102 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



stand in the field, one hill to five acres is enough, and care 

 should be taken to prevent them from multiplying. 



The preliminary processes are well described in a letter 

 from a hop grower of great experience in the town of Wilming- 

 ton. " Deep, loamy soil," says he, " is the best for hops. Good 

 corn land is always good hop land. To prepare land for hops, 

 plough nine or ten inches deep ; spread eight cords of manure 

 to the acre ; mix it with the soil by cross-ploughing ; furrow or 

 mark out the land the same as for corn ; plant the hop roots 

 in every other row and every other hill; this gives three- 

 fourths of the ground for corn or potatoes the first year. 

 Hops have running roots, from one foot to three feet long, with 

 joints or eyes to them. These roots are cut from the old hill 

 every spring after they have been planted two years. The 

 joints or eyes are two or three inches apart. These are the 

 roots to plant ; cut them so as to have three joints to a piece, 

 and put three pieces to a hill. Cover them three inches deep. 

 The first year they produce no hops. The second year the 

 quantity and quality are likely to be as good as ever from the 

 same field. Hops are commonly planted at a distance which 

 gives eight hundred hills to the acre. They do not commonly 

 receive, after being planted, more than two shovelfuls of manure 

 to each hill. This makes about four cords to the acre. They 

 are on poles from thirteen to twenty feet long. There are 

 some farmers in the west part of our town who are making 

 some improvements in growing hops. As I pass by their yards, 

 I notice the poles are longer than they were in former years. 



" In the early part of my life I lived with the largest hop 

 grower then in Reading. After leaving him I raised hops for 

 myself four years, and from experience I am satisfied that it is 

 as easy with new white birch poles twenty-five feet long, in- 

 stead of poles from thirteen to twenty feet long, and with 

 eight cords of manure to the acre in the place of four cords, 

 to raise from one thousand to sixteen hundred pounds to the 

 acre, as to raise one-half that quantity with the short poles 

 and small quantity of manure. The hoeing would be the same, 

 and the picking would be less. The long pole, if it has ever 

 so many hops on it, is always easier and quicker picked than 

 the short pole. It is seldom we sec first-rate hops growing on 



