Another week of joining Viv, Lumin, and the team of dedicated local volunteers for another productive gardening session.

Excitingly, the rhizomes we moved and replanted last month are already popping up!

A big thank you to James and John, who wheeled over many loads of leaf mulch for us. This will help keep the plants happy as they continue to grow.

Lumin had plenty of great gardening tips this week. One of the highlights was when we discovered a beetle larvae, sparking a fascinating discussion on how to identify different beetle species in their early stages.

With fresh growth appearing and the planters looking tidy, we’re excited to see what the next few weeks bring. Join us next time! 🌱✨

This week we were back at the Silverdale planters with Viv, Lumin, and a team of brilliant local volunteers for a January gardening session focused on preparing for new growth in the spring.

Our main task this week was cutting back the plants to clear space for the season ahead. With fresh beginnings in mind, we turned our attention to the iris flowers. Their roots, called rhizomes, sit close to the soil's surface and resemble ginger!

We dug them up, carefully broke them apart, and replanted them across the two planters. Come spring there will be a beautiful scattering of colour.

This week’s top tip from Lumin: the easiest way to spot good soil is by its colour. The darker it is, the richer it is in organic matter.

The planters are now ready for the next phase, and we’ll be back soon to see how they’re shaping up — come join us! 🌱✨

This week, myself and Mark joined Viv, Lumen, and a team of hardworking local volunteers to tackle some seasonal gardening tasks—it’s officially the season for cutting back!

We focused on clearing and tidying to keep the area looking its best. One key job was cutting back the hedge that was overhanging the path, making sure it’s clear and accessible for all pedestrians.

Lumen also shared another brilliant tip. To identify whether a plant is truly dead and in need of a cut back, cut a small section away and look for green inside. Or gently scrape the stem. If you see green, the plant is alive and kicking! 🌱

We also spent time deadheading flowers and collecting their seeds for next year 🌺.

The planters are looking neat and ready for the months ahead. We’ll be back soon to keep up the good work—come join us! 🌱✨

This morning I was back with Viv, Lumin, and a small group of dedicated local volunteers to help prep the Silverdale planters for winter and next spring!

Though it started off wet, the skies soon cleared, giving us the perfect window to get to work. We spent the session cutting back and pruning the plants to help them stay strong through the colder months, along with a little planting.

We added two Salvia ‘Hot Lips’ plants on the slope next to the planters. Insider knowledge from Lumin: ‘Hot Lips’ are part of the sage family—rub the leaves and give them a sniff for a fragrant surprise! 🌱

We also relocated some perennial sunflowers 🌻 from one bed to another to ensure both areas get a burst of tall, dramatic yellow flowers next year.

We’ll be back next month to keep the planters in shape for the seasons ahead—join us! 🌦️🌼

Well it was an hedgucation for me tonight as it was my first time leading a group run without Mark's supervision but luckily I had 12 awesome GoodGymmers to rely on for moral support. After a run down of our favourite ice creams (why do other countries always have cooler flavours than the UK?!) we made our way to Alexandra Recreation Ground to meet Linda and the other Friends of the Parks volunteers.

Big shout out to Hannah for leading the walking group, Stephen for backmarking the runners and Jing who was attending her first session and bravely accepted the challenge of running the long way round up the hill to the task!

Once we got to the park, Gill and Linda had us pulling out weeds that were diverting nutrients from the hedge saplings planted earlier in the year. Many hands made light work of this task and we had cleared most of the bed within 40 minutes before taking the shorter route back to the Bridge House for some post-run stretches.

Nice work team!