Part and parsley

16 Goodgymers helped their local community in Tower Hamlets
Oliver Rockett
Davide Feleppa
Eva Merkel
Olivia Waller
Emma Jones
Aine Hester
Fiona M
Rohan
Laura Williams
John Shirley
Martin
Chris Burns
Giorgio Rescio
Yelda Ismail
TJ
Alex A
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Tower Hamlets

Monday 5th June 2023

Credits
Laura Williams
Laura Williams

SESSION ORGANISER

REPORT WRITER

PHOTOGRAPHER

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Report written by Laura Williams

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A gorgeous night for it.

16 GoodGymers gathered together at The Soanes Centre this evening, ready for an active, useful task in the beautiful Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park.

What we were doing?

We met with the Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park team first, to collect wheelbarrows and gloves – and instructions. Park Manager Ken whizzed through the park’s fascinating facts, covering everything from wildlife to top cow parsley-plucking tips.

We then made our way through the centre of the park, to the area near The Big Green Pile (as it sounds) where we covered the basics of tonight’s task: pulling out cow parsley.

Why were we doing it?

Cow parsley can be invasive, taking up light and space. Without any control, the plant and its seeds spread quickly. Removing the flowering stem in late Spring helps manage this plant in this huge, much loved, historic cemetery and nature reserve.

How we got on

The team worked - you guessed it – tirelessly as usual. Getting to grips very quickly with these tough stems, the area started to look transformed very quickly. Working in groups on both sides of the park path, GoodGymers filled barrow after barrow with armfuls of the cow parsley.

With all that squatting, plucking and wheeling, it proved to be quite the Monday night workout. The time sped by, and before we knew it, it was well after 8 and we were wheeling the final barrow back to The Big Green Pile, to pose for one last picture.

We strolled back to base, grateful to Richard from the FOTHCP team for taking barrows and gloves off our hands.

Another fantastic night - well done everyone.

The big shout-outs

…To Giorgio, Yelda, and Alex who joined us for the very first time. You did such a great job, and we hope to see you again very soon.

To Emma who worked hard at Cow Parsley pun research.

To our Task Force (John, Chris, Fiona, Aine and Emma) who project manage-d tonight; helped plan the next few weeks, and who generally do loads behind the scenes.

…And to the whole team tonight, for such a fabulous start to the week.

Until next time.


This task supported
The Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park
Looking after the nature reserve and heritage site

The Friends are an independent charity responsible for managing Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, a unique and vital nature reserve and heritage site in East London. Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park offers everyone a breathing space in the heart of East London. This woodland cemetery is a unique place of transformation: a people’s cemetery, a place for remembrance, a sanctuary for humans as well as nature, a place for festivals, field studies and forest schools. Always changing with the seasons, it is rooted in the history of the East End, a place of rich heritage that is full of possibilities and freedom for all.

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Discuss this report
Olivia Waller

Wed 7th Jun 2023 at 8:59am

Lovely photos, thanks Laura!

Laura Williams

Wed 7th Jun 2023 at 3:25pm

Great to see you Olivia! Well done for a brilliant evening!

Join us on our next session

Tower Hamlets

Saturday morning session at The Felix Project's Poplar depot
🗓Saturday 9:30am

Come and make spend a sociable couple of hours with the team at Felix!

Katsiaryna Pioryshkina
2 GoodGymers are going