This Wednesday we had a spooktacular plogging poster distribution challenge.

Here at GoodGym Oxford we like a bit of healthy competition, and nothing quite gets that spirit fired up like a scavenger hunt with a purpose. With Halloween just around the corner we had a ghost-themed hunt this week. We divided into 2 teams: Runners and Walkers. Each team was given a list of haunted locations, 5 GoodGym posters, a litter bag and 2 litterpickers. Points were awarded for every poster pinned up, every haunted location visited, and for spotting a variety of Halloweenesque decorations (ghosts, broomsticks, pumpkins, cats and witches hats). There was also a requirement to clear up litter as you buzzed around the City.

It was neck-and-neck between the teams on posters displayed and locations collected, but the walkers truly spectacular 50 pumpkins had them whipping the win out from under the runners feet.

Our brains got a good workout from the strategising, our legs got moving, litter was picked, we learnt about the history and mythology of Oxford, and GoodGym was publicised...a win on many levels!

This evening we returned to the Warneford Hospital site, this time to help with their orchard - and to spruce up a few shrubs too - a double task!

Once we had weeded around a few shrubs in the main body of the site we ventured over to the orchard - some of us feeling rather relived to have chosen wellies as footwear! We were tasked with de-mulching some young trees to avoid rot, and gathering and picking lots of apples to be sent off to make delicious fresh apple juice.

We soon discovered that the vast majority of apples were REALLY high up! Apple picking baskets and Shati and Georgia's climbing skills to the rescue!!

It was a bit of a race against time with the evening drawing in but we managed to gather a considerable amount of apples, and maybe even nibble a few!

Welcome to Goodgym Georgia - thank you gor bringing your tree climbing skills!!

Love it or loath it (the bridge, not the location!), no-one can deny that every session at the community allotment at Hogacre Common gives us a good stair workout! Hogacre is tucked in between railway line and flood plain. The access is across a pedestrian bridge with many steps, making deliveries to the garden challenging.

Items we have been asked to carry across the bridge in the past include sofas and horse manure, so tonight's task of shovelling woodchip into boxes to carry across was pretty easy by comparison. We used the first loads to spread woodchip around the boggy entrance to the site, then refilled the boxes and delivered them to the garden gate for use around the beds and pathways.

Meanwhile, Django the spaniel kept a watchful eye on the GoodGymers weeding and mulching the garden beds; everyone's favourite supervisor!

Welcome back Axelle!

We had a triptych of tasks last night at the Marston Community Allotment:

• With warm, dry weather forecast for the next few days eveything needed a good soaking.
  
• One of the raised beds needed clearing of an assortment of weeds, including the dreaded bindweed.
  
• Woodchip and compost needed shovelling and barrowing over from the site entrance.
  

The weeders unearthed parnsips amongst the weeds, the waterers to-d and fro-d around raised beds and polytunnel making sure everything was well hydrated, the woodchip was used to level out the pathway, and compost to earth up potatoes (after they'd been freed from their bindweed and bramble companions). With parakeets in the trees and some warm late-summer sunshine it was almost Costa del Oxford.

Honourable mention for Mark's cameo towards the end of the task - just in time time for plenty of selfies and eating all the fresh veg he could lay his hands on ;-)

Marston Forest Garden is a gorgeous project nestled in an allotment site in Marston. It is an orchard, in its infancy, and Goodgym have helped with various tasks over the last couple of years from digging out brambles to spreading woodchip and tree care.

This evening's task was weeding. The medicinal herb circle was in danger of being swamped by Rose Bay Willow Herb, bindweed and other pesky plants. After some instructions (and delicious flapjacks) from Isobel and Antony we got cracking, making sure that we were 100% sure what was a herb and what was a weed!

After an hour of hard work and chat the space was much clearer and the herbs looked a lot happier! We were then absolutely delighted by a visit from Rhian bring leftover bread and treats from Gails for us to take home. Waste not want not!!

With our carbs in hand we set off on our run, some back home for bread and butter, some to collect more Oxen on the Oxford Oxen Trail.

A fabulous evening!!