THE official launch of the city’s annual flower contest will take place this week.
Entries are now open for this summer’s Oxford in Bloom competition, which will celebrate the city’s best kept gardens.
Oxford City Council is preparing to launch the competition at Cowley’s Templars Square Shopping Centre, in Pound Way, on Saturday.
From 11am residents will have the chance to find out more about the competition.
Residents, schools and businesses are encouraged to take part in the free horticultural contest to be in with a chance of winning a cash prize.
Judges will visit entries for nine different categories before announcing the winners at Oxford Town Hall, in St Aldate’s, on Thursday, September 10.
They will also award prizes from £25 to £100 to the top three entries in each category.
Categories include Best Kept Small Garden, Best Kept Large Garden, Most Beautiful Balcony, Gardening for the Disabled, Display by Universities and Colleges, Best Large Commercial Display, Best Small Commercial Display and Garden Therapy Design.
Marks will be awarded for general impressions, colour and impact, cleanliness, tidiness, absence of pests and weeds, quality, choice, colour, arrangement of design and height.
Last September, more than 150 people attended an award presentation at the Town Hall, with more than 30 gardeners and groups scooping prizes.
The closing date for entries is Friday, July 3, with judging taking place later in the month.
See oxford.gov.uk/oxfordinbloom
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