70 PACKING GRAPES FOR EXHIBITION. 



smashed or damaged. The preservation of the bloom forbids the use 

 of packing material indeed, nothing must touch the Grapes, and yet 

 they must be fastened securely enough to be carried safely ; they 

 must, in fact, be taken to the exhibition and staged under special 

 personal supervision. 



The ordinary plan is to fix the bunches by the stalk with wire to 

 a board or stand, previously covered with white paper, and placed in 

 a sloping position. When the bunches are long or large, one or two 

 more ties are required to prevent their moving, and the loose 

 shoulders are propped up with wads of cotton-wool. This board or 

 stand, with bunches affixed, is then placed in a suitably prepared box, 

 and screwed down. Great care must be taken to have it carried in 

 the same position to its destination. 



Fig. 30. EXHIBITION GRAPE STAND. 



Practised exhibitors have specially prepared stands and boxesy 

 which show off the Grapes to great advantage, and in which they 

 can also be carried with great safety. The illustration here given, 

 fig. 30, is that of a stand for two bunches from 12 to 15 inches in 

 length, the same as used by Mr. Taylor, gardener to Alderman Chaffin,, 

 of Bath, which is one of the best we have seen. 



