Fertilizer advice

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60sd

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My plants this year seem to be doing OK, they seemed to stall for a while at the beginning of June, and have slowed a little the past week or so, but I can see the flowers (buds?) forming.

I'm watering them every other day using a 1/4" soaker ring on a drip system, so the soil seems to be staying moist; as best I can tell it's not too much or too little water.

They are planted in half wine barrels. I feel like they may need some fertilizer, but I haven't been able to find any recommendations on what to use. I am by no means a green thumb, I do my best work when following specific instructions. I use the Tomato blend on the tomatos, and the flower blend on the flowers, but miracle grow doesnt have a hop blend.

My questions are: Is it a good time to fertilize, or am I too late. If so, what should I use (I prefer a water soluable product that I can apply with the watering can).

Thanks!
 
I use super bloom on mine once they start making burrs. They need nitrogen in the beginning for root growth and phosphates later in the season when they start flowering to help with cone production.
 
Are these burrs? This is my first year growing hops, and this is from a Cascade rhizome. ImageUploadedByHome Brew1405895901.943585.jpg


Sent by the magic of the wizards who live inside the internet.
 
My plants this year seem to be doing OK, they seemed to stall for a while at the beginning of June, and have slowed a little the past week or so, but I can see the flowers (buds?) forming.

I'm watering them every other day using a 1/4" soaker ring on a drip system, so the soil seems to be staying moist; as best I can tell it's not too much or too little water.

They are planted in half wine barrels. I feel like they may need some fertilizer, but I haven't been able to find any recommendations on what to use. I am by no means a green thumb, I do my best work when following specific instructions. I use the Tomato blend on the tomatos, and the flower blend on the flowers, but miracle grow doesnt have a hop blend.

My questions are: Is it a good time to fertilize, or am I too late. If so, what should I use (I prefer a water soluable product that I can apply with the watering can).

Thanks!

Yes, it is too late. Once the plants have began flowering they are no longer actively taking up nitrogen from the soil, they are uses their reserves that they built-up over the season to form the cones. This can also be seen as the plant begins to partition nutrients from older foliage, etc. to form the reproductive structures.

Best time to fertilize is always at the start and early-to-mid season.

Feel free to ask any other questions as needed.
 
I made the mistake of using 10-10-10 fertilizer after two of my plans started to show burrs. Both plants now have male parts. Granted theyre probably sterile, but still. Imagine finding man parts when your expecting lady parts, it's a little disappointing...

I've had more growth this year than the last. My 3rd year plant has a bine that's 40+ feet in length (it grows on a helix) and all my first year plants are 25+on all bines. Even my cascade, which I basically wrote off as dead in early June. She took off and grew faster than all the others once her diseased roots were cut away.

Bottom line: just give them water now. I plan on a healthy dose of potash after harvest and cutting AL bikes to the crown just to give the roots some nutrients before winter. As the Starks say: "Winter is coming." and if it's anything like last winter, they need all the help they can get. Grow on!
 
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