346 



THE FLOWER GROWER'S GUIDE. 



Dressing should commence when the blooms are about half open. "Where the florets 

 collect in bunches, they ought to be carefully eased with smooth ivory tweezers or 

 something that will answer the same purpose. Three or four days before a bloom is 

 ready and is wanted for a show, draw out confused central and other faulty florets, and 

 those that are well developed will then be able to close up in the centre. When cut, 

 place each bloom in the cup it is to be shown in, and finish any further regulation that 

 may be needed, so that all the florets overlap each other neatly and meet tightly in 

 the centre. A camel's hair brush is also of service in freeing incurved blooms of 

 dust, and driving any florets to the centre, from which they may have fallen in a 

 journey. Quilled florets should be drawn out of reflexed flowers, and those protruding 

 from the cushion of an anemone-flowered variety ought also to be taken out. 

 Pompons are similarly treated, showing these in bunches of three, with clear stems and 

 foliage. 



Even some of the Japanese section may be improved by the removal of imperfect 

 or misplaced florets, others being either drawn towards the centre, or the bloom held 

 downwards and gently shaken till the centre is closed up. Treat incurved Japanese 

 similarly to the Chinese incurved. 



Judging Chrysanthemum Blooms. 



Unless judged by points, it is impossible to properly award the prizes in a well- 

 contested class. So nearly equal in merit are many of the competing stands at the 

 larger exhibitions, that it is doubtful if even ordinary point judging does full justice, and 

 the plan of dividing the points into four parts or marks is therefore to be commended. 

 For instance, 6 points may not be enough to award to a bloom, and 7 prove too many, 

 that number having already been given to a bloom a shade better. The case is fairly 

 met by giving or 6| points. This method is not nearly so cumbersome as at first 

 sight it appears to be. The figures are quickly jotted down and adding up gives the total, 

 showing which stands are first, second, third, and fourth. 



Instead of entering the points of each bloom separately, experienced judges enter 

 them in triplets, commencing at the end of a stand thus : back row bloom, 6J ; middle, 

 5f ; front, 5 (mentally); entry, 17^; or for a stand of 12 blooms, 4 entries only; for 

 24 blooms, 8 entries; and for a stand of 48 blooms, 16 entries. Total entries 28, as 

 against 78 by entering each bloom separately. Thus a great amount of time is saved in 

 a large show. 



