Growing Hops at Home – Revisiting Your Rig

I posted the process I used to rig my hop pole like a flagpole. Check out that video.

Fixing Problems

Some of the strings I raised in that first video had some problems. In this video I talk about some of them.

Rough Pole

The pole had lots of irregularities. Since it was a tree I harvested and removed the branches, there were many places for the strings to catch. Cracks in the bark, the stubs of the removed branches, and more provided places for the strings to catch when the wind blew.

Too Much Slack

When I raised the strings and tied them off, I left too much slack in the twine. This allows the strings to move around a lot, catching in the irregularities of the pole used as the central pole for raising and lowering the strings.

Fixes

By shortening the strings, the twine no longer catches on the pole, so it can’t be worn down by movement.

Your Experience

Let me know if you’ve run into similar challenges, and what you’ve done to overcome the challenges. I’d love to learn along with you. Please post your thoughts in the comments below.