure there are no weaknesses that might give way when animals push against them.

Chickens are generally cold-hardy, but they need a dry sheltered spot to maintain their body heat and avoid frostbite. An airy hut or barn with a perch serves them well. The roof needs to be Winter is always the rainproof to avoid toughest time for keeping Sheep tolerate closeness humidity building up animals fed and healthy. far better than goats and inside. Humid air You might want to think would condense on about selling any excess do not mind sheltering in chicken combs which animals now, so that you close proximity could freeze when have enough shelter and temperatures drop, supplies to keep the especially single combs. Vented space remaining herds in optimum health. above the chickens’ heads allows air to Water butts can help you to collect circulate without causing draughts. drinking water for animals, and these might need cleaning out after the summer Goats also need dry but well-ventilated so that stored water stays clean. shelters. Goat hooves are adapted to dry, rocky terrain, so they suffer from If you want to breed sheep or goats, now is infections if they are unable to let their feet a good time to introduce the male, so that dry out daily. Bedding needs to stay dry offspring are born in spring (five months whatever the weather. Although sheep are gestation). Next month will be a good time much hardier to damp, they appreciate an to breed pigs, as they gestate for just under open shelter where they can huddle four months. If you have just a few together in the worst weather. Sheep animals and you have got used to

42 etcetera

recognizing signs of oestrus, you may want to take your females to visit the males while they are on heat. I found this easy to do with goats, as they are demonstrative on heat and unconcerned by a temporary separation from the herd, as long as they are accompanied by their keeper. Sheep are more reluctant to leave the herd, so you may want to borrow a ram to service them, which is also more convenient for a larger herd of goats. Hens may also consider brooding, but it is best to dissuade them at this time, as young chicks are vulnerable to cold and damp. I dissuade my hens by keeping them in an empty concrete rabbit hutch (clapier) or run for 2–3 days. As it has nowhere to nest, the hormones that prompt broodiness switch off after a few days. Hens that have feather damage usually moult at this time in preparation for colder months. Not all hens moult every year and some moult more than others. Generally, it is better not to give them jumpers, as these can damage new feather growth. Unfortunately, some hens moult late and get caught quite naked by cold weather. They generally get by if they have access to shelter, straw-lined nests, and can huddle up with the flock.

nature A Mangrove Pit-Viper, one of the world's deadliest snakes, deciding whether to attack

They’re Coming to Get You… WE HAVE LOOKED AT POISONOUS PLANTS A NUMBER OF TIMES IN OUR ARTICLES. LET’S LOOK AGAIN AT SOME OF THE POISONOUS ANIMALS THAT ARE OUT THERE … WAITING …!

n fact, there aren’t really that many of them, especially in this lovely part of France. Even worldwide, the list is fairly brief. First, though, we must decide exactly what we mean by “poisonous”. Venomous or Poisonous? Some animals use their toxic products to enable them to catch prey more effectively. In these cases, the toxins must be introduced into the prey’s body, so a form of injection is required. This can be active injection, by means of a hollow or grooved tooth that delivers the toxin into the prey’s body directly, or passive perfusion, in which the toxin mixes with the predator’s saliva and enters a wound produced by the otherwise quite normal teeth of the predator. Animals that do this are venomous. Others use their poison defensively, either secreting it onto their

bodies or storing it in certain of their body-tissues, so that if they are threatened by a potential predator, the unpleasant or harmful effect of the toxin will deter the predator and perhaps save the prey animal’s life. Such animals are poisonous. The extreme examples of this are the Poison Dart (or ‘Arrow’) frogs of South America, whose toxin, exuded onto the skin of the frog in time of danger, can kill a human, though this is not the frog’s intention. Indeed, killing the attacker is counter-productive; a poisonous animal wants the attacker to live, so it learns not to attack again, and may even pass this knowledge on to its fellows. This is complicated by the fact that venomous creatures sometimes reserve their envenomating skills for self-defence and will, if provoked, attack if they

By Mik

e Geo r ge

Mike George is our regular contributor on wildlife and the countryside in France. He is a geologist and naturalist, living in the Jurassic area of the Charente

perceive a threat. Honey-bees, wasps etc. come into this category. Sometimes the envenomating system is dual-purpose. The most spectacular examples of this are the Spitting Cobras, which have hollow fangs that can envenomate normally, but also are so arranged that they can release a jet of venom into the eyes of a threatening predator from up to 2 metres distant, an action which produces intense pain and rapid blindness in the attacked animal, effectively putting it out of the fight. However, all venomous snakes will reserve

etcetera 43

The Red Strawberry Poison Dart Frog from Panama. The colour warns that it secretes a poison deadly to animals - including Man The Slow Loris (above), a charming but vulnerable primate from the Phillipines. Using glands in its elbows, it coats its fur in a mild toxin (as seen here). Note - not to scale! Corals, which also fall into this category, are venomous but the venom is too weak and the dose delivered is too small to be a threat to humans. Molluscs: Cone Shells, Octopuses (especially the Blue-ringed) NOW THE POISONOUS ONES: Mammals: Slow Loris Birds: Two species in Borneo, the Pitohui and the Blue-capped Ifrit, infuse toxins into their plumage and flesh.

This Puffer-fish tries to protect itself by inflating its body and erecting its spines. It cannot inject poison, but is poisonous if anything succeeds in eating it

the right to defend themselves when provoked, and that is where the trouble arises. Believe me, no snake is going to regard a human as its potential prey (except, perhaps, for a very large Anaconda, which is not venomous) and will have no wish to waste its precious venom (it takes the average snake several months fully to refill its venom-gland if it is completely emptied). Most snakes will do their utmost to avoid conflict with such a large animal, and will only attack if they see no alternative, or if they are actually attacked (such as by being threatened or trodden on). Remove the threat, often by retreating slightly or just standing motionless, and the snake will make itself scarce. Which animals are venomous and which are poisonous? There is quite a list, and it grows as naturalists look ever more closely at the

44 etcetera

natural world. Let us start with the venomous ones: Mammals: Duck-billed Platypus, Mole, Water Shrew Birds: None have so far been identified Reptiles: Snakes: Back-fanged Colubrids, Frontfanged Elapids, Vipers Lizards: Gila Monster, Beaded Lizard, Komodo Dragon (all back-fanged) Amphibians: None so far identified Fish: Weever Fish, Lion Fish, Scorpion Fish, Stingrays, Catfish Arachnids: Spiders, Scorpions, Insects: Ants, Bees, Wasps, Hornets Echinoderms: Sea Urchins, Starfish Coelenterates: Jellyfish can be dangerous to humans. Sea Anemones and

Reptiles: Lizards: Many lizards exude mild toxins, even our familiar Wall Lizards. Amphibians: Salamanders, Frogs, Toads, Newts exude toxins onto the surface of their bodies, usually from the parietal glands behind the eyes. Fish: The Puffer-fish, or Fugu, is deadly poisonous. Probably many others are mildly toxic. Invertebrates: Many insects (for example, Cinnabar moths) carry toxins, but are no danger to humans as long as they don’t try to eat them! Some moth caterpillars have hairs that can cause skin irritation or aggravate asthma quite seriously. Venomous mammals? It comes as a surprise, but a few mammals, and even one primate, produce venom. The male Duck-billed Platypus has spurs on its hind legs that it employs during the breeding season to fight other males. The spurs can inject a toxin which causes considerable pain, but there are no reliable reports of death among humans. Platypuses are so rare and shy that few people ever see one, let alone get into a situation where they may be spiked.

nature Snakes: The Thing Everybody The Slow Loris is a primate, about the size Worries about of a small cat, all thick fur and great big eyes. It secretes a cocktail of chemicals Where we live, there really is no reason to from glands in its arms, which it rubs over be afraid of snakes. In this area we have its own fur to give itself a mildly only one native venomous snake, the Asp poisonous coating. The problem arises Viper. This is a small, shy snake, which when a Loris grooms its fur with its will flee rather than attack, and only tongue. The brachial-gland fluid mixes responds to aggression (like being stepped with the Loris’s mildly toxic saliva and on!). There are four other venomous produces a far more toxic fluid which can snakes found in France: the Adder in the then be injected by biting. The result is a North (Brittany, Normandie etc), the bite with longMontpellier Snake and lasting pain and Seoane’s Viper in the They sit, quietly concealed in skin necrosis, but Pyrenees and Orsini’s the only reported the sand, and if you happen to Viper in the extreme human death step on one, you will be spiked south-east. None of resulting from a them is massively and envenomated Loris bite seems to venomous – very few have been the result deaths have been of allergic reaction, reported as a result of their bite – and not toxicity. they are not aggressive. Still, it is enough to put the unbearably All other native snake-like creatures in cute Slow Loris into the “venomous France are either constrictor snakes or animal” category! legless lizards, and while a bite from any Mole venom is only effective on of them would be unpleasant and might earthworms, to paralyse them. It has no be infected by bacteria, it will not be effect on humans so far as is known. envenomated. They are not that big, Considering the way moles are either; the largest is the Aesculapian persecuted, some might feel they deserve Snake, which can reach two metres a bit of extra weaponry! in length. The Water Vole has only recently been shown to have toxic saliva. It is possible other voles have also, but research here is on-going. The Water Vole (or Water Rat as it is often mistakenly called) has been shown to be capable of immobilising toads and small fish by mixing a nerve toxin into its saliva to render its bite toxic, and has even been known to keep the prey in its paralysed state for later consumption. No human deaths have been reported! Incidentally, this gives an interesting reverse spin to “The Wind in the Willows”. Why were the Mole and the Water Rat so keen to be friends with Mr Toad?

The thing to do if you are worried is to buy a good book which includes pictures of the snakes (Larousse Nature en Poche – Animaux sauvages, ISBN 2-03-582258-0 is very good, and Dorling Kindersley publish a similar volume but in English) and make sure of the appearance of each snake. Should you be bitten by a snake, get yourself to the nearest hospital emergency clinic. Try to have a reliable identification of the species. I do not advocate humans killing any wild animal except in an extreme case, but this might be just such a case, so catch the snake if you can do so

without danger, or kill it as humanely as you can, and take it with you to the clinic. Incidentally, I recommend that if you are bitten by any wild creature you go without delay to an emergency clinic for a checkup and treatment. Even if a human bites you, you should do the same. One never knows what bacteria are present! These soothing words, however, do not apply outside Europe. There are some extremely venomous and aggressive snakes out there, and you should seek advice, if you travel abroad (remember those times?!), on what precautions to take and which animals to avoid. If anything bites you, try to get hold of it (dead or alive) and go straight to hospital. Make sure you know where your nearest one is. Don’t forget to take the body of your aggressor, so that the correct antivenin can be used. Venomous Fish Don’t worry; fish are not going to rush out and give you a fatal bite. It is far more subtle than that. A few fish are able to deliver a fairly potent form of venom via the spines on their fins or their gill-covers, or in the case of the ray, via a special spine at the base of the tail. They sit, quietly concealed in the sand, and if you happen to step on one, you will be spiked and envenomated. This happens even around the coasts of France and Britain. The wound is painful, but rarely fatal. There are occasions when fish can be aggressive. The late Australian naturalist Steve Irwin was passing time during the shooting of a TV documentary with a little freelance work. He saw a beautiful Stingray and began filming it. Unfortunately, it seems his approach was similar to that of one of the few predators of Sting-rays, the Tiger Shark. The ray thrust upwards with its sting to ward him off, and actually

This Asp Viper Vipera aspis looks very like the Adder Vipera berus, but the tiptilted snout gives it away. Both are mildly venomous.

etcetera 45

nature Cobra being ‘milked’ of its venom for medical research

stabbed him to the heart. He died, but the venom made no difference in that case. What Use Is Venom? For the animal, it is extremely useful. It enables it to tackle prey much larger than itself, and then just wait until the prey is no longer able to resist. No big struggle, no endless tracking, just a nice warm meal – and to some extent pre-digested! In vertebrates at least, venom is in fact modified saliva, and some of its components are already preparing the creature to be eaten, as well as killing it. If you are going to study Natural History, you need a strong stomach at times! Venom also gives the creature an edge in the struggle for life. Few animals will square up to a venom-dealing opponent, which is why so many of them make themselves very obvious by colours, markings, or even (in the case of the super-aggressive Rattlesnake) by shaking a warning rattle. Thus, they hope to avoid conflict. Should a fight follow, the venomous competitor has a good chance of winning. That is why in aggressive biters the bite is immediately very painful. However, the venom is never injected wholesale. Enough only is given to win the fight. No point in emptying your stock of venom; as I have said before, it can take weeks to replenish. But why do humans try to collect (at great personal risk) and study venom? The chief reason is so that anti-venoms can be prepared. The problem is that every venom is different. The venom of one species of snake can be so different from that of another that the anti-venom for one will be quite ineffective against the other. Changing a snake’s diet can alter its venom. In many cases it has been found that snakes of some species, if they live in

46 etcetera

Some of the components of venom are different environments and hunt different prey, can have venoms sufficiently designed to seek out and block certain different in make-up as to be untreatable receptors in the body. This is how with anti-venom made from the same neurotoxins work. Studies of some of species living elsewhere. You need an antithese have led to the development of probe venom made from a local specimen of that chemicals to identify such receptors in snake. There are some “universal” antiliving systems, which enables researchers venoms, but in many to identify how cases these do not they work. One work. Each venom is a major success is Folk-tales attributing healing cocktail of components α-bungarotoxin, tailored to the properties to venoms have been isolated from requirements of the snake venom told for centuries. snake. What and widely used influences the maketo identify up of the venom, and nicotinic how much, if any, influence the individual acetylcholine receptors, which are vital in snake has on its own venom, are matters the exchange of information between of conjecture. muscles and nerves, and whose malfunction can contribute to the effects Are There Any Other Medical of Parkinson’s Disease, schizophrenia and Benefits from Venom? Alzheimer's Disease. This is a vexed question, which is currently the subject of several studies. Some of the chemicals are capable of Folk-tales attributing healing properties to crossing the blood/brain barrier, that very venoms have been told for centuries. discerning filter that protects the brain Many elderly folks swore that their from many toxins. Where medicines or rheumatism was considerably eased after markers have to be introduced into the they had been extensively stung by bees. brain, for example to locate or treat brainThis may have been psychosomatic; if tumours, such chemicals could provide a your body is a-fire from a swarm of beemeans of crossing that barrier. stings, your rheumatism would probably In short, there is much research in lose its importance, but whether this progress in many parts of the world. For would last is debatable. those of you that would like to take this For many years, people have been selling further, there is a surprisingly readable various preparations to which a few drops article on the subject at of snake-venom have been added. This https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26009 culminated in the boom in “Snake-oil” in 701/ the late 19th century in America, which I hope this brief run-down of the current has become somewhat legendary in state of venom research has not been too Western studies. Of course, the oil had no traumatic. It is the season of Halloween, medicinal value at all, as you were but as Nick Ross used to say at the end of supposed to swallow it or rub it on the Crimewatch - “Please don’t skin, in neither of which situations is have nightmares”. venom effective.

astronomy

The

Night Sky WITH THIS MONTH’S SHINING OCTOBER NIGHT SKY WHEN WE CAN WELCOME BACK LONGER AND COOLER EVENINGS FOR OBSERVING

e can look forward to another beautiful Meteor shower - The Orionids - which will of course seem to emanate from the slowly returning constellation of Orion: one of my favourites. We can follow the vast clouds of the Milky Way as they traverse the skies overhead, passing through (looking from east to west) the constellations of: Auriga, Perseus, Cassiopeia and Cygnus. As you face south, and looking just below the clouds and dusty lanes of the Milky Way, the main constellations and features to observe will be: ▪ Orion will be rising in the east, later in the night and towards the end of the month ▪ Taurus (The Bull): towards the east with its very prominent orange star Aldebaran, also known as the 'Eye of the Bull'. ▪ The Pleiades open star cluster is a little higher and west of Taurus and is a stunning sight through binoculars ▪ The Andromeda Galaxy, M31 will be visible on a clear night to the naked eye as a bright smudge of light (also beautiful through binoculars) ▪ Pegasus will be well placed to the south where you can find the 'Great Square of Pegasus' The Moon and Planets The Full Moon will be on the 20th this month and the New Moon is on the 6th. Some of the best nights to observe detailed features on the Moon will be during its many different crescent phases. If you have binoculars then it is possible to search along the 'Terminator' where the lit and shaded areas of the Moon meet. Some of the best dates for seeing details on the surface of the Moon will be from the 1st to the 4th, before New Moon and from the 9th to the 16th. These dates will show the Moon in various crescent phases when light contrasts make for much better views. A

thin crescent Moon can be seen very close to the stars Algieba and Regulus (in Leo) in the eastern morning twilight of the 3rd. The planet Venus will be close to Antares for a few days low in the south west after sunset with a waxing crescent Moon passing just above them. On the evening of the 14th the Moon, Jupiter and Saturn will form a triangle towards the south east. On the 15th the Moon will be even closer to Jupiter. The two bright colourful stars of Gemini - Castor and Pollux - will form a line with a waning gibbous Moon on the evening of the 27th. Look out for them just north of east after midnight. It may be possible to spot the planet Mercury during the second part of the month. It will be very low, rising in the east just ahead of the Sun. Be sure not to observe for too long as the planet is lost in the Sun's glare.

By Clair Wardla e w

Claire Wardlaw, originally from Edinburgh, lives in the Charente with her husband. Since their move nearly 6 years ago, Claire has become passionate about astronomy

Join our Facebook group ‘Astronomy & Astrophotography France’ Full Moon on the 20th will be somewhat in the way. If you are planning an evening of Meteor spotting a date when the Moon is less bright would be better. Allow your eyes to become adjusted to the dark. Lie back on a 'meteor lounger' or on the ground where you have a wide open view of the sky. The Meteors' radiant will be in the constellation of Orion. There is a fainter shower - 'The Southern Taurids' - which may have its peak on the 10th when the Moon is in a crescent phase. This faint shower has produced bright fireballs in past years. This shower is active from September through to November and has only around 5 meteors per hour. Object of the Month; Globular Clusters

There are many different things to be seen in our beautiful dark skies here in Shining a light on Astronomy France. Globular Clusters can be Jargon: The Zenith stunning targets to view with the aid of The Zenith, which you will often see binoculars or telescopes. These objects, marked with an X on a sky chart, is of which there are around 150 in our own simply the point of the sky which is Milky Way, are formed by very old stars directly above an (over 10 billion observer. This is years old) bound These objects, of which therefore the point of the tightly together. there are around 150 in sky which has an altitude The first Globular our own Milky Way, are of 90 degrees. Cluster to be discovered was formed by very old stars Meteor showers M22. It was (over 10 billion years old) in October observed by the bound tightly together amateur The Orionids annual astronomer J meteor shower returns Abraham Ihle in 1665. M13, which is also this month, from the 5th to the 30th. The known as 'The Hercules' or 'Great peak (when meteor activity is likely to be Globular' (see next page for images) is at its highest) will be on the 21st this found in the Constellation of Hercules. I year. These meteors are associated with have viewed and imaged this spectacular Halley's Comet (Comet 1P/ Halley). object many times as it is such an During the Orionids the Earth will be amazing sight. passing near the dust trail left by the orbiting Halley's Comet. Each tiny Observing/ Imaging Challenge particle which hits our atmosphere for October results in a Meteor which we can observe with the naked eye. These Meteors will As mentioned earlier, the Orion Meteor be fast and often leave persistent trains shower can have bright meteors with which can be wonderful imaging persistent trains. Some objects however, opportunities. We may be able to observe are best viewed with optical aids. These around 25 per hour although the bright will be easy to spot or image on a night

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astronomy

The Night Sky

The Globular cluster M13 Like shiny flakes sparkling in a snow globe, over 100,000 stars whirl within the globular cluster M13, one of the brightest star clusters visible from the Northern Hemisphere. Located 25,000 light-years from Earth with an apparent magnitude of 5.8, this glittering metropolis of stars in the constellation Hercules can be spotted with a pair of binoculars. Near the core of this cluster, the density of the stellar population is about a hundred times greater than the density in the neighborhood of our sun. These stars are so crowded that they can, at times, run into each other and even form a new star. The resulting “blue stragglers” appear to be younger than the other stars in their immediate vicinity and are of great scientific interest to astronomers. Image (left): Messier 13 (The Hercules Cluster) Credits: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA); Acknowledgment: C. Bailyn (Yale University), W. Lewin (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), A. Sarajedini (University of Florida), and W. van Altena (Yale University)

Source: www.nasa.gov

48 etcetera

astronomy / home & specialist when the Moon is a little less bright. Why Constellation of the Month: Auriga not try to make a record of meteor Auriga, 'The Charioteer' is well placed for activity one night. Armed with a blank viewing this month. To find the piece of paper and a small red light torch, constellation, start by facing south after simply draw the apparent position and dark. It is sitting amongst the dusty direction of each shooting star you see. cloud lane of the Milky Way east from Make a note too, on your drawing, of the the 'W' of Cassiopeia. The very bright time you observed each meteor. star Capella (magnitude 0.08), also Alternatively, if you have a DSLR known as Alpha Aurigae or 'She Goat', is camera, a wide angle lens and tripod, set the lead star of the constellation and the these up in a dark area of your garden. sixth brightest in the night sky. It is very Focus on Jupiter or a bright star. Then easy to find sitting towards the northern aim the camera at an angle of around 60 part of the formation as your eye travels degrees close to the constellation of from west to east from the constellation Orion. Set your camera to Manual. Set of Cassiopeia. While this month's your ISO to constellation is hard to 1600 or above imagine as the Greek depending on charioteer They are open star how dark your 'Erichthonius', it is a clusters and are located sky is.. Take a simple form whose towards the southern end series of 20 main stars are easy to of the constellation, second images. see. Capella, The more arranged in a haphazard Menkalinan, Al Anz, RT images you take Auriga create the main line across Auriga the more shape. Elnath to the chance you lower left, which is have of capturing a meteor in one of really part of the constellation of Taurus, them. It is easier to do this with an marks the position of the 'left foot 'of the intervalometer which can be setup in charioteer. We now know that the light of advance to take lots of images while you the star Capella is actually a system of sit back and enjoy the view. Look back four stars bound in orbit around one through your images later and see if you another. Just below Capella are three have been lucky enough to catch a others which are known as 'The Kids' (of falling star! the goat!). These stars mark the 'right

elbow' of the charioteer. With a telescope it is possible to observe three beautiful Messier objects; M36, M37 and M38. They are open star clusters and are located towards the southern end of the constellation, arranged in a haphazard line across Auriga. This month in Astronomy and Space History 64 years ago on October the 4th 1957: The Soviet Union launched the world’s first artificial satellite 'Sputnik 1', marking the start of the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union. The satellite weighed 183 pounds and orbited the earth in 98 minutes. As a result of this Congress passed the Space Act in 1958, leading to the creation of N.A.S.A. - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration. 14 years ago on October the 23rd 2007: N.A.S.A. launched the space shuttle Discovery on the STS-120 to the International Space Station. This is the first time in N.A.S.A. history that two women, Commander Peggy Whitson and Commander Pamela Melroy, would be commanding two spacecraft at the same time. The International Space Station continues its orbit around the Earth where astronauts from many nations cooperate to advance our understanding of science and humans in space.

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getting connected whilst the Freeview is no good for the skin. Which I guess,box is another downside reception of UK TV here in France, it could to my features. be used to get the terrestrial French channels. If you have a recording type version, it’ll even do that. An increasing amount of But, new for TVsreception have a from a satellite dish, it’sbuilt useless. satellite tuner already into them. This means that you do not need to use a I went to a campsite recently (no, not on seperate satellite receiver (Sky box, ello dear readers. Yes, I’m still here. holiday, I don’t get those) and the client was Freesat box etc) for UK TV reception. You Like the smell of sprouts before, wondering why he had no satellite signal will know if it has one by a) looking for during and especially after Christmas when hison clever dish was telling it was DVB-S the specifications or,him more dinner, I just won’t go away. How are you locked on. I politely asked how did he likely, b) by looking to see if it has a know all keeping? Well, I hope. I’m sorry to those what satellite he was locked onto? He didn’t. threaded male connection of you who have If we assume most of us point next to the traditional contacted me only to find reading this want to If it This is why the cheap sat push fit aerial socket.receive IHello no longer cover yourHow UK TV from Astra 2 has,satellite you’re good to go.They and welcome. finders that ‘beep’ or give area. There are however then there 13 are sometimes a littleare less are you all doing? Well, I you a string of pretty lights (28.2°E), plenty of other good other satellites within 10° of user friendly than something hope. Surviving the heat are effectively useless installers you can call either side of it. This why like a Freesat box, butisyou and the continuing upon. I do stilltocover the finders that can cheap createsat a favourites list to requirement wear parts of 86, in reality, you Do a string of told pretty lights makeor lifegive easier. not be you haveare masks? I’vebut actually beenthis toldmeans that to the ‘beep’ north of Poitiers and westwards there. effectively useless.receiver Unless itbox, tellsyou youdon’t. what to buy a seperate wearing a mask makes me morefrom attractive. II’m alsonot cover 79. Ifinina doubt, I go pretty you’re looking at, how do you set your dish? suredept if that's '50 Shades of much 90 mins the Grey' everywhere scenario, or,within more likely, it’sofan You can of course use the ‘signal quality’ 79240 insult.postcode. Still, I don’t care. I’ve got thick feature that is built into most receivers. This

tell you late whattothey seeing on the screen. A little the are party, as I wasn’t Most don’t make a noise (the satellite notified until after last month’s articlebox, had not the other person) sopresent, you’ll bethere forever been submitted, but at are up a ladder to check what it says. noand newdown domestic Tooway (satellite You can also use apps This like ‘Dishpointer’ internet) activations. is due to the which areBeam pretty15, good. However, theyentire do fact that which covers our region of France, is at fulldish capacity. If you assume that your satellite bracket is haveperfectly a Toowaylevel system, may well have both and you vertical. noticed it running slower during the Or, you canand callsubsequent one of the installers in this lockdown school holidays. fine publication who’ll do it for you. Business tariffs remain available but these I’d domore that.money and are advertised H.T. cost (hors meaning that 20% Please TVA will That’s taxe) all from me this month. feel needtotoget bein added use by private free touchfor if you have any

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