A blustery but thankfully dry Saturday morning in October blew 2 goodgym-ers to Maryon Park Community Garden in Charlton. 

For anyone that's not visited, the garden is a community food growing area within one of Charlton 's many green spaces, where plothouders grow everything from pumpkins to tomatoes, beetroot to beans, and today we saw some pretty giant courgettes!

Our task today was to clear away a build-up of leaves from the entrance pathways, to make the area safer and tidier. Leafblower & shovels at the ready, we'd soon run out of space in the composting bins and it was time for a tidy up and a catch up with Tim & Edna. 

Have a great weekend all! 😊

Tonight's task for 4 goodgym-ers started with a quick change of venue, from St Lukes Church to St Richard's, both regular task locations in Charlton. A slightly wild, grey sky looked down on us as we jogged down towards our destination discussing our proudest moments.

Our woodchip pathway is still looking good! A little bit of weeding was still needed, but the membrane & woodchip is doing a great job of repressing the growth.

The grey skies turned darker so we headed into the Church for a whole new world of tasks in the hall including cleaning up some dusty chairs and a good old hot floor mop. The tasks just seemed call for a bit of a disney singalong, so whistling a happy working song, the time warped away for us to step in time into the unknown.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious work everyone!

After the nail-biting game yesterday at Charlton Athletic, 9 Goodgymers and some friends of CleanUpCharlton ventured out to clear up some of the post-match debris.

While one team tackled the home end of Anchor & Hope Lane, the others took to the midfield of the Woolwich Road to clear the cans, bottles and cigarette ends. The game of two halves ended with a photo line-up at the end of Popeye's Path (formerly Frankie & Benny's Alley) which always needs a good grounds-person or two (or even 11)!

The boys and girls done good and 13 bags were left for the referee (Greenwich Council) at final whistle. Man/woman of the match was awarded to all players in the form of a nice cup of coffee at our favourite M&S cafe (we might tap them for sponsorship next season). They thought it was all over - it is now until next month!

A tragic scene awaited 5 GoodGym-ers as we joined the Friends of Woolwich Common for today's litter pick. A huge area of the common was burned down in a fire earlier in the week, and whilst the exact source of ignition is under much speculation, the dry summer had not helped, leaving much of the area vulnerable.

On a much more positive note, so many areas were unaffected due to the quick work by local fire teams, leaving plenty of space as the haven it is, for wildflowers, wildlife and vegetation of all kinds. So, armed with litterpicks and rubbish bag hoops, a smoky aroma followed us as we set out in various directions, ready to clear as much as we could, Cans, bottles, vapes, plastic, glass, newspapers & crisp bags soon filled up those bags, and nature gave us a little materials science lesson in how various materials burn - or don't, as the case may be, in the areas affected by the fire.

It's not the first fire on this common, but nature also teaches us it will fight back, and as the seasons change, the plant life will gradually begin to take root again, which hopefully we can help with in some small way by clearing away the artificial stuff threatening that growth.

Have a great week & catch up soon! 😊