The Reading in Bloom campaign committee met in the award winning Forbury Gardens on Tuesday to encourage more people and businesses to get involved in the competition.
The committee hopes the latest 2015 bid will pip local rivals Oxford to the post in a regional heat of the national competition run by the Royal Horticultural Society.
Aiming to encourage towns to brighten up their communities, each year around 70 gardens are picked by judges to go through and represent the town in the national competition.
Sue Brackley, secretary for Reading in Bloom, said the efforts of local and business gardeners to beautify the town were important for the community.
The 55-year-old from Reading said: “People who enter this competition have their hearts in the right place. This competition is important to Reading because it gives locals and businesses the opportunity to bring beauty and colour to the road”.
The Reading and Oxford In Bloom groups often battle it out for first and second place in the regional heats of the competition.
Mrs Brackley said she would like more shops and businesses to get involved this year by beautifying a garden or premises.
The regional garden winner for 2014 was Reading’s Forbury Gardens and head gardener Roland Staines, 49, said he has been working hard to win the 'premier league-like battle’ with Oxford again this year.
He said: “We always try to get the best possible results every year, we work for the public and we do our best.”
Mr Staines, who has been gardening since he was a lad of five years old said he liked to “harmonise colours together” in his planting.
Of his winter beds, he said: “This year we used Primulaceae, Polyanthus, and tulips. I design all the flower beds, I do a bit of painting in my free time so the garden is an extension of my artwork.”
As well as entering the regional heats Reading is automatically entered into this year’s national competition in the business improvement district category after winning the Thames and Chiltern City regional category last year with Forbury Gardens. People can nominate themselves or another garden by visiting www.reading.gov.uk/readingblooms
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