YOUNG gardeners at a local primary school are taking part in a science experiment that is literally out of this world.

Pupils from Kingsbridge Community Primary School are now officially part of astronaut Tim Peake’s space mission, as they grow rocket seeds which were flown to the International Space Station on Soyuz 44S.

The seeds spent months in microgravity before returning to Earth last month and being given to schools to grow in a number of controlled experiments.

Kingsbridge Primary School received a packet of 100 seeds from space, which they will grow alongside seeds that haven’t been to space and measure the differences between them.

The children won’t know which packet contains which seeds until all results have been collected by the Royal Horticultural Society’s Campaign for School Gardening.

The experiment is designed to get children thinking about how to preserve human life on another planet in the future, what astronauts need to survive long-term missions in space and the difficulties surrounding growing fresh food in challenging climates. The children also made a poster congratulating Tim Peake on completing his recent marathon run on the space station - the photograph of the students with their poster has been emailed to Tim at the Space Station.

Sarah Jane Glanville, who runs the gardening club at Kingsbridge Primary School said: ‘The children have planted the seeds and they are all very excited.

‘They have learnt about Tim Peake, and how the seeds have been in space, and now they are in their classroom.

‘This experiment is helping them share in the space experience.

‘It has got them thinking about whether the seeds will grow - some say they won’t grow, and some think they will grow in a strange way!’

The pupils will now complete charts detailing their findings and how the rockets seeds are growing, if at all.