Fig-sing our mess

A couple of weeks ago two GoodGymers from Ealing visited Ms A to combat the intrusive vegetation in her garden. Despite that matters with ivy and the fig tree were settled, what was left behind was a messy battlefield. The thought of the pile of dead ivy in the middle of the garden was giving both GoodGymers insomnia, so they decided to sign up for another mission for Ms A to be absolved from their guilt.

On Saturday afternoon, after a cordial welcome by Ms A, Sevan and Kash, inspected the garden and realised that the interest due on the ivy pile had grown - there were new large fig tree branches on top of the heap! Ms A explained that her neighbour was not happy with the expansive fig tree, so she had to request professional help to cut most of the branches down.

Sevan and Kash broke into the task by breaking the smaller twigs from the branches and packing them immediately into small but sturdy black bags. The activity resulted in filling the garden with the pleasant smell of figs and a discussion about the superiority of fresh figs over the dried ones (or the other way around - depending on whether you support Kash's or Sevan's view).

While Sevan used his strength to break the branches, Kash cut the largest ones into smaller pieces with a saw. After the duo freed ivy at the bottom of the heap from the fig tree, they were loudly cheered by the entire Shepherd's Bush. The shouts and chants of encouragement continued while the GoodGymers packed the ivy into the bin bags, feeling a surge of extra motivation. The experience of being cheered as intensely as the Queens Park Rangers (or Middlesbrough) players would be was something a GoodGymer experiences once in a lifetime!

After having a little refreshment provided by Ms A, Kash and Sevan reported back to her with the results. Ms A examined the garden from the first-floor window and was delighted. She was very grateful and was looking forward to taking advantage of her newly cleared space and chilling out in the sun.