FORMER model and actress Kate Durr has won the chance to create a dream garden at one of the country’s leading horticultural shows…..just seven weeks after starting a diploma course in gardening design.

Green fingered Mrs Durr, 47, who lives just outside Malmesbury, will build a garden at the 2015 Royal Horticultural Society Malvern next month, which will be attended by an estimated 90,000 people.

Mrs Durr, whose actor husband Jason Durr is best known for his role as PC Mike Bradley in TV’s Heartbeat, was thrilled after being invited to play a major role in this year’s RHS Malvern.

The Malmesbury-born mother-of-three – previously Kate Charman – will to apply her budding skills to a garden she has called Constraining Nature that will be full of sensual contrasts and dominated by a statuesque feature wall of steel panels.

She said: “Raised in the countryside I’ve always loved plants and gardening.

“Creating gardens for our homes over the years in London, Los Angeles and now Wiltshire, inspired me to turn my passion into a career.”

She won the chance to build a garden at the prestigious four-day event from May 7-10 after applying to the national RHS Festival Garden competition.

The contest was introduced last year to inspire and encourage up and coming landscape designers to create a show garden.

Successful applicants are awarded a £3,000 bursary and supported by a panel of horticultural and construction experts during the design and the build stages.

Mrs Durr, who once modelled for the Pretty Polly hosiery company and who now attends the Cotswold Gardening School at Gossington, went on: “My tutor Caroline Tatham suggested I submit a design for the competition. To my delight, it was selected.

“The RHS have been most encouraging and very helpful. I am fortunate they have created the Festival Garden category at Malvern for newbies just like me.”

The RHS Malvern is one of the world’s biggest garden charities and Mrs Durr’s show garden will be built in support of Ucare, which focuses on urology research and awareness of urological cancers.

As such Mrs Durr’s garden will feature the 2015 bred tulip Caresse which is Ucare’s emblem of hope.

She said: “I am honoured and delighted to launch the brand new Ucare tulip in my garden.

“Chelsea gold-medal-winning grower Rob Evans is raising 400 of these rich pink beauties in Wales.

“I can’t wait to see them in all their glory at Malvern in May.”

Her garden is being sponsored by Whatley Manor Hotel & Spa of Easton Grey in association with Dyofix Pond Colours.

Renowned for its stunning 12 acres of English country gardens, Whatley Manor is offering Mrs Durr space in their Alitex greenhouses to cultivate her plants.

Whatley Manor’s owner Christian Landolt said “We are delighted to be supporting Kate who is an incredibly talented local designer and will without doubt create a fabulous garden.”