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cated, weighed only twenty-two pounds ; besides the greater quantity of hops thus obtained, the 

 aroma and the strength of the bitter are much greater. 



The poles are usually about thirty feet high and three inches in diameter, of hemlock or 

 chestnut, cut in the winter one year before using, before the bark begins to peel, to give them an 

 opportunity to dry, by which they are rendered much lighter and more easily handled ; the bark is 

 left on to enable the tendril to take hold : if the pole is smooth the hop often slips down. In setting, 

 two poles should be placed in each hill, standing two feet apart ; sometimes three are allowed, in 

 which case they should be placed in such a way as to leave an opening toward the South for the 

 free circulation of air. After the poles are set, the vines soon appear ; those which spring up first are 

 not saved for bearing, as they are apt to die very soon ; they should be cut away, or, what is 

 better, be buried in the earth ; if cut, they often bleed, and are much injured. In Germany, six 

 persons will make holes and set poles for one thousand hills in one day. 



Two vines are allowed to one pole, making four in each hill. When about two feet long, they 

 are turned around the pole, (with the course of the sun,) and fastened to it with woolen yarn. In 

 Germany, half-withered rushes are used, as any strong material is apt to injure them ; the yarn 

 should not be tied, but merely twisted. If any are blown down, they should be carefully replaced ; 

 and when the vine is too high to be reached from the ground, a step-ladder is used. Baron Von 

 Speck thinks it judicious to preserve two reserve tendrils, for fear of an accident to those selected. 

 He says it is better to have two persons engaged in tying, as it is more convenient, and the work 

 goes on more rapidly. 



Immediately after tying the vines, the usual work of hoeing and ploughing commences, the 

 weeds must be kept down, and the hop slightly hilled. The cultivator may be now very usefully 

 employed ; after which, the ground should be hoed, and left as level as possible. The picking is the 

 next operation of the hop-grower. The proper time for gathering is, when the flower begins to turn 

 yellow, and the seed brown, which, in New York, is about the 10th of September. The picking 

 should never occupy more than twenty days. A light box, about ten to fifteen feet long, three feet 

 high, and two feet wide at bottom, and three at the top, is carried into the field ; the hop-vine is cut 

 off about two feet from the ground, and the pole laid lengthwise across this box. Several women or 

 children may be occupied, at one time, on one pole. After the vine is cut, the end that is left in the 

 ground should be tied in a knot to prevent bleeding. In this country hops are picked without any 

 regard to quality, but in England, where they are more particular, they are divided into three sorts : 

 The green, which are not quite ripe, the light, yellow-brown, which are in perfection, and the very 

 dark, which are past their prime. Some go even further, and make several qualities, according to 



