People tend to mow their lawns and strim their steeply-banked gardens around the little patches of flowers that spring up in the middle, cultivating a sort of impromptu flowerbed wherever nature sees fit. Lupins are by far one of the most popular flowers to be left in the middle of a neatly-tended grass lawn. We found this out by mistake when we were working in the gardens of one of our rental chalets just before the owner came to stay. “Thanks for doing the lawn and the strimming, guys, but… you’ve flattened my lupins!” Ooops. Beginner’s mistake I guess. The next week as I was walking past his chalet, I chuckled to see that he had been down into the valley and bought some new lupins from the garden centre and replanted them in the same spot… Now I can’t help but notice the little clusters of flowers in many of the gardens around the village. I wonder what the owners of another chalet will think when they come to stay next, and notice that I have very carefully mowed around a beautiful patch of bright purple clover that had sprung up in the south-eastern corner…