THE COMMON HOP 335 



several lines of strong hooked hairs which make the plant rough 

 to the touch, and help it to cling to its support. 



The Leaf. — The hop has opposite leaves which vary con- 

 siderably in shape even on the same stem. To some extent the 

 variation depends upon the position on the stem and the age 

 and variety of the plant. Upon young seedlings and on the 

 youngest upper branches of older hops they are mostly cordate, 

 with a deeply serrated margin. On older parts the leaves are 

 large and broad, generally palmately three or five lobed, with 

 deep acute serrations. Each possesses a petiole about half as 

 long as the blade, and is stipulate ; the stipules of opposite 

 leaves are united and broadly triangular. 



The Inflorescence and Flowers. — The hop plant is 

 dioecious, the male flowers, growing upon one individual plant, 

 while the female ones occur upon another. Occasionally ex- 

 amples are found which are monoecious, that is, both kinds of 

 flowers are present upon the same plant. 



a. The inflorescences bearing the male flowers are much 

 branched cymose panicles, which grow either from the axils of 

 the main stem or from the axils of the lateral shoots. 



Each Male Flower is about a quarter of an inch in diameter, 

 and possesses a five-leaved sepaloid perianth, opposite which are 

 five stamens. The latter have very fine short filaments and long 

 anthers, which dehisce by slits opening most widely at the apex 

 (5/, Fig. 105). 



6. The inflorescences of female flowers somewhat resemble 

 fir cones in external appearance, and are borne on branches which 

 arise either directly from the leaf axils of the main stem itself 

 or from the axils of the leaves upon lateral shoots produced by 

 the main stem. They are. spoken of as strobiles (A, Fig. 104), 

 and are the ' hops ' of commerce. 



A fully developed strobile when ripe possesses a long central 

 axis covered with fine downy hairs, and is popularly termed the 

 ' strig' of the ' hop ' in Kent (B, Fig. 104). 



