EMT hop trellis

[CyrusM1983]

I just finished my almost free trellis, made from discarded electrical conduit. 8 chinook and 8 centennial are planted under it. And room for expansion.
Thoughts and comments welcome.

 

[cswis86]

Good use of free stuff!

 

[Senormac]

Awesome !! Looks like a full sun area too !!

 

[brewcat]

Your plants look really close together. Is that a weed barrier? I'd take that out so your soil doesn't get hot. I'd also expand the width of the outside area from the grass. It will make grass control easier and give your hops good space. You'll also want to pull that mulch away from the crown so you don't get a whole lot of sustained moisture around the crown.

 

[mirthfuldragon]

I would be cautious about the sag you are going to get when the bines start really putting on weight. A full-grown bine is 10-20lbs. I under-estimated the weight with my first build. I used 1.5" fence top rail and made it work, but they lean in few inches by the end of summer.

Next year you might want to get some elbows and connectors to build the top as an actual semi-rigid structure - connecting the ends with an elbow alone would increase the rigidity of the structure considerably.

I wish I had that kind of space. Good luck and hoppy farming

 

[edoubleu]

I agree on the sagging comment. I am using 3/4" EMT for my vertical supports. I have 2 sections (20' tall) connected with the coupling, which is a wimpy connection, so I slipped a 1/2" EMT section into the 3/4" to help strengthen that joint. Maybe doing something like that would help your sagging? If you could add a center row of support to help hold up the middle that would be even better.
I'm in my 2nd year of growing and it seems every week I wish I did something else to strengthen my trellis. Last year wasn't too bad but this year they are growing like crazy! There are already close to 20' tall and just starting to flower.

You're off to a good start...Good luck!