ORGANIC gardeners from Kent have won a gold medal at Chelsea Flower Show.

A children's garden featuring a giant earthworm, created by the gardening team from the Yalding Organic Gardens in Benover Road, Yalding, and their colleagues at the HDRA organic organisation, carried off the top prize.

The garden was designed by members of the HDRA (Henry Doubleday Research Association) from across the country and put together by staff at the Yalding gardens. It was the first time the two organisations have entered a garden into the show.

The medal was awarded under the Lifelong Learning in the Garden category of the show, organised by the Royal Horticultural Society.

The garden was designed around a spiral snail shell design and included a mysterious willow tunnel and a magical centrepiece featuring broomsticks and a witch's cauldron.

Children who played inside the garden were able to peer through portholes to examine the wildlife lurking in a woodpile, by a pond and inside a wormery in the giant earthworm.

Yalding head gardener, Nick Robinson, said: "We are blown away. This is our first year and we were thinking that if we managed to get a middling sort of medal we'd be able to get some feedback on what to try for in future years. We never expected to win a gold medal.

"There are quite a few bits in the garden which are quite unusual, including the 4ft worm. It is hopefully lots of fun for kids."

The garden, which is sponsored by Nemasys, which makes natural pest controls for gardens, and Duchy Originals, organic and natural foods, will be dismantled and brought back to Yalding after the show finishes on Saturday.

It will then be rebuilt and opened at the Yalding Organic Gardens for children to explore in the next few weeks.