888 



Hop Cultivation. 



[FEB., 



Again, if shoddy has been continuously applied to a garden 

 in place of dung, it may be advisable to apply a small dressing 

 of potash, or, since the shoddy contains no potash, the supply 

 of this constituent of plant food in the soil will tend to 

 become too small for the wants of the hop. 



Lime. — It is probable that lime could be profitably applied 

 to hop gardens far more generally than is the case at the 

 present day. 



Lime is beneficial to soils generally and to hop gardens in 

 particular in many ways : First, the decay of all kinds of 

 organic matter is hastened by the admixture of lime, so that 

 the constituents of plant food in the organic matter become 

 more quickly soluble and therefore available as plant food. 

 Secondly,, by the decay of organic matter acids are formed 

 in the soil which make the soil "sour" and unkindly; the 

 application of such acid manures as superphosphate and 

 dissolved bones also renders the soil acid. Now, the addition 

 of lime to the soil neutralises these acids and makes the soil 

 sweet, and since in hop gardens applications of organic 

 manures and acid phosphates are very large, the supply of 

 lime is very important. Moreover, lime improves the texture 

 of the soil and makes it lighter and more easy to work. 



The soils that are most likely to be deficient in lime and to 

 be benefited by applications of the same, are alluvial soils, 

 such as some of those soils upon which hops are grown about 

 Farnham, and heavy clay soils. Upon such soils as these 

 an annual application of half a ton of lime per acre may be 

 profitably made; on many brick-earths and other hop soils 

 also a dressing of half a ton of lime once in four years, costing 

 little, is likely to do much good. 



If lime cannot be readily obtained and chalk is near, two 

 tons of this may be substituted for half a ton of lime. 



Cultivation. — In Winter. — As soon as the hop bines have 

 been cleared and the dung has been carted and spread, the 

 winter cultivation can be commenced, and the sooner it is 

 done the better it is for the soil ; it should, if possible, be 

 finished by the end of March. 



The cultivation may be done by digging all the ground, 

 or the middle of the alleys may be ploughed, and the slips, 

 between the hills only, hand dug. By the former method 



