Digging up and replanting Hop Plants

Moving a hop plant is not easy, especially if you’re aiming to do as little damage as possible. After a couple of years you’ll be surprised how much ground the hop has covered. Removing it requires a lot of planning and maybe isn’t always possible. In this article we’ll go over the things you need to consider and how to go about it. But no removal will be the same, rather than a step-by-step guide we aim to provide advice allowing you to figure out the puzzle of digging up a hop plant.

The first thing to consider is can this plant realistically be dug up. Many grow their hop up a tree or in a hedge. While this is nice decoratively, it makes removing the plant incredibly difficult. You’re very likely to end up damaging the tree or hedge’s root system. Potentially killing it in the process. Rocky areas or places the roots may get tangled also pose a challenge. If there is a chance you’ll move the plant in the future then consider putting it in an open area with soft soil.

Another reality you have to face is the chance of the hop plant making it out in one piece is incredibly low. Hop roots can reach lengths of 4 meters, becoming thick and sturdy in the process. Realistically some will have to be cut. This however this isn’t always a great loss. The large centre of the plant is called a crown and it is our main goals. Most roots and many shoots come from this directly so if it can be removed you likely have a viable plant.

As an extra note it is best to do this all in very late winter or early spring. Preferably as it is coming out of dormancy. This gives it the best chance to re-establish without any other distractions. Of course if you’re removing the plant because of diseases then any time of year is fine, though it also becomes necessary to remove every piece possible. There’s no easy solution to that so let's jump into the process of removing a hop plant.

So how do we go about removing the plant? Right away you need to establish how big the hop has become, and it very well likely will surprise you. Clear a circle around your plant, once you’ve located the crown and slowly test the ground surrounding it. Stick your shovel in till you hit something and then move along. Remove a few layers of top soil and you should now have an image of where your hop is situated.

Now you have to determine what parts of the plant you are going to keep. With a trowel or by hand carefully dig away at the roots to try and loosen them up. This is slow messy work but will make the next stage easier as it is all about leverage. At this point you may choose to simply cut these roots off early, or try and dig them out. Either way we move onto actually removing the plant.

Stick your shovel under the crown and try to tease it up a bit. It is unlikely to come at first so try a few different areas to see which gives. Of course you may choose to split the crown. As hop plants grow it is sometimes a good idea to split the crow and replant it, allowing both halves to flourish while making our job easier. Simply sticking your shovel through the centre should do the job. There’s no neat and tidy way. You can do this before or after digging it up. Damaging a plant is always a risk and can expose them to fungus or other diseases. It might be wise to spray your plant with the appropriate preventatives afterwards. 

Now you have your monster root ball, what to do with it? If you plan to plant it again there should be no issue. Get as much as you can underground, fill the hole and add a small mound of soil on top for drainage. Potting can pose a challenger if the crown and roots are rather large. You may have no choice but to split it. Potentially some of the roots have become viable as separate plants. If you notice a large cluster of buds on some of the roots it has a fairly good chance of surviving separated from the main body. Larger or smaller sections aren’t automatically better or more likely to survive. To a degree luck is the big factor.

This whole process is a risky business and there really aren’t any guarantees. A disturbed plant simply won’t be happy and we can only provide so much to counteract this. However it is a very common practice with hop growers, and if it all goes wrong maybe consider buying a new plant with us.

We sell a wide variety of hops in 9cm and 1L pots. Along with featured packs.

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