From the kilns the hops are removed to the cool ing-room, where they are "sweated." Then, by means of a hand press they are made up into hard, solid bales, about twenty inches square and five feet in length, which are sewed up in cloth, and which should weigh about one hundred and ninety pounds each. A box of hops should weigh thir teen to eighteen pounds when ready to bale. Two thousand pounds of cured hops per acre may be considered a maximum crop, although half this is a satisfactory yield.
Uses.
The almost exclusive use of hops is in the brew ing of malt liquors, although in this they have many substitutes. It is said that there should be used about two pounds of hops per barrel of beer. Low-grade and very old hops are sometimes "ex tracted," i. e., a decoction or extract of the hops is made and shipped in barrels. A few factories have been established for this purpose. In the old cook ery, a decoction of hops was used with flour or corn-meal in the making of yeast.
Enemies.
Weeds.—Hops have no special weed enemies beyond those common in other cultivated crops. In some soils under careless cultivation, quack grass or couch-grass gains a foothold in the hills, but neither this nor the annual weeds are a menace to the careful grower.
Diseases.— There are three serious fungous trou bles, the more important of which is the universal black mold. It is nearly always present to some extent, and in hot, damp weather it may spread with amazing rapidity, turning the inner part of the hop to a black, moldy mass and ruining the crop. There is no remedy beyond planting yards in breezy, well-drained places, avoiding too much nitrogenous manure, and in harvesting the crop promptly when it is reasonably mature.
The red rust discolors the outer part of the hops, causing the cured product to look badly, but not greatly injuring the quality. This trouble is not so common nor so serious as the mold.
Mildew (Sphcerotheca eastagnei) attacks the leaves, forming white patches on both sides. In damp weather it spreads rapidly over the leaf. It some times is found on the cones late in the season. It is controlled by spraying with standard fungicides or dusting sulfur on the leaves. It is not regarded as a serious pest in the East.
Insects—While many forms of insect life abound on hops, yet only two can be considered trouble some pests. The hop grub (Hydrircia immanis), does great injury by working in the large suc culent roots that form the crown of the hill, often greatly weakening if not entirely killing the plant. The eggs are laid on the tips of the new plants, and the larva eats into the vine. causing the
end to drop. Later the larva drops to the ground and works up in the stem. There is no satisfactory remedy, but it is considered a good thing to en courage skunks around the yard, as they burrow for the grub. They may be gathered from the ends of the young plants and destroyed. In extreme cases it is advised to put ammonia phosphate or wood-ashes about the roots before hilling up.
The hop-aphis (Phorodon humuli), is always pres ent, often in enormous numbers, but generally appears so late in the East that the crop is nearly mature before much damage results. It is very remarkable, however, that in 1885 the aphis ap peared in the East much earlier than usual, prac tically destroying the crop in New York state. It is an interesting example of how an insect, ordi narily not serious, may cause the total destruction of a crop. The presence of the aphis and the prev alence of the mold seem to have come connection with each other. Spraying with whale-oil soap, kerosene emulsion, strong soap-suds or a tobacco solution is effective ; but this treatment is not practiced in New York.
Value and cost.
Hops are generally sold directly to representa tives of jobbers. They are remarkable above all other agricultural products for wide and violent fluctuations in prices. In 1882, hops were sold by growers for at least one dollar and twenty-five cents per pound, and at other times they have been almost without a quotable value. The gen eral estimate of the cost of growing and harvest ing is about ten to twelve cents per pound, of which harvesting is one-half. For the five years ending with 1904, the price of "choice" New York state hops in New York city, as quoted in the trade journals, ranged between twelve and one-half and forty-one cents per pound, these years repre senting a comparatively stable and prosperous period of the industry.
Hop-growing requires a considerable investment and working capital. The main items of expense are the hop-house, poles, twine, wire (when the trellis system is used), fuel, sulfur and baling cloth. A large force of dependable labor is required dur ing the harvest season, although thousands of itin erant workers of varying degrees of worth drift into the hop districts during this time.
Literature.
Myrick, The Hop : Its Culture and Care, Market ing and Manufacture, Orange Judd Co., New York city ; Hop Culture in California, Farmers' Bulletin No. 115, United States Department of Agriculture ; Hops, Nevada Experiment Station, Bulletin No. 35.