Fundamental Facts
HARDINESS: Zones 5 to 9
PREFERRED SOIL pH: Near neutral
PREFERRED SOIL TYPE: Fertile, well-drained
PREFERRED LIGHT: Partial shade to sun
Hops in the Landscape
Humulus lupulus is the vine whose fruits are used in making beer. While the species holds little interest in the garden, the gold-leaved cultivar 'Aureus' is a striking accent for partial shade. Established plants send their twining shoots climbing 15 ft (4.6 m) in a single season, even in cold climates where frosts cut the stems to the ground in winter.
Fragrant flowers appear in midsummer, enlarging to form 1-2 in (2.5-5.1 cm) long, greenish white, papery cones, or "hops," that mature to brown color. They make lovely cut flowers and have a fresh, woodsy smell.
Another garden-worthy variety is the variegated Japanese hop (H. japonicus 'Variegata'). With lobed green leaves streaked in white, it is a perennial often grown as an annual that reaches 25 ft (7.6 m) long. Use either vine to camouflage buildings or grow it anywhere a vigorous vine is wanted. Hops can be interplanted with other flowering vines, such as annual morning glory or cardinal climber for a dense screen with colorful accents.
Growing Hop Vines
Sow seeds in spring directly in the garden. Or start seeds indoors 6 weeks before your last frost, sowing them over moist soil and pressing them in lightly. Keep the soil evenly moist and at about 70°F (21°C) until the vines are established. Then plant them outdoors after danger of frost has passed.
Set out container-grown vines in spring. Choose a site with partial shade, because the leaves have the best color when they receive some shade in summer. Before planting, have a support in place that can hold this big vine. A sturdy wooden trellis, an arbor, or a well-secured piece of landscape netting tacked to a wall will do. Prepare a planting hole enriched with compost, and set the plant at the same depth at which it grew in the pot.
Gently train by winding young stems around the support. To prevent wilting, water as needed, which may be twice a week in hot weather. In winter, trim off dead shoots. To identify live stems, gently scrape the bark with your thumbnail. Live shoots are green beneath the bark; dead shoots will be brown and brittle. In early spring, fertilize with a balanced granular fertilizer as directed on the label.
While hops are largely trouble free, Japanese beetles will chew the leaves. The beetles prefer feeding in
full sun, so planting hops in partial shade is a deterrent. Or protect the vine with a botanical, neem insecticide registered for hops, and apply the biological insecticide milky spore disease to nearby lawns in early spring to control emerging beetle grubs.
Increasing the Bounty
Take cuttings in midsummer, taking shoots with 5-7 pairs of leaves. Remove foliage from the lower half of the shoot, dip the cutting in commercial rooting powder, and insert the leafless portion of shoot into a damp mixture of sand and peat moss. Shoots will also root in a vase of water. When the cutting develops new growth it can be planted in the garden.
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