Lytham In Bloom officials have issued a rallying call for a united effort...to tackle weeds.
It comes amid fears that an unprecedented proliferation of the unwanted greenery could hamper their chances of a prestigious prize.
Changes to the way Fylde Council tackles weed clearance have led to a host of complaints from residents about unsightly streets.
The council this week stepped up its bid to solve the problem, including deploying teams of manual weedpickers, and Lytham In Bloom chiefs have been quick to stress they have no criticism of how the council has tackled the issue.
But just three weeks ahead of North West In Bloom judges coming to town, the volunteer group is gravely concerned that the weeds might spoil the chances of emulating last year’s regional gold honour.
“We have never seen it looking as bad at this time of the year.” said Lytham In Bloom chairman Carol Wildon.
“The council has had to make changes and we appreciate that. It is also doing everything it can to tackle the issue.
“But we are calling on residents and businesses to help ensure the area around their property is looking its very best.
“Our volunteers have been working hard to help solve the problem but there are only a limited number of us.
“We have had some wonderful successes with In Bloom awards in Lytham in recent years, including being national champions of champions four years ago and being nominated for the big national prize again last year, and it is always a great community effort.
The call comes as Fylde Council take further steps to tackle the current increase in weeds experienced across the borough.
Last weekend, seven council employees worked on key routes in the borough spraying and manually pulling weeds, and that will happen again this Saturday.
The council added in a statement: “In addition to this, a further three teams of people have started manual weed pulling for at least a two-week period from Wednesday, focusing on the In Bloom routes, to ensure the borough is ready for the judges’ arrival.
“This is ahead of an additional weed spray scheduled for the week commencing July 17, when we will be tackling other priority areas across the borough.