The family of a Perthshire pensioner are spearheading a campaign to save an area he has transformed into a garden.
Jock Gray has spent more than 30 years transforming a stretch of land in his hometown of Blair Atholl into a floral paradise visited by hundreds every year.
However, last month the 67-year-old was stopped in his tracks when a local farmer laid claim to part of the plot and allegedly told him to clear it with immediate effect or pay thousands to buy it outright.
Mr Gray had always been under the impression the land behind his Ford Road home was owned by Atholl Estates, which gave permission for the garden to be created years ago.
The farmer in question has also known the former roads engineer and wife Mary for many years and had never before mentioned his right to the patch, it is claimed.
Determined not to give up without a fight, Mr Gray’s granddaughters took to Facebook to rally support.
In just a matter of weeks the page has attracted almost 1,000 followers and an online petition is also going strong.
The piece of garden 1.5m wide and less than 30m long has planning restrictions.
It is not known what the owner intends to do with it.’It’s more than a garden’Mr Gray’s eldest grand-daughter Laura-Marie Simpson (23), who is leading the Save Jock’s Garden drive, has questioned whether the elderly man may have “squatter’s rights”.
However, it seems this is only the case south of the border.
She told The Courier: “I have never met such a hard-working man in my life. Every waking moment he has, he spends in that garden.
“If he was to lose it I don’t know what he would do. It would destroy him.”
She added: “It’s more than a garden, it’s a place for the community and a tourist attraction. He does it for others as well as himself.
“His children and grandchildren all love it.
“It defines a large part of our lives.
“When my sister Donna and I were younger we’d put on his wellies and pretend to catch fish in the burn or look for bugs and beasties until it got dark.
“Granddad even made us a special log cabin.”‘It just doesn’t make sense’Laura-Marie said: “I am also a keen photographer and it’s one of my favourite places to go.
“I got a prize for one of the pictures from it.”
She added: Nobody had a problem for all these years, and then this. It just doesn’t make sense.
“We’ve been told he has to clear the land by the end of this week, but no one knows quite why. It’s not like it has been sold.
“It feels like he’s being backed into a corner and pressured to part with money he doesn’t have to buy it, as I don’t see what else the land can be used for. I feel I can’t just sit back and watch someone destroy a large part of my granddad’s life.”
Mr Gray requested to keep the garden going for any future buyer or even until a successful sale, but this was allegedly declined.
Talks are now being held about staging a sit-in.