Help identifying problem

I'm trying to grow hops for the first time this spring (cascade and centennial in Houston) and they have been growing quickly. I was gone for a few days and when I came back I noticed the leaves close to the ground looked like this:



Any ideas what it is and what is the best method of treatment before it progresses?

Thanks!
Matt

That looks A LOT like the problem B-Hoppy is talking about in the latest post on this thread. Check it out:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f92/spider-mites-475711/

That would be "leaf bronzing"? so for spider mites.. I will look up best treatment.

mhenley said:

That would be "leaf bronzing"? so for spider mites.. I will look up best treatment.

Click to expand...

I would let someone else chime in with more knowledge before making a plan of action. I just noticed that it looked similar to what was described and thought it might be useful.

I know with spider mites you will see very light strands of silk, similar to a strand from a spider web, hanging from the undersides of leaves attaching to the stem of the plant.

It is hard to tell in your picture but it looks like it could be fertilizer burn. Have you possibly used too much fertilizer? If so, just keep watering as usual and hold off on the fertilizer for a while. I would at least not do anything for a few days and see if it gets worse or better. I am starting my first year in gardening hops but I am a fairly experienced gardener. Just remember RDWHAHB.

I see no evidence of strands of silk at all. I did sprinkle an organic fertilizer on the soil after the plants started growing.. Its a 4-4-3 blend I had. Overall the plants seem pretty happy and are growing fast..

I'll keep watering and see what happens.

I would consider trimming away the foliage closest to the ground. It will not hurt and if you have more than three to four feet of bine might as well.

Trim the bottom and try some Neem oil.

I am seeing the same brown leaf spots as the previous poster on some but not all the leaves of my 1st yr hops. No fertilizer was used yet on these plants. Any idea on if this is a problem or should we just ride it out?

Not an expert but looks like it could be lacking nitrogen. Try some fish emulsion fertilizer for a quick pick me up.