the sods buried at the bottom, where they will gradually decay and afford nourishment to the slender roots 
of the plants which strike deep. A very large quantity of the richest rotten dung, at least 100 cubic yards 
per acre, should be well incorporated with the soil by repeated ploughings, till it is entirely decomposed and 
produces that dark tint which is the sure sign of an abundance of humus. The ground should be prepared 
by laying it up with the spade in high ridges before winter, to expose it as much as possible to the mellowing 
influence of the frost. A succession of green crops, such as rye cut green or fed off with sheep, early turnips 
fed off in autumn, or spring tares, are an excellent preparation, by cleaning the land. 
The young plants are raised in beds, and may be raised from seed ; but it is more usual to plant the 
young shoots which rise from the bottom of the stems of old plants. They are laid down in the earth till 
they strike, when they are cut off and planted in the nursery-bed. Care must be taken to have only one 
sort of hops in a plantation, that they may all ripen at the same time ; but where there are very extensive 
hop-grounds it may be advantageous to have an earlier and a later sort in different divisions, so that they 
may be picked in succession. The ground having been prepared for planting, it is divided by parallel lines, 
six or more feet apart, and short sticks are inserted into the ground along these lines at six feet distance 
from each other, so as to alternate in the rows, as is frequently done with cabbage-plants in gardens. At 
each stick a hole is dug two feet square and two feet deep, which is filled lightly with the earth dug out, 
together with a compost prepared with dung, lime, and earth, well mixed. Fresh dung should never be ap- 
plied to hops. Three plants are placed in the middle of this hole six inches asunder, forming an equilateral 
triangle. A watering with liquid manure greatly assists their taking root, and they soon begin to show bines. 
A stick three or four feet long is then stuck in the middle of the three plants, and the bines are tied to these 
with twine or the shreds of Russia mats, till they lay hold and twine round them. During their growth the 
ground is well hoed and forked up around the roots, and some of the fine mould is thrown around the stems. 
In favourable seasons a few hops may be picked from these young plants in the autumn, but in general 
there is nothing the first year. Early in November the ground is carefully dug with the spade, and the 
earth being turned towards the plants, is left so all winter. 
In the second year, early in spring, the hillocks around the plants are opened, and the roots examined. 
The last year’s shoots are cut off within an inch of the main stem, and all the suckers quite close to it. 
The suckers form an agreeable vegetable for the table, dressed like asparagus. The earth is pressed round 
the roots, and the cut parts covered so as to exclude the air. A pole about twelve feet long is then firmly 
stuck into the ground near the plants ; to this the bines are led and tied as they shoot, till they have taken 
hold of it. If by any accident the bine leaves the pole, it should be carefully brought back to it, and tied till 
it takes hold again. 
Some hop-planters plough up or dig the ground before winter ; others prefer doing it in spring, in 
order not to hasten the shooting, which weakens the plants. The same operations of pruning the shoots, 
manuring, and placing poles, which were performed the preceding year, are carefully repeated. Particular 
attention is paid to proportion the length of the poles to the probable strength of the bines ; for if the pole 
is too long, it draws up the bine, and makes it bear less ; if it is too short, the bines entangle when they get 
beyond the poles, and cause confusion in the picking. In September, the flower containing the seed will 
be of a fine straw colour, turning to a brown ; it is then in perfection. When it is over ripe, it acquires a 
darker tint. No time is now lost, and as many hands are procured as can be set a-picking; great numbers 
of men and women go out of the towns in the hopping season, and earn good wages in the hop plantations. 
During the picking they sleep in barns and outhouses. 
The hops when picked are dried on a hair cloth in a kiln. When they appear sufficiently dry at bottom 
they are turned ; in order that the upper part may be dried equally with the lower, a wooden cover lined with 
tin plates is led down over the hops on the hair cloth, to within a few inches of the surface ; this reverberates 
the heat, and the whole is dried equally. The heat must be carefully regulated, in order that it may not 
alter the colour. When the leaves of the hops become brittle and rub off easily, they are then laid in heaps 
on the floor, where they undergo a very slight heating. As soon as this is observed, they are bagged. This 
is done through a round hole 25 or 30 inches in diameter made in the floor of the left where the hops are 
laid. Under this hole is a bag, the mouth of which is drawn through the hole, and kept open by a hoop to 
which it is made fast. The hoop is somewhat larger than the hole, and the bag remains suspended ; a hand- 
ful of hops is now put into each corner of the bag, and there tied firmly by a cord. A bushel or two of 
hops are put into the bag, and a man gets into it to tread the hops tight. As the hops are packed by the 
feet, more are continually added till the bag is full. It is now taken off the hoop, and filled up with the 
hands as tight as possible. The corners are stuffed as soon as the mouth is partly sewn up, and tied as 
the lower corners were; when sewed close and tight, it is stored in a dry place till the hops are wanted for 
sale. 
