Four GoodGymers gathered at Ray Mill Island to help the Friends with their ongoing project to transform the area into a more welcoming and biodiverse place. Today's task was to continue with the dry hedging which is separating off an area which has been sown with wildflowers. Various old branches had been collected which we added to the hedge, and some stronger, more flexible hazel branches were woven over the top to help hold everything in place. We also planted a small oak tree in the area which we hope will one day grow as big as the copper beech which is on its way out (but is still a treasure trove of biodiversity) We all learned some new skills. The last job was to water the recently- planted areas - Mick using the hose, and Sheila making use of the Thames water whilst not falling in!

Four GoodGymers joined other volunteers at Ray Mill Island to continue the great works to transform the area. Nivi worked on painting the mural, adding some lovely green bushes to the scene. Mick worked hard on removing the winter heliotrope from the rockery. Not an easy task as the plant puts out hundreds of rhizomes which all need removing, as well as there being lots of rocks under the surface. Rachel and Sheila were planting Lily of the Valley and Heuchera plants which had been donated by a local gardener and transported across the Thames on a paddleboard! The next task was to water the plants in - water was acquired by dipping our trugs into the stream whilst trying not to fall in! Mission accomplished! We then joined Mick at the rockery, and helped plant some Japanese anenomes in the space he had cleared. Afterwards we enjoyed delicious ginger cake provided by the lovely Rachel, and herbal tea from Tara. Another productive session

On the warmest day of the year so far, Mick, Nivi and Sheila helped out at Ray Mill Island. Sheila potted up some lavender cuttings and violets, which were handed over to Nivi. She set about fundraising, asking the park users for donations in exchange for the pots of plants or wildflower seeds. This will enable the Friends to buy more plants to further enhance this beautiful spot. Sheila moved on to sign-painting to ask the public to keep off newly-planted areas, while Mick weeded one of the beds and planted it up with celandine. A few trugs full of water gave the plants a good soaking and hopefully keep them going until the rain comes

On International Rewilding Day, the Friends of Ray Mill Island hosted an all-day workparty with 40 corporate volunteers from the Active Learning Group. Goodgym were invited to come along for the afternoon session and after sampling some cake from the Handmade Cake Company and our very own star-baker Rachel, we got straight down to work. Sheila K joined the corporate volunteers clearing the over-grown paths, followed by planting up an area with ferns, Tiarella and Periwinkle. Sheila A helped our local tree expert Martin Woolner put up painted signs which had been prepared by the volunteers in the morning, labelling the trees with their name. It took a bit of trial and error to work out how to hang the signs securely without damaging the trees. After a group photocall with the Maidenhead Advertiser Sheila A then joined Rachel who had been sanding one of the picnic tables. We set to work, treating it with preservative . A lovely afternoon, in some brilliant spring sunshine, and so much was achieved with an enthusiastic group of people

4 Goodgymmers met with Friends of Raymill Island to continue with supporting them to manage the Island.

This weeks tasks were more path widening, soil sorting, dry hedging and tool labelling!

Christine, Jess and Nivi took on the tasks of path widening by digging out the extra overgrown edges and then laying logs to mark the path. Whilst removing the soil and debris from the edges, they also sorted the soil so that the 'good stuff' could be used for planting things and the rest went to compost.

Meanwhile Elizabeth was tasked with marking up the tools owned by the Friends of Raymill Island so it's clear whose they are. She then joined Shoshan to help with the dry hedging next to the river bank.

We are very proud of our results and enjoyed the sunshine today!

Six Goodgymers joined other volunteers at Ray Mill Island to continue our quest to regain the path. It was lovely to welcome Sheila to her second Goodgym session and Mike to his first! And everyone certainly got stuck in, cutting back the undergrowth which was invading the path, cutting out the roots and retrieving the soil. We felt like the Time Team, when we uncovered the original stone edging which had been buried for years and gave us a good line to excavate back to. It was great to see such great progress being made

4 Goodgymers met with a small group of Friends of Ray Mill Island (including four mini Friends) for some family friendly Island TLC.

The main job of the day was to widen the main path running in front of the playground and cafe. This involved digging away the earth at the edge of the path and transferring it by wheelbarrow to the compost area. At the compost area a couple of volunteers sifted through the soil to remove roots. The mini friends enjoyed looking for the worms and transporting them in the wheel barrow to a safer place.

The path team then moved some logs and branches to mark out the new edge.

There were lots of squirrels taking an interest in our work with one particularly curious squirrel who befriended Jen and one of the mini friends.

Nivi and Sheila joined other volunteers at Ray Mill Island on the damp and cold afternoon. Our task was to plant up a couple of beds, one of which had been cleared and dug-over by Goodgym last week. We found plenty of fat, juicy earthworms, an excellent sign, and by the end of the session all the plants were in their places. Sheila quickly painted a couple of signs politely asking the public to keep off the newly-planted areas, and we were done!

I met with a small working party from Friends if Ray Mill Island (FoRMI) for a bit of Island TLC.

We cut back a hazel tree and rescued the branches to finish the dry hedging at a later date.

We moved onto cutting back other overgrown trees and doing some general tidying up. We took it in turns wheelbarrowing the branches to either the compost area, the dry hedge area or the children's play area for repurposing.

FoRMI meet from 1pm to 3pm every Saturday and would love to welcome more GG volunteers.