The flower beds and planters are beginning to look more colourful in the town as Shrewsbury Town Council has commenced its summer planting scheme.
The mammoth task to bring the floral features to the town centre started this month and will see more than 300,000 home-grown blooms planted out in various locations in Shrewsbury.
More than 30,000 plants will be planted in Shrewsbury’s show garden in the Dingle, with the rest reserved for Shrewsbury’s numerous hanging baskets, tubs and planters.
All of the blooms are grown from seed or plugs at the Town Council’s own greenhouse, which covers the size of a football pitch, at Weeping Cross Centre.
Helen Ball, town clerk for Shrewsbury Town Council, said: “We are proud of the tremendous floral traditions in Shrewsbury which helps to maintain our reputation as THE Town of Flowers for our residents and visitors alike.
“Our dedicated staff work hard to ensure our flowers look great for the whole of the town and they take great pride in upholding our hard-earned reputation. It’s a pride we hope extends to all of our residents, shops and businesses.
“With that in mind, we are asking local people to adopt a zero-tolerance policy towards any vandalism of the floral displays within the town centre. If you see something untoward, I am asking everyone to do their bit for Shrewsbury and report it to the Town Council or the local policing team, who will be working closely with us to ensure that any vandalism is dealt with appropriately.”
Inspector Ed Hancox, from Central Shropshire Safer Neighbourhood Team added: “It is frustrating to see incidents of mindless theft and damage to the floral displays in the town, and I share the frustrations of my Team Shrewsbury partners who often have to react to these incidents. I am keen to stress that anyone caught committing criminal offences, or acts of anti-social behaviour, will be held to account and potentially prosecuted should that be necessary.
“The Town has comprehensive CCTV coverage, which is often used to identify offenders, even those who may feel they’ve successfully escaped the scene.
“There are many hard working groups and individuals in Shrewsbury who continue to help develop the town centre as a place where people wish to live, work and visit and we will not tolerate these acts which blight the town centre for so many people.”
To report any incidents of damage of the floral planters in the town, please contact Shrewsbury Town Council on 01743 281010 during office hours or West Mercia Police on 101.