On this very summery Saturday, nine GoodGymers joined Janpal and Ash at Western Road Urban Garden in Southall for a community day. As usual, our favourite Southall task owners left the most exciting, most technical and most physical tasks for our brilliant team!

The main task of the day was to pick up where we had left off during our previous sessions at the polytunnel and finish transforming the area around it.

Before we started, we got to see what had been happening on the path we created a couple of months ago on the less visible side of the polytunnel. Ash proudly showed us a new beehive that had been installed there and told us he had already tasted honey produced by the Western Road Urban Garden bees, harvested not long ago.

Janpal also gave us his famous tour of the urban garden, showcasing the many ways it supports the local community, from the vegetable plots and raised beds used by community groups and schools to the exotic produce grown in the polytunnel, which is supplied to local food banks, where fresh fruit and vegetables are often among the hardest items to source through donations.

The tour was especially valuable as we welcomed not one, not two, but three new joiners: Keise, Barnaby and Mandeep. With gardening backgrounds ranging from years of farming and flower-growing to complete gardening beginners, they all quickly got stuck in. Alongside regulars Sevan and Steph Ducat, and the legendary walking duo Danny and Kat - who had already covered 10 kilometres before the task even began - the team got to work. Together, seven GoodGymers tackled the main task, battling through hard, dry soil to remove weeds and the old membrane before laying a layer of terram (stellar work on that, Kat, Mandeep and Keise!) and finally covering the area with woodchip, laid at speed by Sevan, Barnaby, Danny and Steph.

This left Freya and Kash to take on a very different task: digging and moving dried mud. However strange that combination of words may sound, it was needed to reinforce the base for a new water tank. As Janpal and Ash explained, they have been struggling with water pressure at the urban garden, and watering the many plants during such hot weather has become a demanding task that Janpal has had to undertake every other day. To help solve this issue, we had previously assisted with digging the hole for the foundation for new large water tanks that would be installed.

Freya and Kash spent most of the session filling the sides of the frame with soil and securing the area by pegging a membrane around the edges. Along the way, they had great fun putting a landscaping tamp into action and discovering that it's slightly larger and heavier than the ones used to make an espresso.

To get ahead of the water tanks' installation, Barney and Keise took on the satisfying task of smashing bricks and other construction debris unearthed during previous sessions into smaller pieces. Far from simply letting off steam, they were creating ballast for the concrete base that will support the new tanks. At Western Road Urban Garden, nothing goes to waste!

As always, the GoodGym team was treated to the generosity of Southall Community Alliance and enjoyed plenty of fresh fruit, along with some amazing samosas freshly baked by a local shop that Janpal had brought along.

Before leaving Western Road Urban Garden, we completed one final task: emptying a small water tank by abundantly watering the plants in the polytunnel. We then helped Ash fix the filling mechanism and secured the tank with wedges to level it properly. What a fulfilling Saturday morning it was!

We're now getting close to the final stage of installing the new water tanks, which will involve a bit of concreting and hands-on engineering - no prior experience required! The project will make a huge difference, helping Janpal and Southall Community Alliance tackle ongoing water pressure issues and reducing the need for time-consuming manual watering during the summer. To help the polytunnel produce survive and thrive through the hot months ahead, we'll be scheduling this task soon, so watch this space.

Another unusually hot weekend in May, another trip to Southall for GoodGym Ealing - this time to Western Road Urban Garden to help Southall Community Alliance with planting exotic crops ahead of the season.

The garden was visited not only by six GoodGymers but also, unexpectedly, by three police officers on patrol. While the GoodGym team started preparing the veg beds and erecting trellises for beans and gourds, the hosts Janpal and Ash gave the officers on duty a comprehensive tour of the food-growing space. And there were novelties since our team last visited the garden - a new beehive had been built behind the polytunnel, with dozens of stingy pollinators already getting busy around it!

On such a hot day, many would choose an indoor task in the shade, rather than digging weeds and shovelling compost in full sun. It wasn't the case at WRUG, where the only place that counted as indoors was the polytunnel. While the early arrivals, Maxime, Sevan and Kash were responsible for preparing the outside raised beds, Ash was assigned to help Janpal construct trellises. After almost an hour (with breaks, of course!) of roasting in the 44°C "oven", he developed such an engineering skill in trellis building that his capabilities were sought for outdoors, at the raised beds, freshly weeded and topped with compost. Ash swapped with Kash and Sevan, who, together with Lena, entered the polytunnel for the planting phase. Meanwhile, Ash taught Harvey and Maxime all his trellis know-how, and all three got to planting in the raised beds.

It was a special session for Ash, as he not only survived the polytunnel sweat challenge and spread the construction knowledge, but also hit a milestone of 25 good deeds - halfway to the black T-shirt!

The crops planted today, including many South Asian staples, were:

• Snake gourd
• Bottle gourd
• Kerala
• Pumpkin
• Melon
• Tomato
• Red bell pepper

As usual, Janpal prepared a feast for the volunteers, with plenty of ice cold water to keep us hydrated, bananas, strawberries, tangerines, giant blueberries, and staple samosas. Breaks in the shade with refreshments in reach definitely helped the team keep going!

We should see the fruit ready for harvest in a couple of months! Meanwhile, we are planning another community day at WRUG in June to prepare space for additional water storage at the garden. Sign up now!

Finally, the GoodGym team got to experience a proper spring day at Western Road this year! Everything seemed perfect: the morning was glorious, Janpal was back - after having to miss a couple of community days - with his trademark joviality, hospitality and refreshments. Ash brought his usual engineering insights and a vision of what the urban garden could become. With his head full of improvement ideas, we could never get bored at WRUG! Today's two projects had a lot to do with levelling and enhancing surfaces: around the polytunnel and the outside toilet.

The space behind the privy needed to be paved, and although the area wouldn't be immediately visible to the visitors, the slab laying deserved Swiss precision. Due to a lack of Swiss people, two French men, Maxime and Steph Ducat, volunteered to complete that technical task: laying a membrane, a layer of sand and carefully arranged slabs: heavy, but fragile. Armed with high spirits and a spirit level, they've done a tip-top job!

Meanwhile, GoodGym's Ash, Afshin, Sevan and Kash removed the weeds from the side and back of the polytunnel with shears and hoes.

"What should we do with the green waste?"
"Give them to the Dalek" - WRUG's Ash.

The designer of the Dalek-shaped compost bin at Western Road must have been a Doctor Who fan. Now, that begs a question whether at the next session we'd be repainting the outside toilet to look like TARDIS!

After levelling the ground by the polytunnel, the team was going to lay and peg down a 1 metre-wide sheet of Terram. The challenge was that Terram didn't come in that size. GoodGym's Ash, known as "good with the saw", volunteered to saw a thick piece of Terram roll, held in place by Afshin and Sevan. It turned out to be tough work...

"It's like cutting an anaconda" - WRUG's Ash.

...and a hazardous one.

"Sevan, don't breathe in this dust. Later, you might be growing a moustache... in your lungs!" - WRUG's Ash.

While we're still waiting on the development inside Sevan's lungs, our Ash didn't saw off anyone's finger. He made an even, clean cut in the Terram, which was then pegged down on the long side of the polytunnel. While Afshin and Ash cleared the back of the polytunnel and Sevan started spreading the last layer - woodchip - over Terram, Kash went to dig out some soil to fill the uneven ground.

"This soil is a bit lumpy." - Kash.
"It's perfect. The best soil for filling is a bit lumpy. Just like the best custard, a school dinner classic." - WRUG's Ash.

We took a break to enjoy delicious samosas, tea, coffee and fruit, including those big, sweet blueberries that no one knows where Janpal gets them from.

After the refreshments, the energy levels spiked. We completed levelling, Terraming and woodchipping the back of the polytunnel - more than WRUG's Ash anticipated. What an impressive result!

Next month, we will finish the work around the polytunnel to prevent the weeds from creeping in. There will also be also weeding as all the plants - wanted or not - feel the spring in the air and start growing like crazy! Sign up now.

Sunny Saturday and we returned to Western road urban garden. Ash welcomed the early birds Richard who cycled from Southall park after his parkrun ,Sophie who walked and Steph Ducat who walked along the canal.Ash debriefed the crew and the the Goodgym Ashley arrived. we split into 2 smalls teams and then Shubham arrived with Hestia who struggled to find the garden. They joined the 2 teams. Welcome Hestia for your first Goodgym community mission. Two teams but the same goal : level the ground at 2 different areas to then install the water tanks. Sophie, Richard and Hestia were sorting stones/rocks and gathering them in the square hole which had a wooden frame. They were braking the bigger rocks to fit in the frame and no they were not playing rock, paper, scissors!! On the other side behind the loos, near the house where previously Goodgym cleared space for a water tank, the 3 other musketeers had to level the ground for slabs and the tank which will be at a higher level. The team had to bring the level down, get rid of all metal items in the soil and also created a nice path alongside the polytunnel. The spirit level was the key tool today and the sun also kept the goodgymers spirit levels high. next phase will be to cement both frames and install the water tanks on top. The other team also did some clearing of weeds in front of the polytunnel. We all enjoyed frsh water, oranges and cookies at the end of the session.

Nine GoodGymers who visited Western Road on a cloudy Saturday morning were in their element the moment they jumped into action. And the element of the day was water. Somehow, miraculously, it didn't rain in the morning - that, obviously, had to happen at some point. It was the water tanks that served as the theme for the February session at the urban garden.

Firstly, a heavy tank had to be emptied of water and a sludge-like mess, then wheeled on a trolley to a different part of the garden. Secondly, two other water tanks - 1000-litre monsters each - were waiting to be placed in more suitable locations. Our job was to create those appropriate places for them: one high and one low. While Sophie and Afshin were digging a wide hole for one tank, Sevan and Steph were using the dirt extracted by them to build a platform for the other container.

A side quest, not related to water, had Danny, Kash and Steph moving woodchip to a newly planted section of the native hedging, to be raked by Kat and Iram. The fun part? There were only two wheelbarrows, one of them undergoing surgery at the beginning of the session. Once the barrow got a new (puncture-proof!) wheel installed, it got captured by Afshin, who had to move the soil for Sevan, who was building the water tank podium. The woodchippers ended up, again, with a single wheelbarrow between them, but quickly got creative and found some buckets to reduce the need for wheeled transportation.

Lena joined a team (partially including members of Let's Go Southall) whose job was to take down a mound of soil and use the material to even the ground around the polytunnel. And guess which tool was most useful to move the soil? Yes, that extra task meant even more competition for the wheelbarrows!

We managed to do the jobs thanks to teamwork and creativity, then found some time to enjoy fruit and hot and cold drinks in the polytunnel. White strawberries captured the most attention as a curiosity, unseen before by most Ealing GoodGymers.

For half of the eight GoodGymers, who visited Western Road on a chilly Saturday morning, the day started with parkrun. The nearby Southall Park event celebrated its 200th occasion and 4th birthday. Sevan and Steph Ducat couldn't miss the opportunity and ran to volunteer at the parkrun, while Richard, one of the GoodGym new joiners, ran the course. Chris also decided to begin the morning with a parkrun, but his local Gunnersbury one, from where he cycled to Southall. Iram also came on her bike, and Kash ran from Ealing along the canal.

There has already been plenty of activity just to reach Western Road, and the 3-hour session ahead would involve even more exercise. Fortunately, Janpal from Southall Community Alliance, the organiser of the community day at the urban garden, came prepared with a fruit bowl, tea, coffee, pastries and samosas to keep the energy levels high!

The January session meant preparations for the next season's food growing, and our team focused on the central veg bed in the polytunnel. First, we removed last year's stakes and remaining chili plants, and then topped the beds with a super-nutritious mix of three layers:

1. Rich magic soil donated by the police
2. Potent manure, marinated for a year
3. Good, old woodchip

While the rest of the team got busy carrying and tipping bags with soil, Iram and Sophie were picking chili peppers from the bush to save their seeds for growing next season's crops. Despite the temperature in the polytunnel being 5 degrees (so noticeably warmer than outside), chili-picking was brutal for the fingers with no gloves on. Sophie later wholeheartedly welcomed the manure-shovelling as a more dynamic alternative, where she could keep moving and stay warm.

Winter or not, the day brought to the Western Road Urban Garden not only the core crew: Janpal, Paul and Ash, along with the eight GoodGymers, but also a group of volunteers from Let's Go Southall and Mr Bhasin from neighbouring Manor Way Allotments. What a turnout! With such a strong team, we finished not one, but all three veg beds - and all the samosas - in no time! It was great to see guests from GoodGym Hounslow, Chris and Maxime, and welcome Richard and Sophie to our Ealing team.

Ash has shared the plans for the first quarter of the year - one of them involves an exciting shed building project! Meanwhile, our February session will feature clearing the space for the shed and for replanting part of the native hedge. Join us next month to get involved in the bold plans at WRUG. We've been working with them from the start for two years now, and know that visiting the garden regularly is the best way to see the astonishing transformations between the seasons!