Page 97 - UNESCO_Zatec_2021_A4

Bohemian hop varieties abroad. Back then, hop plants
were propagated in a vegetative way, using hop cuttings
that were cut off and adjusted from the lower lignified
part of the stem. In early cultivation, slips from the
best wild-growing female plants were picked. This was
actually the dawn of improvements in the hops, which
were based on simple selection. The best hop varieties
were used for propagation and subsequent planting in
hop fields, grown on wooden poles.

In the history of Czech hop growing, the time of Charles
IV can be considered a period of prosperity not only in
hop growing but also in the hop trade. Charles IV ordered
the cultivation of hops and sought suitable places on his
travels in Bohemia (Czech Republic) for them to be grown.
Hop growing also spread to other countries, and hop
seedlings from Bohemia were used to establish hop fields
abroad. The Bohemian hop seedlings were introduced
to Spalt, Germany, in the 14 century by a monk, and
th
subsequently, the hops became very widespread here.
The nobles of the Bohemia were afraid of competition
from foreign lands, and because Bohemian hops were
already famous abroad at that time, they forced Charles
IV to issue a ban on the export of hop plants under
penalty of death. It is the first official measure that we
know, with the purpose of limiting the cultivation of hops
to a particular area, in this case the whole of Bohemias.

At least from the High Middle Ages until the beginning of
the 20 century, hops were almost exclusively grown on 97
th
pole trellises. This type of hop fields has been documented
since the 14 century and consisted of the use of a wooden
th
pole support for the hop bines. Each year, in April, a 6 to 7 Hop poles after hop harvest placed in pyramids, Saaz hop growing region,
th
metre long pole was placed near each hop bine seedling early 20 century
on which the hop shoots were then trained. The plant
gradually wound up the whole pole with the help of bast in the existing built-up area of the medieval centre
fibre or straw string. In early hop pole trellis, the hops of Žatec, where many ventilation dormers have been
were mostly planted in a square 80 by 80 centimetres, so preserved on numerous historic buildings. It has been
the poles were spaced at relatively short distances apart. proven by research that more than 80 % of all the existing
At harvest time, the poles, together with the hop plants, roof spaces in the territory of this component part of the
were pulled out of the ground with hooks, and they were nominated property were used for the drying of hops.
hand-picked directly in the hop field. Proof is given by the specific appearance of the roof parts
with low gables, extensive manipulation openings for the
The use of poles in hop fields represented the handling and distribution of hops into the loft space, and
highest item of all the costs for setting up a hop by the use of typical roof dormers, which provide better
field. In times of war or unrest, the poles were often airflow, the "oeil de boeufs" (dormers).
confiscated by the army.
In the 14 century, the trade in hops from Žatec began to
th
At the time of harvest, the hop plants were pulled down reach very distant places. Bohemian trade with foreign
from the poles, bound into small sheaves, and brought or coastal Hanseatic towns used long-established
down to barns and sheds where the hop cones were connections and trade routes. The largest medieval
picked. Picked hops were dried in a very simple manner: hop market was established in Hamburg, called "Forum
in the sun on a swept yard or on wicker hurdles. Humuli". Bohemian hops were also imported to this
market down the river Elbe, and later hops were imported
Almost every burgher house at that time owned a hop to Germany via an overland route, due to their light weight.
field, and the drying of hops took place, even up until the Two important trading routes led through Žatec, the Royal
th
beginning of the 19 century, in specially adjusted lofts in Route (Královská) from Prague to Nuremberg, and the
these houses. This reality was reflected in the image of the Northern Salt Route (Severní solná) from Prague to the
roofscape and even in the current component part 02, Baltic sea, which helped the trade tremendously.