CULTIVATION. 203 



Furthermore, a single tying is often sufficient when the 

 hops are trained on vertical wires or strings, whereas in pole- 

 work several tyings are necessary. 



It is therefore principally in the generally lower working 

 expenses that the superiority of frame training is evidenced. 

 To these come the further advantage that, except in very low 

 frames, where the foliage of the plants forms a more or less 

 compact roof, the thin training material used in frame 

 gardens allows easier access of light and warmth than is the 

 case in poled gardens. The effect is increased by the fact of 

 the plants being trained alternately one towards the right and 

 the next towards the left, and so on. Another point wherein 

 frames are superior is that they constitute an effectual 

 remedy against many of the enemies of the hop plant, in 

 that the nests and habitat of many fungi and insects — the 

 poles — are absent. 



Finally, as already mentioned, there is no difficulty in 

 arranging the wires so that the cones can be picked without 

 having to cut the bine. This is an advantage not easily 

 attainable in poled gardens, but which should never be 

 wanting in frame systems, even when the frames are not so 

 low that the cones can be picked from the ground. 



One drawback in frame-work is that, if the upright wires 

 and pillars are unskilfully arranged, team work in the 

 rows becomes a matter of difficulty, if not impossibility. 

 The liability of the bines to sway to and fro is also a disad- 

 vantage, since it causes the bine to rub against the training 

 material, and also leads to friction between the latter and 

 the head wires and pegs at the points of attachment, the 

 consequence being that both the bine and its support are 

 liable to become injured and broken, thus allowing the whole 

 to fall to the ground together. 



However, on weighing up the relative advantages and 

 drawbacks of the two systems, it becomes evident that, when 



