It doesn't seem long ago that we were busy watering the trees at Laugherne Brook Nature Reserve in the middle of a scorching drought. But yesterday the trees were getting all the water they needed thanks to the rain! Luckily it had stopped by the time Liam and I ran over to the nature reserve from the Hive. We were met by Margaret who led us to the huge pile of bark chippings that had been kindly donated by the council. Our task for the evening was to shovel it into buckets and barrows and spread it around the base of each tree. Lots of carrying, lots of steps, lots of good exercise! "We'll just do as many as we can" suggested Margaret but with me and Liam on the case that meant doing all of them! The mulch will help provide nutrients to the trees, keep the weeds at bay and help retain moisture so the trees can get through to the other side of winter ready for whatever 2027 has to throw at them. We squelched our way back to the hive with soggy feet but big smiles after another fun GoodGym session.

Some might say that cutting down brambles is a tough job especially when you're faced with a wall of the stuff that you wonder how on earth you can cut through it. But whatever other people say the brambles can't live forever. Yes they're a force of nature but little by little we can bring it down, you've just got roll with it, d'you know what I Mean?

Goodgym attached the undergrowth like a supersonic shakermaker. Ruth looked like a Rock 'n Roll Star in her brand new GoodGym T-shirt too. It's all part of the masterplan to turn the neglected space into a somewhere that people from all around the world can enjoy instead of a retreat for kids to hide their cigarettes and alcohol.

We'll be back again soon to finish the job!

PS:thank you to Worcester Environmental Group standing by me and lending us the tool and gloves.

A mid afternoon message brought the news that our task at st Wulstans would have to be postponed as Carry, who was due to supervise wasn't going to be able to make it. So: what to do instead? Well there's always litter to be picked so we met at Perdiswell Leisure Centre armed with pickers and blue bags and went out into the park on a hunt for rubbish. At the pump track we found plenty and were labelled as 'legends' by the kids who were riding there. Some grateful customers who laid the blame on the 'bigger kids'. The rest of the park was fairly tidy with a few pockets of rubbish hidden in the bushes. Back onto the football pitches we found a handful energy drink cans and received some more heartfelt thanks from the dog walkers for our efforts. By the time we got back to the leisure centre we had three half filled bags to dispose of which is a good result. I always say that the success of a litter pick should be measured on how little you have to pick up rather than how much. Well done to the Perdiswell Park users for keeping it tidy but it's now been improved even more by GoodGym Worcester!

As we all gathered by Diglis Fields the sky clouded over and delivered our first soaking of the morning. It didn't affect the mood of the group though as tools for litter picking and bramble pruning were handed out. This was a collaborative event between Worcester Environmental Group, Friends of Diglis Fields and GoodGym Worcester and we had a great turnout from all three groups. With a warning from Leisa of Friends of Diglis Fields that there may be some 'interesting' items to be litter picked, the GoodGym crew decided to opt for the bramble clearing duties. The network of paths in Cherry Orchard Nature Reserve had been slowly getting overgrown by trailing undergrowth so we worked our way along each route snipping back anything that could catch or scratch an unsuspecting dog walker. It was a great chance to explore an area that I had only run past rather than through, it was much larger than we realised! As we worked, several walkers and runners thanked us for our time. Nice to have immediate feedback for our efforts. Meanwhile the litter picking team had collected about a dozen full bags of rubbish, extracting enough cans and bottles from the bushes to fill a beer garden.

There was a bit more rain before the morning was over but we all got back to Diglis Fields with smiles on our faces having enjoyed a productive start to our Sunday. Well done Team WEG/FoDF/GoodGym!

An unfortunate event can often result in a good outcome. We were sorry to hear about a break-in at the Oasis Hub community garden at the end of last week. Some kids had leapt the fence and caused trouble and mess by throwing things around, kicking things in and generally being a nuisance without a purpose. Luckily the culprits were caught on camera and were dragged back in to put right what they had undone but their actions had highlighted a need to do something with this underused space.

It just so happens that fellow GoodGymer Ruth is a volunteer at the Hub and so she knew just the team to come and help! There was a great response to the last minute call out with 7 of us arriving to give the gardens a tidy up including first timers Lisa and Andrew. Most of the team were sent into a dense thicket of brambles to begin chopping them down. The sound of snipping shears was interrupted by the occasional yelp as someone got pricked by the vicious undergrowth. Meanwhile the boys were set to task straightening out the kicked in shed, moving some heavy slabs and dragging broken pallets out of the bushes. Great progress was made with the plan to eventually turn the area into a wildlife garden that the local community can make use of and tend to. It will be a lovely addition to the area but there is still a fair bit of work to be done so we will be back soon to carry on cutting. Perhaps with better protective clothing!

Well done everyone for another fantastic GoodGym task!

A few years ago Worcester Environmental Group built a natural play area in a corner of Perdwiswell Park using a collection of interesting logs. With North Worcester Primary Academy nearby it was popular with the children to climb on before or after school. Unfortunately it has been left neglected with the nettles, thistles and undergrowth making it less than appealing to play on. Parent and councillor, Katie Collier asked if GoodGym could give it a good tidy up so of course we said yes!

It was a short run from Perdiswell Leisure Centre which suited most of the group who had tired legs from racing at the weekend. Armed with secateurs, loppers and gloves we cut and pulled our way through the weeds and soon the logs were emerging from the undergrowth and the whole area looked more presentable. The offcuts were gathered to form a dead hedge which will be popular with rodents, birds and invertebrates.

Once we'd finished, there was just one more important task: testing it! Ruth and I demonstrated our balancing skills by walking and jumping along the log run with the obligatory 'tree pose' to finish.

It should be a nice surprise for the children to find after school today.