Comping at Chelsea - the RHS Chelsea Flower Show

Big shows and exhibitions can be great places for compers, and the RHS Chelsea Flower Show is no exception. Not only will you see gorgeous gardens, fabulous flowers and lots of great gardening ideas, but you will also find that lots of the stalls run competitions to win anything from garden tools to garden makeovers, and from sheds to sit-and-ride mowers. This year the show takes place in the grounds of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea from 25-29 May.

A few tips for any comper visiting a show:

• Wear your most comfortable shoes and dress in layers. This is particularly important at Chelsea where some of the marquees can get very hot.



• Take a big bag for all the leaflets, brochures and of course competition entry forms you pick up. A shopping trolley on wheels will save you a lot of arm-ache.



• Make sure you have several pens handy as you are sure to leave one or two lying around after filling in entry forms.



• If you have some small printed address labels, they can save you a lot of time and mean you don't always have to hunt round for a flat surface to write on.



• Some stalls now ask you to drop a business card into a box instead of filling in a form. If you don't have a card, or would rather not mix business with pleasure, there are several websites which will print busienss-card sized cards with your contact details on them, or you can buy sheets of plain white ones from stationery shops, which you can print yourself on your home printer.



• Be prepared for lots of follow up calls and mail. And don't dismiss them out of hand - you might find not only further competitions but lots of great offers and ideas.

A great way to visit any show is to win tickets for it, and Love The Garden are giving you the chance to win some very special tickets for the Chelsea Flower Show. The prize is a pair of Breakfast Tickets for May 24th, the day before the general public is allowed in, when all the displays will be at their absolute best. The winners will be allwed in at 7am, before even the RHS members, and will have an escorted tour of the show and breakfast. To enter the competition, pop over to their site and answer a simple question - but hurry, the competition closes on May 13th.