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Bracknell flowers promise to bloom, thanks to help of local businesses and special drought measures

21/07/06

Bracknell Regeneration Partnership (BRP) and Bracknell Forest Borough Council (the Council) are working together to ensure Bracknell Flowers 2006 is as vibrant as ever, focusing on the town centre and surrounding villages, to create a cheerful and beautiful environment for the Borough.

Bracknell Flowers 2006 has received generous support from Bracknell local businesses to ensure the flowers in the town centre have a ‘blooming good summer’. In addition to BRP’s 40,000 contribution, other generous sponsors have included Arlington Securities, Bentalls, Chamber of Commerce, Classic Sandwich, Honeywell, Cheltenham and Gloucester, Fairbrother and Darlow, Evans Ltd, Initial Retail Cleaning, Pouncetts, Sejwix, South Hill Park Digital Media Centre, Pemberton Services, The Grange Hotel and Sonrisa Photography.

The magnificent floral displays will continue to delight shoppers despite this year’s drought conditions, with drought tolerant plants such as verbena and geraniums being incorporated into the design . Water retention granules have also been incorporated into the compost and the town is even trying out a new water retention product that promises to reduce the need for watering by 25%.

Helen Barnett, Marketing Manager Bracknell Regeneration comments:
“Bracknell is renowned for the beauty of its floral displays which give shoppers and residents alike a great deal of pleasure. We are delighted to say that local businesses have admirably risen to the drought challenge – so far providing sponsorship of nearly 8,000 to be added to the flower pot. Special mention must go to Arlington Securities who provided 3,000 to help us this year.”

The drought initiatives should put the town in good stead for this year’s Britain in Bloom competition, which for 2006 has a special category that looks at how well a town is dealing with restrictions imposed by the drought.

Bracknell Forest Borough Council’s highly popular Bracknell in Bloom – renamed ‘Your Gardens’ this year, has continued to ready the town for the competition. May’s Bracknell Garden Centre event proved exceptionally popular and helped local residents gear up for the competition. Support and advice provided to individual gardeners on how to improve their own gardens – even during a drought – means the borough will look even more verdant this year.

Steve McKenna, Landscape Manager of Bracknell Forest Borough Council said:
“The Bracknell Flowers 2006 team has been working hard to ensure that many water conservation techniques and measures have been adopted, such as the water retaining crystals and watering early in the morning and evening to reduce evaporation. We are hopeful that the initiatives taken will ensure the Borough’s floral displays look wonderful throughout the summer and that we do well in the competition again this year. Bracknell is justly proud of its blooms and we can look forward to some magnificent displays in the town centre, on local roundabouts and in parks – and of course in people’s own back gardens.”

Angus Lachlan, associate director with Arlington Securities, Bracknell Flowers 2006 lead sponsor said:
“Arlington is very pleased to support Bracknell Flowers 2006 and the Bracknell Regeneration Partnership. The design and maintenance of the floral displays take a lot of hard work and the benefits of the beautiful end result are clear to see in and around Bracknell.”