David BalePublicans are being urged to enter the 'Floral Public House' category of this year's Norwich in Bloom competition - and win a trophy.David Bale

Publicans are being urged to enter the 'Floral Public House' category of this year's Norwich in Bloom competition - and win a trophy and a �25 voucher.

Last year the award was won by Norwich's oldest watering hole, the Adam and Eve in Bishopgate, which impressed with its display of more than 20 hanging baskets, pots of potatoes, peas, tomatoes and herbs and flowers.

The winner in 2008 was the Whalebone pub in Magdalen Road, so competitors have a tough act to follow.

Rita McCluskey, landlady at the Adam and Eve, said she had again entered this year's competition, but had to switch categories after winning last year.

This time she's competing for the Summer Super Award sub-category of the Sponsors Premier Award, which can only be entered by last year's category winners.

She said: 'We will have more of everything in our display this year, but it will be a lot of hard work.

'The displays cannot go up until the last week in May, because they would have died in a frost, and it would be too much to have to replace them.'

City councillor and competition organiser Julie Brociek-Coulton said: 'We need more entries from pubs for this year's competition. The Adam & Eve won it last year and the Whalebone the time before, and we are looking for another excellent competition.'

The Norwich in Bloom annual competition is aimed at encouraging people to pick up their gardening tools and was launched in March at the Assembly House in Norwich.

There are six categories in the Summer Competition 2010, which people across the city are being invited to enter.

They are commercial and industrial, private residential, allotments, churches, sustainable displays and the sponsor's premier awards, and each has several sub-categories.

For an entry form for the competition visit www.norwichinbloom.co.uk and click Entry Form Summer under the Local Competitions tab.

Closing date for entries is Saturday, June 19, and trophies will be presented on Sunday, July 25.

The Evening News' Love Your Local campaign aims to get punters back into pubs that are struggling to survive in the recession.

To see previous stories from our campaign log on to www.eveningnews24.co.uk/loveyourlocal.

Is your pub getting a revamp? Call Evening News reporter David Bale on 01603 772427 or email david.bale2@archant.co.uk.