A NEWPORT gardener has taken plant pottering to the extreme as he has built a 26ft tall flower tower in front of his house.

Edward Hayes, 71, of Gibbs road, Beechwood, is the proud creator of the 5ft square and 26ft tall tower.

“It’s called the flower tower,” said the garden enthusiast.

The structure is made of six steel sections, welded together and for extra green credentials, the steel is all recycled from old office desks.

“My main job is buying and selling office furniture. I had all this steel left over and thought I’ve got to make use of it,” said Mr Hayes.

“It’s something unusual – something nobody’s got.”

It took the semi-retired 71-year-old three months to complete, around his other work.

The tower, at the end of Mr Hayes’ drive and in front of his dining room window, is made up of 128 individual flower pots, each planted with five different plants.

T o create the mixtures of colour, the pots are largely filled with geraniums and fuchsias.

Most of the plants on there are home-grown from cuttings.

About 16ft of the tower can be seen from the road, which has undoubtedly been attracting some attention.

Mr Hayes said: “The neighbours adore it. A lot of people stop by and stop the car and take pictures of it and ask me questions. It’s out of this world.”

Maintaining the tower is no easy task, with the Beechwood gardener spending up to three hours watering and trimming twice a week.

Mr Hayes has already replanted the entire tower once after originally filling it with daffodils and tulips.

He said: “I designed it, cut the metal and welded it myself.

“Everything was done by me and that’s why I’m proud of it.”

This isn’t the first time Mr Hayes has set about on an original project.

He said: “Forty years ago I picked up a shovel and built an indoor swimming pool in a terraced house. I like unusual projects.”

And it doesn’t look like it’ll be his last.

He said: “I don’t feel 71. I’ve already got another one designed in my mind for next year.”