THIS green-fingered four-year-old has been using his passion for plants to help raise much-needed funds for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

This summer is the second that Jack Chatham, of Cliffe, near Selby, has been selling his home-grown flowers to raise funds for a good cause, since he discovered he had had a knack for nurturing plants from their seeds.

His mother, Victoria, 29, said: “His grandmother is really in to plants and last year he put some seeds in some pots and he did really well. He seems to have natural green fingers.

“He opened his plant ‘shop’ on York Road in Cliffe, on June 14 and sold out on July 23.

“He has even had people calling to check if he has anything left.”

She said: “He has had more than 90 customers and raised £60 for Yorkshire Air Ambulance. What’s been really nice is that Jack has had returning customers from last year –many saying how great last year’s plants were.”

Jack, who starts at Cliffe Primary School in September, raised £50 last year for research into leukemia.

This year’s profits have already been ploughed back into compost and seeds in preparation for next year’s growing season.

His grandmother, Nita, said: “He has really come into his own this year and has learnt so much. He puts the seeds in each pot with such care, tucking each one in saying ‘night-night little seed’, as he covered them with compost.

“He has worked really hard with his plants, each night especially one rainy nights he would carry out a little snail check – re-homing his snails at his uncle’s farm”.

“Every time he got home from pre-school he would check the letter box to see if any money had been pushed through or any plants had gone from his trolley, then rush out and restock.”