heavily manured. As their function is to absorb water and other 

 food materials, it is bad policy to destroy them, as is frequently 

 done by some growers, unless for the express purpose of checking 

 growth and favouring early ripening of the crop. 



The stems of the hop plant which come above ground are 

 known as " bines." They are hollow and arise from buds on the 

 rhizome or root stock below ground. 



These bines vary in colour, some being reddish and others 

 streaked or spotted with red blotches ; some are pale green. The 

 early common hops in this country have reddish bines, while the 

 choicer and later varieties generally have green stems. 



Hop bines wind from left to right round any neighbouring 

 support which is available, or scramble over hedges, being to some 

 extent assisted in the process and prevented from slipping down the 

 supports by rough short prickles on the stem and ribs of the 

 leaves. 



In the ordinary course of things the stems of the plant die down 

 in autumn completely, except a small portion of each which lies 

 below ground. These underground pieces of stem, which bear two 

 or three opposite groups of buds, thicken and become filled with 

 stored food for the development of bines in the following season. 

 They are generally cut off in spring when the plants are " dressed " 

 and used as " sets " for propagating the crop. 



The leaves of the plant are opposite each other on the bine. 

 They vary considerably in shape ; some are simple cordate leaves, 

 others are larger and palmately divided into three or five lobes. 



The flowers of the hop are vry simple in structure. The 

 staminate or male flowers are about a quarter of an inch in diameter, 

 and consist of five green sepals with five stamens from which are 

 shed large quantities of pollen. Hundreds of these flowers are 

 produced on each male plant, where they grow in clusters on lateral 

 branches. 



The female flowers are also simple in character, consisting of a 

 cup-shaped corolla with a round ovary containing one seed. From 



B 2 



