Tuesday 18th June 2024
Report written by Sevan
A last minute change of task brought GoodGym Ealing back to Lammas Orchard, where task owner Trevor had prepared a giant new pile of woodchip for the team's wheelbarrowing pleasure. In addition, there were raised beds to water and an explosion of invasive plants to trim back.
Claire, Kash and Steph Ducat started by moving woodchip onto the untreated paths and managed to complete the main routes through the orchard. Meanwhile, Clare, Alaa, Milly and Sevan were chopping away at brambles, pulling sticky weeds and taking down anything else spiky and likely to put people off from walking through the orchard. There was a lot of cat talk going on in the group and no mention at all of current affairs, with everyone sticking to furrier ground.
Milly took on the final task of looking after the raised beds that sit outside the orchard. The roses in the raised beds were already in bloom, while the strawberries and redcurrants were still working on being juicy enough to be eaten. Milly tended to their affairs, watering the redcurrants to make sure they achieve their destiny this summer.
Satisfied with their work, the GoodGymers returned their tools to the storage area in the Rickyard with some elegant formation wheelbarrowing.
In February 2011, local children planted 21 fruit trees to form a Community Orchard in the overgrown tennis courts in the Lammas Enclosure, between Lammas and Walpole Parks. Volunteers from Ealing Transition have taken on the management of the area and preservation of natural habitats. The residents call on our own GoodGym volunteers from time to time when they have specific tasks that need extra pairs of hands.
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