Gardening for Amateurs 



of the hall or tent causes the blooms to 

 develop quickly, and the lower flowers 

 would soon lose their freshness if they were 

 slightly too old. 



How to Pack. Care must be taken that 

 the blooms are quite dry when packed, 



A row of exhibition Sweet Peas. 



otherwise they will come out bruised and 

 spotted. Each bunch of fifteen or twenty 

 sprays should be rolled in thin tissue paper 

 and packed just tightly enough in the boxes 

 to prevent its shaking. It is well to have a 

 few holes drilled in the sides of the boxes, 

 to keep the blooms cool and fresh. Some 

 prefer to send their flowers in water, but 



this is both expensive and troublesome, and 

 really not necessary. Flowers packed in the 

 way advised soon become fresh, even after 

 a long journey, when they have been in 

 water a short time. 



Exhibiting. Staging is an important 

 point for exhibitors ; many 

 prizes are lost through the 

 exhibits being badly arranged. 

 Competitors should always 

 remember that points are 

 allowed for arrangement. As 

 a rule the trouble in arranging 

 Sweet Peas is to get them 

 to remain where they are 

 wanted. This can easily be 

 got over by using a small 

 bundle of rushes or straw 

 which should be tied at one 

 end and placed in the vase, 

 the bound end at the bottom ; 

 the top then spreads out and 

 forms a support for each flower 

 as it is put in. Each one 

 makes the other firmer, and 

 so keeps them in the required 

 position. 



Flowers should stand quite 

 clear of each other and face 

 to the front as much as pos- 

 sible. Colours should be nicely 

 blended, and if the blooms 

 are arranged on tiered stag- 

 ing, each bunch should be 

 just clear of the other. If 

 showing under the National 

 Sweet Pea Society's rules, it 

 would be well to study the 

 " Too-much-alike variety " list, 

 or you may find yourself dis- 

 qualified. See that all are 

 correctly named, and the vases 

 well filled with water before 

 leaving. 



Sweet Peas in Tubs. 

 Those who have not the luxury of a 

 garden to grow Sweet Peas in may, with 

 a little trouble and very little expense, 

 get quite a good display by growing in 

 tubs or boxes. Ordinary lard buckets, 

 painted, are capital for this purpose. Three 

 holes should be drilled in the bottom 

 for drainage, and covered with a few 



