Noooooooo!!!

MeetsCriteria · 03-28-2010, 04:50 AM

We've been renting for a year in the current house in San Diego. Part of the deal is we have a "gardner".

Prior to today, this "gardner" trims the lemon tree virtually every 2 weeks (lemons on branches, new growth, flowers, etc).

On another occasion, they lopped off a flower spike from one of our cymbidium orchids (blooms once a year). It was on the porch in a planter.

We've told them to please only mow the grass and trim the Bougainvillea.

Today, I came home from the park with the kids...a little too late...

After a year of leaving my hops alone, he tried to move the pot with my second year Chinook (8 spikes popping up, mind you). Roots had grown through the bottom, and it apparently was none-too-easy to move. The hedge trimmers fixed that. When I arrived, the pot was balanced precariously on an upside gallon 5 gallon bucket!

What would possess them to mess with it?!? A year, he leaves it alone....TODAY HEDGE TRIMMERS TO THE ROOTS!!! There were roots the size of my thumb, cut through and through. I was beside myself. Heck, I am STILL beside myself.

Not only that but the pot was cracked. So, I repotted it, and will hope for the best. There's still a big root ball in that thing, and now there's new compost in there. The pot is bigger, and there's still holes for the roots to grow out of.

Oh, and my potting soil was spread all over the back yard.

I let the owner know, and they'll make right what they can, and get a translator to get the message across to the gardner that they are to leave my orchids, the lemon tree, and THE HOPS ALONE!!!

Hopefully this thread has a happy ending come 6 months from now...

Happy Hops Growing Season 2010!!!

Mike

mightynintendo · 03-28-2010, 04:58 AM

Oh my, that's a buzz kill.

**bendavanza** · 03-28-2010, 12:42 PM

Maybe put some santa ria voodoo stuff around the plants you want them to avoid

**Baldy_Beer_Brewery** · 03-28-2010, 02:46 PM

I think you will make out alright. I've read posts on here where the gardeners or lawns keepers have done far more damage. I think I recall one guy getting his hops shot with Roundup

dougf · 03-28-2010, 07:03 PM

Ouch! Roundup? Wonder if that would go good in an IPA lol.

As for the gardener, I would put some little red flags at the base of anything you dont want touched, maybe that would work better as long as the translator tells him to stay away from the red flags.

**Reno_eNVy** · 03-28-2010, 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dougf

As for the gardener, I would put some little red flags at the base of anything you dont want touched, maybe that would work better as long as the translator tells him to stay away from the red flags.

Right, like a dog with a shock collar that activates at an invisible "fence."

But yeah, proper translation should remedy the situation. Also, to the OP, that super sucks but your plant will be just fine. It may have been set back a few days to repair itself but you seemed to provide enough TLC. Good luck, looking forward to updates!

**david_42** · 03-28-2010, 07:49 PM

It's early enough in the year that you shouldn't have any problem.

My business partner had the experience of the "gardeners" stripping all of the ivy from the back slope, leaving bare dirt and cutting her rose bushes to the ground!

MeetsCriteria · 03-29-2010, 05:16 AM

Well, I am somewhat reassured. When I got the rhizome from Fresh Hops it was the a about pencil thick and 6" long. So, to go from that to what it did in a year was amazing.

I suspect it'll be OK...who knows it might like it's new pot, new compost and bigger holes for the roots to grow through!

Cheers,

Mike

StMarcos · 03-29-2010, 09:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Baldy_Beer_Brewery

I think you will make out alright. I've read posts on here where the gardeners or lawns keepers have done far more damage. I think I recall one guy getting his hops shot with Roundup

Can't wait for my monsanto 'roundup ready' rhizomes to get here!

Zulu · 03-29-2010, 02:17 PM

Root trimming is actually part of proper maintenance on older plants, you will be more than fine, in fact just repotting it has done it a world of good.

Every two years the hops yards will cut all roots that stretch away from the plants more than about 18"