GoodGym Ealing were raising the stakes today at the new Feeding Ealing site in Greenford. The stakes in question were marking out the locations of polytunnel poles that they'd measured out last month and they were now being raised to dig holes where the real, metal poles would be placed.

For some, they were experienced hands with constructing polytunnels and for others it was their first time. Today's jobs didn't need any polytunnel expertise though, only how to use a spade. Eight arches would need 16 holes to hold the each end of an arch. Polytunnel architect Joseph had made a start on the corners, so there were only 12 more intermediate pockets to excavate.

Joseph works with imperial measures, with everything being in feet and inches, so he gave the team a shock when they asked about the hole depth.

"How deep do the holes need to be?" - Gus
"30" - Joseph
"Inches?!" - Sevan
"No, centimetres" - Joseph
"Oh, phew!" - Sevan

Twelve big holes doesn't sound too hard, unless you're digging London clay soil which is heavy and sticky. Spades struggled through the dirt, trying to scoop the space out. One thin, saw toothed spade - Joseph's prized possession - was the perfect tool for the job, able to slide through the dirt and slice tree roots. It was much in demand.

Despite the hard going, the team used their muscles and determination to dig 11 and a half of the required pockets, only being stopped on the last one by available time and some really thick roots.

As a thank you for their huge efforts, task owner Jatinder gave everyone a Diwali treat at the end of the task. Everyone was offered a box of freshly made Indian snacks to take home as well as some samosas to nibble with the full volunteer group.