128 EXHIBITING. 



•Many is the good tale I could recount of the show 

 tent and days pf preparation, if only I had time and 

 space. 



A great practice of mine was to tie up my blooms 

 with soft worsted, even to the outer petals, when 

 travelling, to keep them clean and preserve them 

 against damage. One day before a show at Bath I 

 had treated a box of 24 belonging to a friend of mine 

 in this fashion, and all were ready for the journey. A 

 competitor from Warminster called to see my friend's 

 garden, and the old gardener showed him his em- 

 ployer's exhibit, which looked more like a collection of 

 trussed fowls than show Roses. The Warminster ex- 

 hibitor patronisingly comforted the old gardener, and 

 trusted that they would do well, but conveyed no hone 

 The old gardener, however, was not to Be dismayed ; 

 he simply shut down the box and replied, ** You wait 

 'til the governor has put them through the mangle ! ** 

 Through the mangle they went ; that is, they were un- 

 tied and brushed out clean and fresh, and my friend 

 from Warminster, who was beaten, never said another 

 word. 



A regulation show box is an absolute necessity, 

 and I always had the tubes that held the Roses made 

 two inches deeper, so as to give greater elevation if 

 required, and also to hold more water. Some Rose 

 stems have to be cut short, and it is most vexing to be 

 unable to elevate a bloom to the required height. There 

 is no one to equal John Pinches for boxes and tubes, 

 and also for store boxes for spares ; it is quite an art 

 to turn these out strong and yet light enough to re- 

 duce railway charges, a considerable item in these 

 days. Good moss is also half the battle, and this 

 should be got from the country a few days before the 

 show; it only requires to be spread in the shade and 

 watered down every evening to last for many weeks. 



The surface of a well-mossed box sets off the 

 Roses to advantage, and nice fresh, green, feathery 

 moss from the woods is hard to beat. 



