We were back at Chiswick House last night for another lovely GoodGym Hounslow session, and what a treat we had in store: two tasks, both indoors! It was especially good timing with the evenings drawing in.

Chiswick House is a wonderful local resource and the team keep our green spaces thriving, protect their heritage and make them welcoming places for the whole community to enjoy. By helping with the behind-the-scenes jobs, we’re doing our bit to support a special place for local people.

We met up with Poppy and split into two teams to tackle our tasks for the evening.

🌱 Team Seeds

Half the group headed inside to sort through seeds collected from the garden and carefully pack them into pouches. These seeds will either be resown to help grow more beautiful plants or sold to raise funds for the charity. It was peaceful, chatty work, with plenty of time to catch up and discuss everything from the Pope to our upcoming birthday! Proof that chatting while GGing throws up some of the most interesting conversational topics.

🌿 Team Willow

Meanwhile, over in the barn, the other team got busy stripping willow branches before carefully manoeuvring them into arches. These will be planted to support the flowers in the herbaceous borders, helping them grow securely.

This task took a fair bit of skill and dexterity, but GoodGym Hounslow were more than up to the challenge! There were expert demonstrations of willow stripping, along with a spot of country dancing - anyone else remember the Stripping the Willow formation?

It was a thoroughly wholesome and productive evening, with plenty achieved and lots of good company along the way.

🏃 We rounded off the evening with a run back to base, breaking it up with a variety of fitness stations. A little extra exercise to finish off a brilliant session — and some very impressive pictures to prove it!

Next week: We’re heading to Duke’s Meadow to clear a space for young people. Another great opportunity to give something back to our local community, get moving and have a good chat along the way.

See you there, GoodGym Hounslow! ❤️

Another great night at Masbro Centre and we got stuck straight in.

First up was the front garden — we cleared all the fallen leaves and got it looking tidy again. Then it was onto the small roof area, with Jalal up high doing the hero work and getting stuck in.

Next, back garden takeover! Lillie & Matthew made that sliding door glass absolutely shine 🪟 you could barely see the glass afterwards, while Therese, Jalal and I went full leaf-busters and cleared nearly 5 bags worth 🍁💪

Best moment: Lillie rescued some lovely tomatoes from the garden — saved just in time for Bea’s dinner 🍅

Great job done by all, Masbro is looking fresh front to back!

🌱🎃

We were back at Doddington for our monthly session last night— the evenings are getting darker, but thankfully it’s still warm enough to make the most of being outside.

We kicked things off with the important question of the evening: what colour is hippo sweat? Because why wouldn’t we? 🦛

Then it was time to run down to the garden, where we got stuck straight into a whole host of jobs. We laid down cardboard to create new growing space, dug out and replanted teasels, shifted soil around the garden and generally had all hands on deck helping with the maintenance of this special place where local people without access to gardens can grow food.

It’s such a beautiful time of year at Doddington, with amazing squashes and pumpkins growing all around the site. The children will be carving them for the local library, before the contents are cooked up and shared with the community — meaning everyone gets to be part of the life cycle of the garden. 🎃🌱

With the garden jobs done, we headed down to the square for our circuits-based fitness session. And if that wasn’t enough, we finished with a one-minute squat challenge. Our legs were definitely feeling it by the end!

Great work, everybody! 💪

Then it was off to the quiz to defend our GoodGym reputation. 🧠🏆

Next week, we’re heading to Paradise to shovel manure in this beautiful space. Come and get stuck in!

Sign up here for all the details.

Last night GoodGym Hounslow was back on Turnham Green, helping to sow the seeds of what should be another beautiful display next spring.

We did this job last year and the results were fantastic — bright daisies, pops of poppies and cornflowers bringing a splash of colour to the Green. In fact, we even had passers-by stopping to tell us how much they’d enjoyed the flowers last year! 🌸

Our first job was to scarify the ground, working in strips across the meadow. This meant pulling up the dried grass and vegetation to expose patches of bare soil, before gathering up and removing the rough grass.

Next was the heavy rolling. This helped consolidate and firm the seedbed, giving the newly prepared ground a good, even surface and helping create good contact between the soil and the seeds.

And then came the fun bit — sowing the seeds! 🌱

With the ground prepared, we scattered the wildflower seeds across the freshly exposed soil, ready for nature to do its thing over the coming months.

Watch this space in spring to see what happens next! 👀🌼

It’s a small investment of time now that will hopefully bring colour, enjoyment and increased biodiversity to Turnham Green for months to come. A little work last night for the benefit of people and wildlife in the future. 💚

With the task complete, we still had time for a nice long full-body workout on the Green. We started with some strength and conditioning, working all the major muscle groups, before moving on to some cardio to get those heart rates climbing. We finished with the bit everyone loves to hate — a two-minute burner! 🔥

Great work, everybody.

🏃 This Sunday: join us for an inclusive, social trail run around Wimbledon Common. Around 10km, at a social pace, with hills, greenery and plenty of chat — all welcome!

🌿 Next Wednesday: we’re heading back to help Wild Chiswick

See you next week! 💚

Every few weeks we go back to do jobs at Chiswick House and Gardens, and helping out here is always rewarding. Because the Chiswick House & Gardens Trust operates as a registered charity, they rely heavily on the local community to preserve their 65 acres of historic parkland. Without volunteer efforts, maintaining these heritage grounds to share them with the public wouldn't be possible.

Our evening began by gathering on the peak of the Classic Bridge. Built in 1774 for the 5th Duke of Devonshire and designed by the celebrated architect James Wyatt, this beautiful stone structure spans the lake and even still bears shrapnel scars from World War II. Standing on its crest, we took a moment to mark the Autumn Equinox—the exact time of year when day and night are of perfectly equal length. But as any seasoned GoodGymer knows, the equinox also brings a turning point: from here on out, head torches are officially at the ready for our evening sessions! 🔦

We then moved over to a densely overgrown patch to pull out stubborn ivy and tug and snip away at the tangled brambles. By clearing away these aggressive invaders, we opened up space to ensure that the plants meant to grow there can thrive, keeping the entire area beautifully clear and safe.

As twilight crept up on us, the team downed tools and carried heavily loaded bags out to the compost area in the pitch dark, before Maxime capably led the group back to base. Phenomenal work, everyone!

🗺️ Up Next:

Saturday Mission: We are heading over to help out the Friends of Baron's Pond - can you help create a beautiful bluebell grove?

Next week we are staying on home ground for a lovely green session, planting flowers at Turnham Green. Don't miss it!