114 
HOPS. 
thoroughly manured; there are two forms of laying 
the land, the one by the plough in ridges, from seven 
to eleven feet wide, according to the richness of the 
soil, most room being given in the best soil; the other 
in tumps, by hand-work, laid out in the quincunx 
form, from four feet and a half to seven feet, from 
middle to middle; this tump-work, I understand, is 
seldom practised, except where the plough cannot go, 
from uneven, short, or sloping ground; it has, how¬ 
ever, one advantage, the whole of the ground can be 
occupied, whereas in ridging, headlands must be left 
for the horses to turn upon; but the tumps must be 
wholly cultivated and cleaned by hand-work: they 
are formed round, flat at the top, about two feet dia¬ 
meter, and wider at the bottom. 
5. Shelter. Hop-grounds require a sheltered situa¬ 
tion, but withal to be sufficiently open for a free 
Ventilation, and to receive all the benefit to be derived 
from the sun and air; but they would not succeed on 
bleak exposed ground, as they require warmth ; their 
shelter is the natural hills and slopes of valleys, toge¬ 
ther with the fences of the enclosure. 
6. Manuring. Rich pasture ground, when cultivated 
for hops, requires, at first, little or no manure; and 
hop-land, within reach of the winter-floods of rivers, 
without being too much so exposed, has a source of 
manure from nature; but old tilled lands require to 
be well manured with good rotten dung, or compost; 
soil and lime is sometimes used, and reckoned good 
manure. Mr. Crane reckons his hop-ground to re¬ 
quire manure once in two years, at the rate of six 
good cart-loads of rotten muck per acre, worth 7s. 6d. 
per load; this is ll. ^s. 6d. per acre per annum for 
manure. 
7. Planting . 
