198 



THE BOOK OF THE ROSE 



CHAP. 



plant of Comtesse de Nadaillac to cut away so much 

 wood, but this is the hour of the Rose's trial and would- 

 be triumph, and now if ever it must be prepared to 

 make a sacrifice. 



Some expert exhibitors do little arranging, choosing, 

 or setting up at the time of cutting, but, putting 

 a sufficient quantity of their best blooms into the 

 tubes, leave all that for the place of exhibition. A 

 beginner, however, had better wire and set up his best 

 Roses at once as he cuts them, taking others for spares 

 and arranging them all afresh at the show. 



Wiring with Foster's supports, like all mechanical 

 operations, should be learnt by watching an old hand ; 

 it is a very different business now to what it used to be 

 when we had to tie the stems in two or three places to 

 a small stick or simple straight wire. Plenty of spare 

 supports should be taken to save time in undoing dis- 

 carded blooms at the show. 



A beginner should label each bloom as he brings it 

 in, and it will always save time even with those who 

 know the Roses well. The printed labels look nice — at 

 first — and are convenient if you can always keep them 

 arranged so as to find at once the one you want. But 

 they very soon get dirty, especially if not removed before 

 the home journeys, and many find the writing each name 

 in pencil on blank labels as required the shortest and 

 most handy in the end. But please write plainly. 



In cutting the day before a show, the state of the 

 weather must be considered. If a very long journey 

 and a hot night are in store, allowance must be made 

 for rather more than one day's age in the Rose ; but for a 

 short journey and a cool night, some of the fullest Roses 

 and those with the thickest petals may be cut almost 

 as it is hoped to show them. Nothing but experience 



