[trubgerg]

I planted a couple of hop rhizomes last year and just tied up some twine between a couple of trees for the entire support system.  That worked fine for the first year of growing, but this year I want to build a sturdy structure.  My thought at the moment is to use 4x4 pieces of lumber to build a 'T' shaped structure.  I'd also like to have some pulleys to make harvesting easier (and because I like the idea of over-engineering a simple idea).

So, I guess my question is... for those of you who have built a trellis for your hops, what are some design aspects I should be thinking about and what are some common mistakes I should be looking our for?

[pete b]

I'm not so much into over engineering. 4x4 pt posts 12' with about 2.5 ft underground with quickcrete. I attached that green plastic coated wire fencing with hammer in staples that goes a couple feet taller than the posts. If you want the t shape you probably want to put them 20' apart or your just encouraging the plants to find each other. Not so bad if they are the same variety.

[chinaski]

The best engineering I did for my hops is to make a system for lowering each bine down for picking and allowing them to continue to grow up rather than sideways (and entwine with their neighbor).  At each hill, I run twine up to an overhead cable (15-20 feet high), through a carabiner attached to the cable, and back down to the ground with enough slack to allow me to drop the entire bine down for picking.  At each hill the twine runs at enough of an angle with respect to the overhead cable (looks like an inverted V) so the laterals tend not to entwine the downward leg of the twine.

I have found that besides the safety advantages of staying off of a ladder, my system allows me to selectively pick the ripe cones from an individual hill and return it back up to ripen the rest.  I use braided polypropylene line as the twine so I can pull off the dead bines at the end of each season and not restring the rig every spring.
 

[Indy574]

This will be my second year of harvesting and mine have grown on a 5ft tall chain link fence.  This year I'm planning on putting 4x4 in the ground and running twine for them to grow up.

[Deaner]

I just created the ultimate trellis, or at least so I think.  I put a 20' 4x4 in the ground and put 8 10' 4x4 12 feet away from the main pole. The 8 poles are about 9 feet away from eachother. Bought some screw eyes and 8 50' sisal twine rope for the hops to grow on, which leaves enough slack at the main pole so I can loosen them in the fall.  Going to stain it this weekend and plant the hops next week (northern michigan). If I knew how to post an image I would. It looks awesome.

Not all sides will get adequate sunlight, but the circular structure will make it a cool place to hang out and drink some beer. Might put a deck floor in eventually and a hot tub. The fiance loves it, she has already hung her hammock in between two of the poles.