This evening was our final visit to the Meadow Lane playground for 2026. With planting due to take place on Sunday we were in a tight deadline to get compost and ballast moved to prepare the beds.

This was one of those tasks that really put the Gym into Goodgym. We dug out one bed and topped it up with rich (and rather smelly) mushroom compost. The rest of the time was spent filling a fleet of wheelbartows with ballast and ferrying them to other planting areas. Core muscles were engaged, raking was done and we even had to deploy the mini flood lights. The result did make us look a little like were creating or investigating crime scenes.....!!

Our rewards was some gorgeous feedback from Usha and delicious brownies from Celestia which contained black beans, making them a health food.

Congratulations to Angus for your 100th Good Deed!!

The evenings are drawing in and this was probably our last natural light Wednesday session of the year. We were back at The Children's Allotment to do battle with the longest, fiercest, thorniest brambles I've ever seen. Before the onslaught, we warmed up by moving a few years' worth of accumulated rubbish into a skip; this part of the task was accomplished quickly.

The brambles, not so much. Long, thick, scratchy, entangled in the trees and other "good" vegetation. Our best efforts made some headway but they will no doubt regroup ready for our next battle in the Spring.

After a group snap in the yurt we celebrated the end of a great summer of GoodGymming with a drink in The Magdalen Arms.

We love a well planned task at Oxford GoodGym, and super organised host Meg had made us a to do list. Denny Gardens is still a work in progress, though one colourful plot shows what can be achieved.

First, tip 3 huge bags of (mainly) brambles from a previous working group over a very spiky fence. Then refill the bags and repeat. Next, pull back the membrane we'd de-weeded and dig out the weed roots underneath. Refill the bags and tip them over the spiky fence. Finally, re-cover the cleared section with the membrane, Bethan improvising with a wooden cudgel to bang the pegs in. Resourceful!

Good work everyone!

Quote of the task: "I can indeed procure you a scythe"

Today we returned to a regualar favorite: Aston's Eyot. This year we have done a whole range of tasks on this lovely nature reserve; clearing nettles, mending fencing, creating benches, litter picking and so on.

This evening, with the mizzly drizzle in the air (yes we've quickly moved on from complaining about the heat to complaining about the rain and dark) we gathered to clear a HUGE swathe of thistles to make way for the tractor mower and to make our precious fence more visible. Using a chop and yank method we managed to clear LOADS of space and rescued some bugs and voles in the process. We also shifted a log pile a few meters, making way for the tractor but preserving an important mini-beast paradise.

Thank you to the hardy group of 9 on our first rainy task in AGES and welcome to the gang Dom, lovely to have you with us!