The second 6km run of the day took Sevan and Kash from Southall, through Osterley Park, to the final, third GoodGym session that Saturday. The two stopped in front of a house adorned with planters full of colourful flowers that made them think it wasn’t late autumn yet. They knew right away that someone who loves gardening lived inside. Soon, they found out that the dweller loved her dog too.

As soon as they rang the doorbell, they heard incessant barking. It was Miss B’s dog, an old girl whose name in English meant little mouse. The poor pooch couldn’t see well, but was lovely if given some time to settle. After sniffing the GoodGymers thoroughly and being rewarded with a treat for good behaviour, Miss B’s companion was Sevan’s and Kash’s best friend, looking for cuddles.

Miss B loved her eco-friendly garden, but was too unstable on her feet to take good care of it. Having 90 minutes of Ealing Goodgymers’ time, she asked them to complete a unique set of gardening tasks:

• Uprooting last season’s tomato and chilli plants
• Deadheading old flowers
• Trimming a shrub in a pot
• Planting violas so their flowers could keep the planters colourful throughout the winter
• Replanting a kumquat and cavolo nero plant
• Sweeping leaves for the compost bin

The session, which finished after sunset, sharpened Sevan’s and Kash’s gardening skills more than the multiple missions they had done this season so far. The new experience was not the only reward! Miss B had some home-baked carrot cake to share and a green chilli pepper that Kash had saved from the compost bin. What a lovely end of a November afternoon!