Help troubleshooting hops

[tonytouch1]

Hey all, I started 2 hop varieties last year and all started well but somewhere in the middle of the season the leaves on all my plants started splitting and breaking from the ground up. It looked like some sort of pest problem but I didn't see anything on them. I had a decent yield for first year plants but the cones didn't look super healthy. Kinda spotty. So this year the same plants popped out of the ground and looked great. I started them up the ropes and they were fine until they got about 4ft tall. Then, same problem. From the ground up the leaves started breaking and cracking and having little brown patches on them. Just not healthy looking. Now they are about 8ft tall and the problem just keeps working it's way up. Any thought would be appreciated, Thanks!

 

[Ruint]

Looks like insect damage... You might not be able to see them with the naked eye...or even a regular magnifying glass unless you know what you're looking for...do a search for spider mites

 

[PapaBearJay]

Do you have any cherries or plum around in the area?

 

[Senormac]

If it's not some kind of bug or worm, it's gotta be your soil. How natural is your soil ? What I mean is, is your whole planter box soil from a bag or nursery..... or is it the soil that is naturally there in the ground ?

Also, do you have earthworms in your soil ?

Yea.... I'm a big earthworm guy

 

[tonytouch1]

I appreciate the responses! So,.. no plum or cherry trees nearby that I know of and the plants were started in big pots last year with all brand new potting soil, manure and fertilizer in them. This year I transplanted to a raised bed with the same products all new from store. I don't think it's the soil because we have a ton of other plants growing in the same area that are not effected but I'm no expert....

 

[tonytouch1]

Also, no earthworms but I could easily get some....

 

[B-Hoppy]

Your first picture looks to be some sort of insect chewing on the leaves, nighttime is usually a good time to scout if it means that much to you. Doesn't look to be too widespread from the pictures though.

The following pictures look like the leaves may have been damaged by wind causing them to brush against each other, that's all I got. It's really hard being able to ID plant issues just by a few pictures alone. Being able to inspect the area and knowing a thorough history on the plants, weather, cultural practices etc are also very handy.

 

[Ruint]

Having earthworms present in your soil is usually a good indication that you have good soil...you should not have to import them...if this is a fairly recent transplanting...you may just need a little more time until the earthworms "home in". I scouted my plants often for insects, because I was having similar problems...Never saw anything that I would consider to be the culprit...then a professional insect scout showed me...more than I could believe. I thought leaf hoppers were easily seen...before that....THEY ARE NOT! Neither are 2 spotted spider mites. I happened to be harboring lots of them, without ever seeing them. I know what their damage looks like now though...I still need to use a jewelers scope to see the little bastards for confirmation...

 

[PapaBearJay]

It's not leafhoppers, which begin feeding from the leaf margins and then move inwards and upwards. It does look like aphid damage, which is why I asked about plums and cherries because they overwinter in the dormant buds of Prunus spp. It also makes sense from the perspective of the damage starting lower and moving upwards with the growth, since the majority of damaged is actually caused before it becomes visible to the naked eye...just saying.

 

[Ruint]

@PBJ....I wasn't implying that the OP had them (leaf hoppers)...I was referring to me as an example....I was thinking mites or aphids myself.

 

[PapaBearJay]

@PBJ....I wasn't implying that the OP had them (leaf hoppers)...I was referring to me as an example....I was thinking mites or aphids myself.

Fair enough. Mite damage would look more like rusting and leaf flecking though, as opposed to large leaf chunks missing.

 

[Ruint]

I wasn't sure as to what would be taking the chunks out of the leaves...could be a myriad of suspects...LoL....I was looking at the sporadic yellowing spots through out the leaves....there are a couple spots that look like thrip damage...the straight line yellow/brown spots, but I have not experienced a large enough population of thrips to be a danger to the hops plant...when I have had mites...it has usually started with the yellowing spots in the beginning then as you mention goes to a rust color with yellowing....I know one thing!! I will be looking to you for assistance when needed!

 

[PapaBearJay]

Hah, thanks! I don't know the answer to everything, but I'll help if I can!