Garden owners who want to green their pergola with a perennial, easy-care and robust climbing plant are making the right choice with hops. The deciduous climber grows very quickly, forms a dense privacy screen in summer and provides plenty of shade.

Hops are ideal for greening a pergola

Green the pergola with hops

Hops are an easy-care alternative to climbing roses or clematis. The climbing plant is not very demanding and requires little care.

The hops need climbing aids to grow. For this purpose, wires can be stretched or plant stakes set up.

Hop leaves are similar to vine leaves. The flowering of female plants is inconspicuous, the flowering of male plants is more noticeable. The cones that form at the end of summer are decorative. When ripe, they can be harvested and stored for teas or natural remedies. You can even brew your own beer from the hop cones.

Care for hops properly

Hops require very little care:

  • water regularly
  • Avoid waterlogging
  • fertilize once a month
  • cut back in fall or spring

Hops wrap themselves around the trellis in a clockwise direction. Occasionally you will need to support the vines as they twine.

The right location for the hops

Hops like it sunny. A place on the south side doesn't bother him.

The soil should be a little damp. The roots must not dry out completely. Waterlogging is even worse than drought.

If the soil is compacted, drainage should be installed before planting. If the hops are grown in buckets, there must be a sufficiently large drainage hole.

Disadvantages of hops in pergola greening

Of course, hops also have a few disadvantages. The plant spreads widely and is difficult to get rid of later. The spread can be prevented if the hops are grown in buckets.

Hop is a deciduous plant. It withers in the fall, leaving only the withered stalks. It then does not form a dense privacy screen. If possible, the stalks should not be cut back until spring so that the hops can draw the nutrients into the roots.

tips

Did you know that hops are edible? The young shoots that emerge in spring can be harvested and prepared like asparagus.

Category:

Vegetable garden