In a mammoth task a Super Six of Saturday GoodGymmers helped to plant thousands of crocus bulbs on Richmond Riverside. The bulbs were planted in the shape of the Rotary Wheel as part of Richmond Rotary’s ‘crocuses of hope’ project. The flowers are a reflection of the hope that, by the time they bloom in February/ March, a vaccine will have been created that will help to end the current Covid-19 pandemic. It was World Polio Day on Saturday, October 24 and this is another cause that Rotary clubs have a history in supporting and for which a vaccine helped to save countless lives. Adam, Africa, Carla, Kate, Kitti and Sam arrived at the task which was up on the grass near Goucho.
An outline of the Rotary wheel had already been marked out and, working in pairs and face masks, we set about digging a trench all the way around by removing 10cm of turf. We then planted around 8,000 bulbs in rows of five, sprinkled on some fertiliser, put the soil and turf back on and, some 3 ½ hours later, it was complete. Members of the Rotary Club, friends and St Margarets councillor Ben Khosa were among the people who got stuck in alongside us. The project was overseen by Auntie Planty herself, Valerie Munro, who offers a garden MOT service and also runs Richmond Talking Newspaper to read the news to blind and partially sighted residents. Mayor of Richmond councillor Geoff Acton arrived at noon for a photocall and to hear all about the project. Geoff picked two environmental charities to support in his year as mayor so he was most impressed by our green fingered efforts and GoodGym Richmond’s garden work in the community. We look forward to early spring next year and seeing the crocuses in full bloom.