1. Clean It Up: Remove debris from spines, leaves, stems and from the top of the soil and on the pot. Wash dirt from the plant and outside of the pot.

2. Check For Pests: Look on new growth for aphids and on both sides of the leaves for scale. Check the stems (especially where the branches are) for mealybug and scale. If your plant has just a few pests you may be able to get rid of them with a squirt of water (aphids) or remove with tweezers. If you can’t get rid of the pests, don’t bring your plant to the show.

3. Trim: Remove dead branches, leaves, and flowers if the plant will look better with them off (Yes, some plants have more of a ‘real’ look with the old stuff left on).

4. Add Top Dressing: Find some nice looking small rocks, gravel or sand to add on the top of the soil. This really gives the plant a ‘finished’ look. If top dressing is present check to see that it hasn’t become discolored.

5. Shine Up Your Pot: A little WD-40 sprayed on your clay or plastic pot (shield your plant from the spray) can make it look much newer -- it reduces the appearance of scratches and salt residue.

6. Repot Your Plant: Find a pot that best suits the look of the plant and repot (finding the pot is the hard part).

7. Be A Fanatic: Build a climate-controlled greenhouse, acquire the rare species, grow them for 10-20 years, inspect your plants hourly (install a webcam so you can watch them while at work), travel to Mexico, South Africa or anywhere else you need to go to study the species in the wild, check the pH of the soil, the dissolved solids of the water, the quality of the air, and while your at it, take your temperature too.