It's a jungle in there! Man creates exotic paradise garden with banana plants and palm trees… in his backyard in LEEDS

Nick Wilson, 57, has spent 20 years creating his dream garden in Yorkshire

It takes the keen gardener eight hours to maintain it every single week

He spent £2,000 constructing a 'jungle lodge' and £150 a year on new plants



From the front it is just an ordinary semi-detached house.



But hidden behind Nick Wilson’s surburban home lies a tropical wonderland.



The bamboos, palms, banana trees and lush greenery would not be out of place in a steamy Far Eastern jungle.



There is even a wooden ‘jungle lodge’ to complete the garden’s exotic feel.

Secret garden: Nick Wilson, 57, has created this stunning jungle garden at his home in Leeds, Yorkshire

Where the wild things are: The tropical garden is filled with banana trees, bamboo plants and palm trees The tropical garden even has a wooden hut in the middle of it where Mr Wilson can entertain his guests

When Mr Wilson, 57, and his wife moved into their house in Roundhay, Leeds, 25 years ago their back garden was simply a long and narrow lawn.



The prospect of many hours of mowing inspired the software salesman to transform the turf into something far more interesting.

He planted various shrubs every year, put down timber walkways and constructed ponds which he filled with koi carp.



Over two decades the foliage thrived and grew to fill the 85ft by 30ft garden. Mr Wilson built the thatched lodge six years ago at a cost of £2,000.

The best things are worth waiting for: Nick Wilson shows his neighbour Sue Tuffin around the garden which has taken him 20 years to complete

Adapting: Despite temperatures in Yorkshire often dropping below freezing in the winter months, Mr Wilson says his tropical plants manage to British weather surprisingly well Delivery: Mr Wilson transporting gunneras ready to plant in his exotic garden Transformation: The garden started off as a regular back yard before its metamorphosis

This Sunday he is opening the space up to the public as part of a ‘garden trail’ designed to inspire visitors with ideas of how to transform a small piece of land.



Visitors would be forgiven for thinking they have been whisked away to the South Pacific rather than a suburb in West Yorkshire.



Mr Wilson, who spends about eight hours a week maintaining his greenery, said: ‘I’m not overly bothered about mowing lawns. I had always wanted a garden with wooden walkways and koi carp and lush planting.’



Towering over the jungle: Nick Wilson's outdoor hut has views across his garden

Under construction: Nick Wilson has spent years - and thousands of pounds - constructing his garden paradise

As well as bamboos and palms, a variety of ferns, gunneras and hostas combine to create the tropical effect.



The garden copes well with the northern climate, except the banana plants, which are kept inside during winter.



Mr Wilson added: ‘There is no special skill. It’s basic carpentry skills, a bit of pond digging … and putting plants in.’

Transformation: The keen gardener used wooden blanks and poles to give his paradise an authentic jungle feel Early stages: The hut is pictured halfway through being constructed before the roof was put on top of it Hard graft: A small digger in the back of Mr Wilson's garden levels the ground so the foundations of his hut can be laid down



