Alison and Fi met a short distance from Mr W’s house on a grey-but-not-quite-drizzling-yet Sunday morning in the hills of south Bristol.

Despite the garden looking in good health to both Alison and Fi, Mr W was concerned that only professional treatment would return the outdoor space to any kind of glory. The spirited GoodGymmers assured Mr W that whist they weren’t professional landscapers, they could certainly help to take the edge off (literally!) some of the overgrown spots of the otherwise very neat garden.

There were a few areas that stood to benefit from the GoodGym treatment; Alison gave the patio something of a facial by removing weeds from in between slabs and giving it a good exfoliation (okay, sweep) with a brush. She then moved on to the two sizeable flower beds and expelled any weed-type inhabitants, during which a prize-winning dandelion root too impressive not to photograph was relocated to the garden waste bin. To make space for new growth, Fi moved from one plant/bush to the next and removed any dead flower heads or leaves, revealing a particularly healthy looking Hyacinth bush in the process.

As a final task, they removed last year’s tomato plants and dismantled their bamboo-ey climbing frame for Mr W, making space for whatever he might plan to use the space for this year.

After a quick chat, Alison and Fi said farewell to Mr W, with Alison heading off for a long run and Fi making a beeline to the nearest cafe for a spot of lunch before tackling an afternoon mission.