At GoodGym Hounslow we're practically experts at planting bulbs now! The team kicked off the season by putting in daffs at Chiswick House, last week we were brightening up the High Rd with tulips and last night we were back at Harvard Hill to plant 300 narcissus bulbs. By next week, when we go to Gunnersbury tube to help Abundance get yet more bulbs in the ground we'll be a finely tuned planting machine!

We met with one of the lead volunteers of Friends of Harvard Hill, who handed over the tools and bulbs and gave us instructions about where they all needed to go. Luckily the ground wasn't totally frozen, although it was certainly nippy conditions last night! It was great to meet our favourite project manager, Sybil the Cat, at the task. She kindly oversaw our work making sure our planting was paw purrfection.

After 40 minutes of hard graft, we had got to the bottom of the sack. There was just one more thing to do to ensure we didn't get too chilly - a lower body blast. We kicked off with pogos, moving on to curtesy lunges, jack lunges and squats before calling it a night. Job well done!

This Saturday we have a mission with Trees for Cities - you can find all the details and sign up here

Finally, a huge congratulations to Maxime who, last weekend made it to that magic milestone - 50 good deeds! What an achievement - great to see you in your black tshirt Maxime!

Arriving at the eyot early, I decide to see if the mud is manageable without wheelies. Rue verdict comes quickly: not in a thousand years. I decide to wait patiently. Georgia arrives with her wheelies, and, since our contact is nowhere to be seen, she bravely goes to the eyot through the mud to find him. Him back we can thus start the work. Atif would join us a bit later, for it was difficult to find us without anyone to contact. At the eyot, the mud is overwhelming but we power through. with the other volunteers we build barriers, weaving wood through wooden stakes, and then adding bundles behind. Goodgymers take the heavy lifting carrying heavy wood, and planting stakes, though the weaving was nice too. We finish a full wall that looks very sturdy. one more step towards conserving the eyot!

Six enthusiastic Goodymers braved steady rain to support Heston Community Gardens, a brilliant local initiative to tackle fly-tipping and transform the space into a welcoming, sustainable haven for the community.

Aneel and Phil from the Heston Action Group shared the story of how the gardens began. The aim was to transform a once-neglected litter hotspot into a vibrant green space that encourages people to come and use the space and contribute to the gardens.

With more rain on the way, Aneel gave us three options: hedge-cutting, weeding, or shifting a long-donated mountain of mulch. As highly motivated mulch movers we chose the latter. Mulch better than plane old gardening!

Working in unison filling barrows and hauling bags until there wasn’t mulch left we powered through with planes overhead on their descent to Heathrow, and in no time at all the once-towering mulch pile had been completely cleared.

Cue group photo and the ultimate reward: tea, biscuits, and fruit generously provided by our Community Garden hosts. Along with saplings to take home and cultivate.

Great to help this fantastic community group and we hope to be back at the gardens in the future.

Shopping for Mr K, this time featuring soap, and a dash through the rain

There was plenty of chat pre-task about whether we would be planting bulbs in the snow last night, but that didn't stop a group of be-thermalled GoodGymers turning up to help out with the second half of a big task last night. Just goes to show that GG Hounslow is made of sterner stuff!

So, after a much needed warm up at the town hall, we ran down to meet Abundance London for the second part of our mammoth task to plant thousands of bulbs on Chiswick High Rd. The plan is that the spring flowers will deter passers-by from throwing rubbish in the beds, to improve biodiversity next to a busy road, and to cheer up the place with a splash of colour!

Last week we had spent some time clearing away the leaves and doing a bit of weeding. Not only did this prep the area for planting but it made sure the pavement had fewer slip risks from the wet leaves. We grabbed our shovels and bulbs and started work.

There were established plants to get in, tulips, daffs and narcissus, and a limited period before we lost all feeling in our fingers. There was no time to lose!

With hundreds of bulbs to go in, and we dug and planted steadily. By the time we had finished, Karen from Abundance London said that we had saved them days of work! Well done everybody.

Don't forget about the session this Saturday at the Bend it like Beckham task and next week we're back at Harvard Hill - see you there!

Alan and I teamed up to help the lovely Mrs L and her husband on a bright and crisp November morning.

When we arrived Mrs L greeted us and Mr A showed us through to the back garden. Mrs L has lost her sight and used to enjoy her garden.

We were tasked with weeding and clearing fallen leaves. Which we enjoyed and spent a good hour chatting as we worked. Alan, who is on the road to recovery after a nasty knee injury discovered that seated weeding was ideal for his current rehab stage.

After filling two garden refuse bags we ventured back into the warmth of Mrs L’s kitchen where we made a further discovery, that Mrs L’s past occupation had been very similar to Alan’s. Chemists unite!