Hop Trellis Design:Feedback please

[DsmBrood]

I'm planning on planting! I've designed this hop trellis & am planning on building it soon. I'm planning on having 5 hills, one of 5 different varieties of hops. I'm hoping to alternate bays on the trellis and have each variety grow vertically at first and then horizontally. I will have wire for the hops to grow along & will do my best to keep them from growing around the wood structure.
Questions: How feasible is it to get the hops trained to grow horizontally in this design? Is there any danger in cross pollinating having the horizontal portions growing so close to each other? Is this a good design for growing hops?

 

[BeerCrafter2011]

What kind of space do you have for your hop "farm"? This seems like way too much wood for 5 plants. Are you going for visual effect/shade? In my experience, hop plants don't like to grow sideways, you'll need to train them over several days in order to get them to do what you want.

 

[nagmay]

Nice pergola.

Here are some things to consider:

" How feasible is it to get the hops trained to grow horizontally in this design"
Hops prefer to grow vertically. When they reach the top, you will have to help train them to the horizontal supports. This will have to be done every year.

"Is there any danger in cross pollinating having the horizontal portions growing so close to each other?"
All your hops will be female, so pollination is not an issue. However, The varieties will intermix and it may be hard to identify which cones came from which plant.

" & will do my best to keep them from growing around the wood structure. "
Sorry, but that's going to be difficult. Hops send out lengthy side arms from the main bine. These are going to grab on to the wood, other bines and anything else within their reach. They won't really damage your structure, but will take time to remove each year.

"Is this a good design for growing hops?"
It's not optimal for growing hops. However, If you want a beautiful pergola in your yard, you might as well grow some hops up it

 

[DsmBrood]

Thanks for the feedback.
Yes, I accept that I'll have a fair amount of bine training to do. I'm fine with going out every (few?) days to retwist some bines. I guess I'm fine with finding a ballance between hop porduction and asthetic function. I just want to make sure that I'm not going to end up with a giant mess of plant with no hops on it. in this design I'm planning on having the individual hills. So, how far apart should hops be grown to avoid having them get tangled up with eachother?

 

[The Soft Underbelly]

You might try using lattice up top. I have a 5 year old trellis with 1"x1"x72" supports some 1"x2" as support along the side and a lattice with 4" squares across the top. It requires a bit of training once it starts to go through the top, but mostly they get tall and flop over under their own weight.

The support beams are probably gonna rot out in me this year or next where they're buried in the soil, id definitely use bigger posts next time out.

 

[DsmBrood]

Thank you for the feedback.

You might try using lattice up top.

I've got wire running between pipe members that are hard to read at the above resolution, do you think thats problematic?

The support beams are probably gonna rot out in me this year or next where they're buried in the soil, id definitely use bigger posts next time out.

Did you use PT lumber and bury them in concrete?

 

[The Soft Underbelly]

The wire should help the matter. and for what its worth, i like you design a lot. Be prepared to do some training earlier in the season and just recognize that 3 years from now you're going to have enormous crown, so allocate some space down the road... don't plant separate varieties too close is i guess what im saying.

Did you use PT lumber and bury them in concrete?

PT Lumber... concrete... LOL! NOPE! Standard un finished 1x1 drilled into the inside of the garden bed... so buried in dirt! Honestly, i didn't expect the thing to last through the first winter. I just needed something quick since i didnt get planting till almost june that year. It looks a bit rickety, and i'll post a pic later if i can find one, but its gotten the job done and looks quite nice when its filled out.