THE JOURNAL 



OF THE 



BOARD OF AGRICULTURE 



Vol. XVI. No. n. 



FEBRUARY, 1910. 



HOP CULTIVATION. 

 Arthur Amos, B.A. 



From the time when hops were first grown commercially 

 in England until about the year 1870 no striking improve- 

 ments had been introduced into the methods of hop cultiva- 

 tion. The ground was usually well manured with dung and 

 the hops were trained upon poles; no effort, however, was 

 made to combat the various insect and fungous diseases to 

 which hops are subject. 



In the year 1882 one of the most serious attacks of aphis 

 ever known visited the English hop gardens and totally ruined 

 the crop in many districts; a few growers, however, had learnt 

 by this date that by washing with a solution containing soft 

 soap the aphis could be killed, and these growers succeeded 

 in growing a normal crop which sold at very high prices. 

 This signal success opened the eyes of growers generally to 

 the fact that the hop aphis could be destroyed by washing, 

 and stimulated investigation in other departments of hop 

 growing, with the result that many other improved methods 

 have now been introduced, among which may be cited the 

 general use of sulphur to prevent hop mould, the use of some 

 system of stringing for hop training, improvements in 

 manuring, especially with regard to the use of phosphates, 

 and lastly, the introduction of the new systems of hop drying 

 by the aid of hot air and fan draught, instead of by the 

 furnace gases and natural draught. 



The effect of these improvements has been not only to raise 

 the average crop per acre in normal years, but to make the 



3 Q 



