Apprentices fly the flag at prestige flower show

Apprentice gardeners Sean Rainford (back) and Lawrence Maxwell at work in Tatton Park. They will be at the show tomorrow and Thursday, proudly showing off the garden — complete with a tractor — and handing out information about the college and its courses

TWO of Oldham Council’s apprentice gardeners are working against the clock to help create a display to delight thousands of garden-lovers at the Tatton Park flower show.

Tomorrow will see the start of the hugely popular five-day RHS Flower Show which is expected to attract in the region of 90,000 visitors.

And Sean Rainford and Lawrence Maxwell have taken a break from their duties of keeping Oldham’s parks and green spaces up to scratch to work on a water garden show feature.

Sean (20) and Lawrence (22) are both NVQ level two students in amenity horticulture at Lancashire’s Myerscough College. They combine their studies with working on the job as apprentice gardeners — positions they were appointed to just eight months ago.

Their tutor, Nick Atkinson, picked out the pair, alongside two other students from other councils, to take up the flower show challenge.

Nick, who is a former head gardener at Oldham’s Alexandra Park, said: “It’s good experience and a challenge for them to build a garden for such a big show, and their employers in Oldham are very supportive.”