John Lewington who, with his wife Bettina, turned his garden into one of the finest in Oxfordshire, has died a

ged 64.

When they moved into their home in St Mary's Close, Kidlington, in 1995, the garden was a wilderness.

But within a year, after much hard work, it had become a blaze of colour, earning them the first of numerous prizes in the Cherwell and Kidlington in Bloom competitions.

He said at the time: "We came to a derelict house. The garden was a bit of a wilderness. It is surprising what you can make of a small garden."

Mr Lewington, who was vice-chairman of Kidlington Gardening Society, inherited his love of gardening from his grandfather and his parents.

Apart from tending his own garden, which attracted many admirers every year, he also supplied flowers to the nearby Kings Arms pub and St Mary's Church, and did odd jobs for many villagers.

He grew up in Kidlington and, after leaving Gosford Hill School, became an apprentice toolmaker at the Morris Radiators factory in north Oxford, which produced radiators, heaters, petrol tanks and other accessories for the motor industry.

After National Service in the RAF -- he missed the date it was abolished by two days -- he returned to the Radiators, rising to become manager of the tank shop. He and his wife lived at Witney and North Leigh after they were married.

They moved to Aylesbury when he joined Dexion, an engineering firm at Hemel Hempstead, but returned to his roots in Kidlington when he retired.

Mr Lewington was a regular blood donor and received a certificate after giving blood more than 70 times.

Mrs Lewington will lead mourners at the funeral service at Oxford Crematorium on Monday, January 5, at 10.30am.