Horticulture fans ready Shropshire for floral contest
Horticultural enthusiasts in two towns and a village are preparing to fly the flag for Shropshire at this year's Britain in Bloom finals.
Shrewsbury has been entered into the Champion of Champions category – the ultimate award in community gardening. The Town of Flowers won the "best small city" award at last year's finals.
Bridgnorth and Norton in Hales, near Market Drayton, will also be represented at the finals in the town and village categories respectively.
Judges will visit all three communities in July and August and the results will be revealed at an awards ceremony in Bristol in October.
Organisers are this year celebrating the 50th anniversary of the launch of the Britain in Bloom competition, which this year has a theme of Growing for Gold to recognise the landmark.
The judges will inspect floral displays, but will also examine aspects such as local recycling to areas of natural habitat and conservation.
Challenges
They will also be looking at the management of street furniture and public parks, and will be assessing how well the group is responding to climate change and local challenges.
Special awards will be presented to finalists demonstrating excellence in specific areas such as planting for pollinators and community involvement.
Shrewsbury will be up against Ahoghill from Ulster, the City of London, Glenrothes in Scotland and Woolton in Liverpool.
Other entries from the Heart of England region, which includes Shropshire, are Tamworth in the small city section and Malvern in Worcestershire in the large town category
Stephanie Eynon, RHS community horticulture manager, said: "This is a really special year to be an RHS Britain in Bloom UK finalist because it's the 50th anniversary of the campaign.
"We would like to congratulate every group for reaching the finals of RHS Britain in Bloom but of course it's not about beating fellow finalists, it's about volunteers of all ages and walks of life gaining recognition for their extraordinary efforts to improve streets and neighbourhoods in towns, villages and cities across Britain.
"The awards are our opportunity to say 'thank you' and may I wish every finalist the very best of luck in this golden anniversary year."
For more information on RHS Britain in Bloom visit www.rhs.org.uk/communities
