The culmination of months of hard work by communities across Perth and Kinross will be scrutinised by the judges from Keep Scotland Beautiful this week.
The district has a proud history in the Beautiful Scotland competition and seven community groups are flying the flag this year.
Brig in Bloom (Bridge of Earn), Coupar Angus Pride of Place, and Comrie in Colour are all vying for the best large village category.
Blairgowire and Rattray in Bloom is in for medium town while Muthill in Bloom and Kinnesswood in Bloom are competing to be best small village.
The judges descended on Bridge of Earn and Coupar Angus on Tuesday and will be touring the other local entrants in the coming days.
During the judging tour, three themes are examined – horticultural achievement, community participation and environmental responsibility – to discover which communities have been most successful in improving the attractiveness, cleanliness and sustainability of the places they care for.
Winning communities will be presented with awards at a ceremony in Aberdeen on September 14.
The overall winner will be presented with the prestigious Rosebowl Trophy, while a number of discretionary awards will be presented for outstanding performance in areas such as biodiversity, tourism, and community involvement.
Some of the winners from Beautiful Scotland 2016 will go on to represent Scotland in the RHS Britain in Bloom Final in 2017.
Derek Robertson, chief executive of Keep Scotland Beautiful, paid tribute to the efforts being made in Perth and Kinross.
“All year round communities across Scotland are doing their bit to ensure local spaces are clean, green and beautiful and all too often these efforts are overlooked,” he said.
“Beautiful Scotland provides the opportunity for us to support the work that they do, celebrate their achievements and encourage even more communities to participate.
“Local environmental improvements can make a significant difference to the health and well-being of local communities, as well as creating further community cohesion.
“Beautiful Scotland groups across the country work tirelessly to improve and enhance the cities, towns and villages that they care about, creating more civic pride. We’d like to wish them all best of luck with their judging.”
Carole Noble, director at Keep Scotland Beautiful added: “Beautiful Scotland groups have made, and continue to make, a massive difference to our country. I’d like to wish all the entrants the best of luck this year.”
