No problem.
I thought you were being “tongue in cheek/joking" but as you didn’t use an emojii I decided I’d “explain” for those who might think differently. 
At the moment, so much of what I’m reading/hearing across the internet is divisive/mocking/being downright nasty.. and perhaps I’m a little over-enthusiastic the other way… ah well… 
You didn’t get your seeds from Franchi by any chance @EmilyA ? I grew some of those in the UK and they were great! Stored well, I seem to remember too…
Yes we did.! Really miss Franchi since Brexit. Husband tried to get them from Italy, but no go. 
Yes I went through that loop too! Really frustrating as they’re the best seed supplier I’ve ever had. Ended up having an email exchange with their boss in London and he was, to say the least, vitriolic about what the Brexit regulations had done for small seed suppliers. The only way to get their seeds now is by smuggling, which I haven’t risked
We also used to use Tamar organics, but they couldn’t supply any more after Brexit either. So frustrating.
Exactly - I liked the Real Seed Company too and they suggested Kokopelli (near the Pyrenees) so I used them for a bit but there were a few problems, including that their seeds were produced in SW France and not really appropriate to Normandie. Lately its been Bingenheimer Saatgut (?sp) and they’re ok but pricey and not as good a range as Franchi. They do good chard and kale though!
For seed supplies in France, I recommend Semences biologiques et reproductibles | Semailles
I’ve not tried them yet so thanks for the recommendation @MaryW . I see they are in Belgium. Our best so far is based in Germany. It seems to me that the Northern European seed suppliers fit my needs better. I wonder if it would be different further south 
I live in southwest France and these seeds seem to work well. I’ve used them for three years now. However, my approach to flower and vegetable growing can be pretty haphazard!
I’m in Dept 17 and have had raised beds for 12+ years. We’ve a v large garden but its gone from being a nice football field sized orchard and garden to a flood plain. When we bought the reports said it had never flooded (there is a small stream running through the village) but now it floods very frequently several times a year - last year the water during one such flood literally washed our compost bins away. I’m not talking black plastic composters but a very large open compost area built using poles and old conservatory roof panels.
So raised beds are essential to grow veg but in the last year flood water is now so great that its started to lap away at the raised beds.
Time for a rethink - or maybe move home
I have 3 veg gardens only one with raised beds, initially I built them for Mrs.W, but she soon lost interest in gardening.
My solution to raised beds is to use car tyres. I have two tyre gardens one for herbs and one for veg. Each tyre can have a different soil and watering regime. A sheet of plastic in spring turns each tyre into a cold frame and in summer, individual netting appropriate to the veg can be added to certain tyres. A word of warning, Wozza , our gardening expert, and various others, cautions against possible contamination as the tyre degrades. In 20 years of doing this I have never had a problem. I have posted on this before New veg patch for two - #53 by Mik_Bennett
But how would you know? That sort of contamination affects you very slowly.
When Wozza raised the possible problem, I did a lot of research and though there was plenty of speculation by the usual Internet suspects the actual scientific analysis suggested quantities of possible pollutants were much much lower than the risks of standing besides a busy road where polutants.enter the lungs directly rather than leaching into the soil in which plants are growing.
My elderly French neighbour thought I was mad and said plants would overheat and dry out in French summers. She still came round for a bunch of herbs when mine outlasted hers.
I wouldn’t call myself an expert, though I have studied horticulture and agriculture, and still do today, especially in the areas of soil life & the benefits of not disturbing & the enrichment of the structure. Gardening & all its aspects are a passion of mine. Maybe I should have chosen farming rather than engineering as a career?
“Some gardeners sow wisdom, some sow confusion, and some just spread manure verbally.”
I did raise the issue as well and depending upon environmental conditions the leaching of certain heavy metals and phthalates can be quite high. OH did a lot of work on land contamination on brownfield sites and big piles of old tyres are one of the worst things along with old gas works.
Yes, that may well be the case. However, I am not talking about “big piles of old tyres” just single tyre planters.
When you and Wozza raised the concern, I spent a lot of time reading information on the subject. There was quite a lot of science about particulate contamination from crops grown at the sides of roads yet these contaminated crops are still on sale to the public. There is very little quantitative evidence of crop contamination in tyre planters. And zero hard evidence (that I can find) of health issues. Conclusions about tyre planters have only been inferred. Personally, I would rather eat vegetables I have grown in a planter than those grown near a road. Any potential problem can be mitigated by a liner in the tyre.
The recent posts remind me of the success we had in the UK with container growing of some vegetables.
We had great results with carrots sown in a large container of un-compacted shop-bought compost. The height of the container - probably 45cm - seem to be a bit too high for the carrot fly. We just broadcast the seeds lightly on top, coved with a sprinkling of compost and thinned when necessary. We ate the larger thinnings. The carrots grew long and straight.
Likewise we grew lettuces and spring onions in containers, and lots of herbs in pots. I suppose containers are mini raised beds 
Getting the watering right is important and not as easy as I first thought with long-rooted carrots. It’s easy to overdo it so the container needs to be well-draining . . .
