# Hops taking off again



## trq (28/3/18)

So... first year hop grower here, and I can't find where I read about this now. But somewhere I read that after you harvest your hops you can trim the plant back down to the ground just about and it should lay pretty much dormant until next spring.

So yeah, I harvested all my hops in two different sessions and got around 300g of hops in total and made a couple of 10L batches. At the time I harvested for the 2nd time, I trimmed my plant all the way back down to within about an inch of the ground. I noted at the time that there appeared to be another new plant growing about 12 inches from the original too.

But yeah, now, they have both sprung to life and are really starting to take off again. Is this normal?

I figure it's probably just the weather as it's still pretty warm here on the central coast.

Also, I can no longer seem to find any reference to even doing this (trimming them back to the ground), is this something I should be doing? Does it matter?

In this image, that is the original plant more (that I trimmed back to stumps) in the middle, and the newer offshoot towards the front.


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## wide eyed and legless (28/3/18)

My tomatoes did he same thing, though they are perennial I know they have been tricked by the warm weather and will slow down as it gets colder, will be the same for the hops I would imagine.


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## nosco (28/3/18)

I'm hoping thats good for my plants that I bought last months that are still growing pretty well. It will give the rhizomes more time to develop.


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## wide eyed and legless (28/3/18)

nosco said:


> I'm hoping thats good for my plants that I bought last months that are still growing pretty well. It will give the rhizomes more time to develop.


I think that is the key, rhizome, and development. lf the rhizome can develop and take in more nutrients the more benefits the bine will receive come spring.


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## fungrel (30/3/18)

You live in the same area as I do, I'm seeing the same happening with my first year plants but second year are starting to die off.
The weather starts to turn very quickly after Anzac day. I'd start to think about taking measures at the beginning of May but until then, let her go. I'll take a second harvest on my chinook soon.


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## Belgrave Brewer (31/3/18)

Hi trq,

Don't cut the hop plants completely to the soil level after harvest. Leave as much of the bottom part of the plant as you can for it to brown off naturally and then cut back to soil level. There is still a bit of time left in the growing season and the hops want to take some nutrients back into the crown before going dormant. Don't worry, they'll be fine.

A lot of my hop plants shot new bines after harvest as I had an early year, and the plants weren't done yet. I left over a meter of the plants to brown off naturally and they still wanted to grow for a bit longer.

Cheers!


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