After a busy hour trimming shrubs, removing weeds and sweeping paths, Mina and Linda left Ms A’s much-loved back garden in good shape, giving her a cheerful view from her windows and the satisfaction of knowing her plants are tidy and well tended, ready for the approach of springtime.

It was a chilly morning, but a nice one with blue skies and sunshine!

Helen (brand new to GoodGym 🥳) and I met at the Bridge House for a jog down to Alexandra Rec, where we met Linda, Kelly and Merrin for some hyacinth, tulip and crocus(?) bulb planting.

When we finally found our way to the bulb's true destination, we got cracking to stave off the cold.

Helen, Merrin and I focussed on the sensory beds whilst Kelly and Linda planted along the railings.

30 minutes later and we were done. It will be nice to see some new flowers there in the Spring!

Top stuff, everyone! 👍👍

Some varied locations for litter picking this weekend by Linda and Paul. Linda picked through the mess around a Sainsbury’s car park. Paul did two stints - the first alongside the Ravensbourne in Ladywell Fields, the second a short post parkrun ‘litter or leaf’ activity with his favourite three year old.

When Mr N showed us how the evergreen tree at the end of his garden was tilting at a wonky angle – despite the efforts of himself and his neighbour to tie it upright – we set to work to find a solution. Jacqueline leaned on the trunk to take the pressure off the binding, while Linda undid the knots and re-tied the tree using a fence post to keep it beautifully straight.

Mr N was delighted with this and the other jobs we tackled to get his much-loved back garden ready for adding new plants in the spring. We moved leaves from the paved and gravel areas to use as mulch on the borders and, with Mr N’s cheerful help, collected up prunings to go into a wheelie bin for council composting. Hopefully he can now enjoy the Christmas period looking at a tidier view from his windows.