Humulus lupulus var. lupulus
Environmental Weed (2024)
Common names
hops
Biostatus
Exotic
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Lianes & Related Trailing Plants - Dicotyledons
Flower colours
Green
Detailed description
Dioecious or monoecious climber with extensive roots. Stems striate, up to 10m long and clothed in rough deflexed hairs. Leaves broadly ovate, not lobed or deeply 3~5-lobed; lobes acute to acuminate, serrate, generally glabrous to sparsely hairy above, generally glabrous to moderately hairy with yellow glandular hairs below. Petiole usually equal to leaf blade. Stipules 2 per node and 2-fid or 4 per node and entire. Bracts of female flowers triangular, hairy, green, elongating and becoming yellowish at fruiting to form a cylindric-ovoid infructescence (the hop) with yellow glandular hairs esp. at base of bracts. Calyx of male flowers ovate-triangular, green, hairy. Achene ovate-ellipsoid, covered by glandular calyx. (- Webb et. al., 1988)
Similar taxa
Climber with extensive roots; stems up to 10m long; dioecious (male and female flowers on different plants) or monoecious (same plant); bracts of female flowers triangular, hairy, green and becoming yellowish at fruiting to form cylindric-ovoid fruiting structure (the hop) (Webb et al., 1988).
Habitat
Terrestrial.
Conservation status
Not applicable
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Ecology
Flowering
January, February
Fruiting
February - March
Year naturalised
1872
Origin
Europe, C&W Asia
Reason for introduction
Agricultural
Life cycle and dispersal
Perennial
Other information
Environmental Weed (2024)
This plant is named in a list of 386 environmental weeds in New Zealand 2024 prepared by DOC. 759 candidate species were considered for inclusion on this new comprehensive list of environmental weeds in New Zealand. The species considered were drawn from published lists of weed species, lists of plants that must be reported or managed by law if observed, existing national and regional programmes and agreements for pest management, and species already managed by the Department of Conservation (DOC). Candidate species were then assessed to see if they were fully naturalised and whether they have more than minor impacts in natural ecosystems. Read the full report here.