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lNSTI'l'u'r:m AND COLLEGE, PUSA, FOIt 1910-11. 30A t present hop growing in Kashmir is in a very primitivecondition, the average yield of sun-dried hops being lessthan 2! cwt. to the acre, or one-fifth the average yield ofKent.In spite of this, however, the net profits are verygreat, and for the last sixteen years have averaged aboutTho pel' cent. or over £7 an acre.The natural advalltc.Lges possessed by Kashmir as a possiblecompetitor in the world's hop product.ion are considerable.Labour is cheap, plontiful, easi]}, trained twel easilymanaged. The soil of considerable areas of the valley issuitable for hops, while irrigation water is abundant, shouldit he found necessary to supplement the rainfall. Insectand fungoid pests are almost entireJy ahsent, while the costof transport to India is likely to bc much cheaper as soonas the rope railway to ,Jammu is completed. These advantages,however, t1re not likely to be utilised tD the full unlessthe Durbar decides to take the necessary steps to place theindustry 011 modern lines.In the details of cultivation, irrigation, training, pickingand drying there is great room for improvement, and itwas a great :mrprise to me to find that even a crop of 2tuwt. of saleable hops could be produced under present conditions.The cultivation of the crop is exueeding]y defective,and a large amount of moisture is lost by the dense growthof grass and weeds and the absence of 1;1, surfaoe mulch.This nocessita.tes surface irrigation and the consequontha,rdening of the land and loss of tilth. Beyond the provisionof single poles thero are no attempts at trainil1g, sothat there is insufficient space for the free development ;Jfbine and hops. The drying is done on sheets in the sun,H,nd during this process the hops are a good deal broken,and a large ~~mollIlt of lupulin is lost.Tn my rcpor't llIl a.ttempt was made not only to presentthe scientifio principles which underlie modern hop production,but also to indicate the improvements which are po::;­sible if it is decided to continue the industry 011 the presentlines. In addition the stops were indicated that WOllld benecessary if hop growing in Kashmir is tu be placed on