Its amazing how much woodchip you can move when everybody "chips" in 😊

We had the task of woodchipping a path that runs around the edge of the farm - with the instruction of "put plenty on" - so thats what we did! We also weeded an area and woodchipped that too!

No lovely Richard on hand this evening to share his knowledge, but really pleased that he was able to have an evening off and GoodGym were able to successfully complete the task.

Awesome work Barrow Buddies - thankyou 👍

Steph and i spent a short while this evening tackling the residential planter in Lordshill. unfortunately it has sprung up considerably since we last tackled it - and is full of bindweed and brambles. We successfully managed to clear a small section of the growth and will be back soon.

A good workout session for us as we were clearing grass and weeds so we could dig the area. Slight hitch in proceedings as Stephanie managed to snap the fork handle! Not a problem as Ziggy soon advised it had woodworm damage already. We don't usually blame the tools! Lauren and Stephanie filled four shopping trolleys worth of grass and cuttings. April did great work helping to clear up our mess with the help of Alan from Friends of Bitterne Station. Refreshments were provided as they are a very hospitable group. We will be back to help out in the future as they are a wonderful place creating a welcoming community space for all.

We joined Jill and the lovely volunteers of Woolston Station getting the gardens ready for a Railway 200 event planned for later in the year. Chris, Wilson and I were tiptoeing through the flower beds pulling up the grass, leaving in tact all the wildflowers just coming into flower. This called for a little more delicacy than we have had in some other gardening tasks. We always enjoy learning about the different plants and improving our green finger skills. There will be more sessions in June so we will be back when hopefully we have had some rain.

On a slightly grey bank holiday evening we met to litter pick at Goatee Beach, but found out it had already been picked the day before! Instead we headed along the boardwalk and then along the road to pick near the quay and pub where there was plenty of rubbish. From cigarette butts to a towel that had really had a hard life, we picked it all. We even had our littlest litter picker join us before bedtime and she was the smiliest litter picker we ever did meet!

Litter picking finished we headed for the beach just in time for high tide so we could get a refreshing dip. It was a bit blustery but that didn’t deter us from getting a cold water fix! Well done everyone for braving it. Tea and biscuits to warm up afterwards.

Sarah and I joined Peartree Green volunteers for our monthly outing to see what delights people have saved up and chucked in the bushes for us retrieve. The usual can suspects along with the ever present cigarette butts and plastic wrappers. A lovely walk round the reserve of course and a good feeling knowing we have taken some more rubbish out of the environment. Sarah captured great photos of the dandelion seeds which had mysteriously collected under the trees and looked rather magical.