Quite obvious you did not see the judge Bodhi
With over 20 years experience in showing fruit and veg, flowers and plants and preserves of all sorts I have learned quite a lot about what qualities judges look for and how best to present an entry to make it stand out above the others. there really is a lot more to benching flowers than just sticking them on the table. I was not really prepared this year. Many of the jams and preserves were just run of the mill for home use rather than well presented show entries o I as just lucky that there was no real expert competition.
For those who have not yet tried, take a look at your local shows and have a go. lots of fun and test your skills against other producers/growers.