1922.] 



Cultivation of the Hor Crop. 



891 



CULTIVATION OF THE HOP CROP. 



I. 



Arthur Amos, M.A., 

 School of Agriculture, Cambridge. 



No British crop requires so much skill in cultivation nor so 

 much technical and scientific knowledge on the part of the grower 

 as the hop ; each stage of the management will, therefore, repay 

 the beginner who devotes to it endless observation and study. 



Selection of Site. — The first problem is the selection of the 

 site. Hop growing is carried out in w^ell-defined areas, probably 

 not so much by reason of the exacting nature of the hop plant 

 for soil and meteorological conditions, important as these may 

 be, as the fact that the hop requires very specialised skill and 

 knowledge both on the part of the grower and also on the part of 

 the labourers ; beginners will therefore be well advised to start 

 operations within or close to a hop district. 



The site should possess a reasonably level surface, so that 

 cultivations, and especially spraying, can be conveniently 

 carried out. It should not be too exposed to the prevailing 

 winds, or the crop may suffer great damage during growth and 

 still more just before the picking of the hops; a well-sheltered 

 situation is desirable or otherwise a situation that can be arti- 

 ficially well lewed " b}^ a poplar hedge or other device. A 

 poplar hedge, properly cared for, grows very rapidly, but should 

 nevertheless be planted two or three years before the hops so 

 that it may begin to function as soon as the hops require 

 protection. 



The soil should be of considerable depth so that the deeply 

 penetrating hop roots may get down several feet into the sub- 

 soil and thus be able to supply the growing plant with moisture 

 during periods of drought. In some cases this depth of soil may 

 be dispensed with if the rock below is weathered and of a brashy 

 nature so that the hop roots can still penetrate deeply ; with this 

 exception shallow soils are not suitable for hops. The texture of 

 the soil ma}^ vary considerably; the best soil is a calcareous loam, 

 free working and yet retentive of moisture, but in such districts 

 as the Weald of Kent and parts of Herefordshire certain varieties 

 of hops are grown on heavy clay soils with great success. Light 

 sands and gravels, and sour or badly drained soils are not suitable 

 for hops. For the successful grow^th of hops, the soil must be 

 very rich both in plant food and in humus. It is preferable that 



