Lilies sponsored by members of the community will fill Hereford Cathedral with colour and fragrance this Easter.The displays will make a marked change after the austere weeks of Lent, when the cathedral goes without its usual floral arrangements.
TV presenter Jules Hudson visited the cathedral at the start of the Easter lily appeal.
"Throughout the year so many draw pleasure from the beauty of the cathedral being decorated with flowers," he said. "When the building is left bare of arrangements during Lent, it only heightens the sensation when on Easter Day hundreds of lilies seemingly appear from nowhere and the air is filled with their wonderful scent."
The lilies are sponsored by a member of the community in memory of loved ones who have died or as a token of thanks for a special event in their lives in the last year.
In recent years, lilies have been given to mark events ranging from the birth of grandchildren or the safe return of a son serving in Afghanistan, to remembering parents who died many years before.
"By sponsoring a lily you are able to support the cathedral and celebrate lives that are special to you," said Hudson. "After the dark months of winter and the austerity of Lent the explosion of colour and scent at Easter brings all your senses back to life."
To sponsor a lily, visit http://www.herefordcathedral.org