XI 



EXHIBITING 



197 



whether cut or not, as they would in the whole of the 

 long summer day to follow. So, if it is possible to cut 

 after that hour and yet be in time, we may be glad to 

 do so, and can choose blooms a stage in advance of those 

 we should have cut over-night. But I believe it to be 

 just as well and perhaps better as getting them in 

 safety before a chance shower, to cut at from four to 

 seven o'clock the evening before, rather than at four or 

 five o'clock in the morning. 



Begin in good time : it is better to start at two or 

 three o'clock in the afternoon, having cold water in the 

 tubes and the boxes in deep shade, than to be hurried 

 at the last. There are several H.P.s too, Horace Ver- 

 net and Le Havre for instance, which shut up their 

 petals towards night, and though they will open all right 

 next day it is difficult to choose the best specimens 

 when they are closed. 



Roses should always be cut with strong sharp scissors ; 

 if at any time a stranger is allowed to cut blooms from 

 your plants, forbid the use of a knife or damage by the 

 breaking of a shoot is sure to be done. 



Perhaps it is best to commence with the Teas, as these 

 are most lasting, and require longer time for selection. 

 A large number of them hang their heads down, and 

 a great many must be lifted and examined, while among 

 the H.P.s few are so pendulous as Marie Baumann and 

 Earl of Dufferin. Be sure that the examination and 

 selection is thorough : I have gone off once or twice at 

 least without a good Tea Rose, overlooked because it was 

 hidden under some protection. 



Cut the stems long enough : they must be set up high 

 when they are shown, and it is very annoying to find 

 that a good bloom must be set lower than the others to 

 keep it in the water. It is a shock for a precious little 



