An annual task for us that means a good walk rather than a run, delivering leaflets Richmond CVS to advertise their upcoming Trustee Recruitment evening.

The group met at the Tap as usual for an intro and a chat about some upcoming tasks before heading into surrounding residential streets to deliver the leaflets. Many hands make light work and within an hour all leaflets were posted, with time to admire some doors, front gardens, a passing fox and a hairless cat!

An evening of watering at our sponsored beds in Buccleuch Gardens to help the plants get through this spell of hot dry weather.

.... and a picnic afterwards sitting next to the last remaining Canarian palm.

A team of GoodGym Richmond’s stupendous seven made their way across to Power Station youth club in Mortlake to do some good.

We weren’t quite sure what we were going to get up to, but whatever it was, we’d apple-y get on with it… Danielle the youth leader showed us tables laden with fresh produce. Curly kale, marvellous marrows and an abundance of apples. The challenge, if we should accept it was to prepare the crates of fruit to freeze, ready for future apple crumbles and pies.

We core-dially accepted, and chopped to it, prepping ourselves with the knives and chopping boards. Some of us solo and some in pears, we cut the fruit into chunks and sprinkled over cinnamon before bagging it up for freezing. Amazingly, despite trusting us with sharp objects there were no injuries (even with some flying footballs courtesy of Sam in the room)!

Forty or so minutes later, there were multiple plump bags of sweetly cinnamoned apples ready for the freezer. A quick clean up, and a peel good job done. There was even time to enjoy the, ahem, versatility of the humble courgette in its overgrown form for a group photo.

As we left the youth club, we were greeted by darker skies and a spitting of rain from overhead. Time to fruit off back home until next week!

Joanna, Sam and Anita were channeling Aquarius the water-carrier (Zodiac sign for those born 20 Jan to 19 Feb) rather than the 1960s hippie musical.

When Joanna, new to GoodGym’s gardening work in Buccleuch Gardens, asked the question ‘Where’s the water?’ she may have been expecting a tap or standpipe rather than the huge River Thames.

This was a humorous start to an intense 45 minute workout. We drew water from the river , carried it up stairs (looking fantastic after Monday’s Group Run weeding efforts) and along the Thames Path to water some of the thirstiest plants at the Three Pigeons Plot, around the benches and in the Arcade Planters and Rockery .

Great work water-bearers.

....... benefit plants that are a bit stressed by the warm, dry weather.

Some of the plants in GoodGym Richmond's sponsored plots in Buccleuch Gardens were very grateful for a bit of TLC in the form of water from the Thames, to help them survive this dry spell.