Tenants and volunteers at a retirement housing development in Edinburgh have chipped in and grown their first crop of potatoes for everyone to dig in to.

After Bield residents acquired a taste for home grown vegetables, Milton Court’s gardening group decided to take on the challenge of harvesting their own for the rest of their community to enjoy.

The potato patch was the idea of Bield volunteer, Walter Hunter, who has been assisting with gardening at Milton Court for almost two years.

The green-fingered 67 year old said: “There was an empty space at the back of the garden and we wanted to make use of it.

“At Bield we are always looking for ways to enrich the lives of tenants so I thought it would be a good idea to experiment and do something different.

“Linda Mason, the development manager, brought in vegetables from her own garden and the tenants loved them, this is what gave us the idea to have a go at growing our own potatoes.

“Everyone felt like they had really achieved something after seeing the project through from start to finish and we thoroughly enjoyed the end product. It’s a good way to keep the weeds away too.”

After the success of their first harvest Walter and the gardening group are now thinking of expanding from potatoes to other vegetables, including cabbages.

Mrs Jean Swinton, a tenant at Milton Court, said: “I am looking forward to cooking and tasting the other crops they are going to try grow this year.

“I loved the potatoes I received, I used them to make mashed potatoes which were delicious.

“I am sure the vegetables they grow in the future will taste just as lovely.”