Flooded Hops

So, thanks to 4 days of endless rain, the roots of my plants are under several inches of water. They have been this way for at least 2 days now. I've never had this problem in 4 years of growing. We have also never had this much rain in such a short period. One of the poles came down due to the soggy ground. You can see the downed pole and the standing water in the pictures.

How long before the roots begin to rot? Should I be concerned? I've picked the first batch off one day into the monsoon. They looks great. The hops still on the vines look fine for now, aside from the damn Japanese beetle damage.

Thanks for any feedback.

These are some of the Cascades I've gotten so far. All my hops are growing so well. I hope I don't lose them.

1stTimer said:

How long before the roots begin to rot? Should I be concerned? I've picked the first batch off one day into the monsoon. They looks great. The hops still on the vines look fine for now, aside from the damn Japanese beetle damage.

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rain here in the midatlantic region has been stupid this year. gawdamn i can't wait for things to dry out.

the roots will drown before they rot. that's the real risk. roots need to breathe, which they obviously can't do under several inches of water. do you have any way of helping the water flow away? maybe get a 2x4 and start pushing the water towards lower points...

I was throwing buckets out for 30 mins yesterday but the ground is so saturated here that it made no difference. Just kept seeping back up. No rain for the last 8 hours so Im hoping its come down a bit. Im going to have to somehow dig a channel to get it away. Just not sure where I will run it.

Just checked the radar. We have several inches on the way. A weather warning for flash flooding just popped up. http://radar.weather.gov/radar.php?rid=dox&product=N0R&overlay=11101111&loop=no

Maybe try digging a hole big enough to fit a 5 gallon bucket in deeper then the plants. Then get yourself a sump pump and a bucket and put it in the hole. Run a hose as far away from the plants as you can preferable to a lower elevation.

Thanks' for the reply. Went out last night and dug trenches between the rows. It drained them pretty well but that's only because the rain had stopped yesterday morning. For next season I am going to have to bring in some dirt to build it up. Like I said, there has never been standing water here before and probably wont happen again for a while. But Im not willing to risk it again. I am keeping a close eye on them now to see if they start to deteriorate. if they do I am picking everything. Even if its not quite ready.

Yesterday I noticed that my hops is surrounded by mulch with tons of powdery mildew. This weather is poison to hops!

I haven't noticed any yet. But with everything being so wet and now a het wave coming. Not looking good. Do you have pics of the mildew?

1stTimer said:

I haven't noticed any yet. But with everything being so wet and now a het wave coming. Not looking good. Do you have pics of the mildew?

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No pics, sorry, but I'm afraid I might get the opportunity again later.
I removed the affected mulch and sprayed tons of copper fungicide everywhere. It looked dark yellow, almost orange and really nasty. When I picked up some mulch the yellow stuff finely dispersed into the air so I sprayed it first before removal. Some of my leaves are yellowing too but I removed many. Maybe tomorrow I'll have time to trim the lower leaves some more.

Don't have anything like that going on. Hope I don't. I was just outside for lunch and its very hot and even more humid. Might get a fan out there this afternoon.