The students - studying the Foundation Degree in Plant Use & Design and the BTEC National Certificate in Horticulture – were asked to create a garden by the Harrogate Spring Flower Show organisers as part of a regional College design challenge.

The Colleges taking part have been given details of imaginary families and set the challenge of creating a garden to suit their needs…. with only 5m x 5.65m to play with!

Using paving materials provided by the event sponsors Bradstone (a manufacturer of paving stones, walling, edging and decorative driveway products), the team at Park Lane College Leeds have designed a garden suitable for a couple with 2 children under five.

Student team member, Caroline Schofield, said: "Working on the garden over the last few months has been really hard work. We were assigned the paving "Milldale Antique Chestnut" by Bradstone, which features an Octagon Set and I immediately thought of the Octagon Theatre at Bolton - so we used the idea 'Play for Today', and separated the garden into the different areas of a theatre to coincide with a quote from a judge at last year's Chelsea Show: 'A show garden is just a piece of theatre'.

"We have created a garden that is affordable and child friendly and which balances space for play, plants and storage. We're really excited about getting the garden set up for the Show next week and can't wait until it's open to the public!"

Harrogate Spring Flower Show Director, Roger Brownbridge, said: "We want to show that good design doesn't have to be exorbitantly expensive or outrageous. Our aim is to encourage design that is innovative, as well as practical."

The Colleges taking part are: Askham Bryan, York and Harrogate; Bishop Burton, East Yorkshire; Craven College, Skipton; Leeds Metropolitan University; Park Lane College Leeds; Lincoln University.

The Harrogate Flower Show will be held at the Great Yorkshire Showground from April 24-27; the student gardens will be exhibited in the Bradstone College Garden Design marquee. www.flowershow.org.uk

Team members at Park Lane College Leeds are: Sally Clough, Tony Cross, Mark Darwell, Gary Gillings, Paul Wright, Gisele Freitas, Caroline Schofield, and Mandy Stamp.