HOP. ] 5 



their beer : several articles are used, notwithstanding, and in large 

 quantities, viz., extract of quassia, combined with liquorice, which 

 is termed " multum," gentian, aloes, horehound, and the seeds of 

 colocynth and broom ; while to impart an intoxicating quality, an 

 extract of cocculus indicus, called " black extract," opium, and 

 tobacco, are said to be employed. The rhizoma, commonly called 

 the root of Male Fern, appears to be the best substitute for the 

 Hop in brewing. 



In 1830, the number of acres cultivated with Hops in Great 

 Britain were 46,727 ; and the average quantity of Hops grown 

 annually has been computed at 20,000,000 of pounds. 



Culture, &c. — Hops are generally planted in rows, six feet 

 apart ; five or six plants are generally placed together in a 

 circle, and several feet distant from each other. It is propagated by 

 cuttings, procured from the most healthy of the old stools. The 

 plants are usually supported the second year by short poles, and 

 the third year, when the plant comes into full bearing, these are 

 replaced by poles of fifteen or twenty feet in height, from four to 

 six of which are apportioned to each hill. 



The proper time for gathering the Hop, is when the strobiles or 

 chaffy capsules begin to assume a brown colour; about the end of 

 August or beginning of September, the stalks are then cut two or 

 three feet from the ground, and with the poles to which they are 

 attached, placed horizontally on wooden frames. The Hops are 

 plucked by women and children, and after being carefully separated 

 from the leaves and stalks, are put into large sacks and carried 

 away to be dried. The process of drying is performed imme- 

 diately in kilns like those used for malt. Charcoal is the fuel 

 usually employed, and the heat requires to be regulated with 

 great care. When dry, they are packed in canvass sacks, called 

 " pockets, " each of which contains about one cwt. and a-quarter 

 of Hops. In drying they lose about three-quarters of their weight. 

 Hop plantations are proverbial for their uncertain produce, varying 

 according to the season from two to twenty cwt. per acre. The 

 expenses of cultivation are very great ; but a plantation once in 

 bearing will not need to be renewed for several years. Few plants 

 are more subject to disease, and depredations from insects, such 

 as the otter moth (Phalcena Humuli L.), the green fly, the red 

 spider, and the honey-dew • to prevent which, Dr. Withering re- 

 commends to cover hop-gardens with stones or flags. 



Qualities and General Uses, — The Hop is not only valuable 



