growing hops

Not sure where to put this post, so here it is. I was wondering (probably a typical newbie question) can one grow hops indoors, or at least start them indoors? any experience with this practice out there???

unless you have 20' ceilings and plenty of sun i would tell you that growing them indoors is not a good idea. Starting them inside, now, alot of people do that with good success.

with a little creativity why not!
as the pastor said, they need lots of sun. Greenhouse would be best but i'm sure you could get some good cones but perhaps less yield with standard home windows.

Train em! Like pastor said, they grow to 20-25'! Nothing says that 25' can't consist of being trained up the window, back down, back up etc. This will take some attention every couple days and you might use up all the square footage of the window!

You can start them indoors, a one gallon pot is probably large enough. But, hops plants even dwarf hops are large and have huge root systems. Hops also need lots of sunshine and their growth patterns are linked to changes in day length.

on a similar note, this topic has interested me also.

the townhome community i live in is giving us garden plots next spring, and i plan on trying out some hops...

with the little research ive done is it true that they dont require the most 'fertile' of soils?

any specific suggested literature on this topic?

Check some of the hop suppliers, a lot of them will have guidelines for growing hops, if they sell Rhyzomes.

I got a pretty good guide from Brewing News (had to send in $5)

If you mix up some fertilizer and vermiculite(to help draining) as well as some other nutrients when you plant them you can make up for poor soil conditions.

Moisture levels are important too. They need plenty of water, but if the soil doesn't drain well and the roots stay saturated, they will rot.
The brewing news article was good. It may seem intimidating, buy with the proper set up before planting and weekly maintenance they should grow pretty good.

i am a pretty avid gardener when it comes to herbs and vegtables....i assume hops should be treated just as a climbing flowering plant would, like SUPER green beans or gourds, but i am sure there are plenty of specifics to go along with hops as well haha, ill check into it a little more when im at the LHBS this weekend....ive got about 6 or 7 months before i can even being to start thinking about gardening!

Does anyone know if hops grow very well in arizona?

OK, a lot of things to answer here.

Yes, you can grow hops indoors, but as many have said, you will need a good location with a lot of light. A large, south facing window should do all right. Best bet though would be to start them indoors in january/february, then transplnt them outside after the last frost.

Hops use the day/night cycle to determine when to flower along with temperature to an extent (specifically, the amount of time spent in the dark causes a build-up of a compound. When this compound reaches a critical level, they flower). Cosequently, don't expect to start some hops now and have them flowering by christmas unless your using a dedicated grow room with grow lights on a timer.

If they are going to be indoors year round, you will need to be diligent in training/pruning the vines to fit your room, as a full grown plant can easily get 20' high. A large pot will be needed to get a decent harvest (5 gal or bigger once they are mature plants). Expect later flowering and harvesting times though due to higher indoor temps during the fall.

Any off-the-shelf potting soil should be a good substrate for hops. I wouldn't just use vermiculite though. Naturally, the better your soil conditions, the healthier your plants will be and the bigger your yield will be come harvest.

As far as nutrients go, generally any of the "complete" fertilizers out there should work well; either slow release or direct feed is fine. Higher nitrogen will help during vegitative growth, and higher potassium will be beneficial during flowering, IIRC. The best is supposedly bat guano, but good luck getting that. Make sure that whatever fetilizer you choose contains all necessary micronutrients as well. Water often but make sure you have good drainage.

Keep in mind, hops are a cousin to that wondefully infamous plant known colloquially as "Weed." As such, they do tend to grow like... well... weeds. Generally any climate and any soil will yield at least some results.

@ bigjon88: yes they'll grow in AZ, but expect to use a ton of water keeping them from wilting. A healthy plant can grow as much as 18" a day!!! That kind of growth requires a lot of water.

Damn, where is that link to the huge underground pot operation. That would be perfect for growing hops indoors.

jdoiv said:

Damn, where is that link to the huge underground pot operation. That would be perfect for growing hops indoors.

Click to expand...

Actually, your right on with that one. Take a page from the ganja growers and follow their advice. After all, they've probably done more research on the cousin than has been done on hops - at least on the homegardening scale. Really, the only difference is growth form - hops are a vine while cannabis is more of an herbaceous shrub.

The same goes for drying/curing your hops, BTW. What better advice to take than from someone who cures the bombest, dankest, reefer? If they can cure properly to degrade all the unwanted chlorophyll and retain all the desired "smelly stuff," then it's probably good advice for hops too.

Good luck.
disclaimer: I'm a botany student, not a cannabis grower. :cross:

Will a humid climate be detrimental? I like in Florida where its very swampy, rainy, and humid. I can pick out a good non-mud area, but will the climate work out?

The only real issue with a high humidity environment, or one where there's significant rainfall would be mildew infections. Powdery mildew and downy mildew are some of the most common hops pests. Typically, they aren't too serious, but if left in the right conditions (and left unchecked) they can seriously hamper the plants ability to carry out photosynthesis. Besides commercial fungicides, one thing that helps is to remove the lower leaves up to about 3 ft'. This helps allow for adequate airflow and can keep mildew issues at bay.

Again, proper soil drainage is important too (though not related to mildew), so a "non-mud" area would be better.

I guess I will just keep buying hops. This summer I barely had time to water the yard. My work schedule is so crazy.

They will never flower indoors because of light pollution. The dark period must be pristine for that chemical mentioned earlier to build up to the critical level. If you have lights on in the house in proximity to the plant, it will believe that it is experiencing daytime and you won't get a flower period. It takes suprisingly little light to arrest the flowering period.

So I've heard...

Madtown Brew said:

OK, a lot of things to answer here.

Yes, you can grow hops indoors, but as many have said, you will need a good location with a lot of light. A large, south facing window should do all right. Best bet though would be to start them indoors in january/february, then transplnt them outside after the last frost.

Hops use the day/night cycle to determine when to flower along with temperature to an extent (specifically, the amount of time spent in the dark causes a build-up of a compound. When this compound reaches a critical level, they flower). Cosequently, don't expect to start some hops now and have them flowering by christmas unless your using a dedicated grow room with grow lights on a timer.

If they are going to be indoors year round, you will need to be diligent in training/pruning the vines to fit your room, as a full grown plant can easily get 20' high. A large pot will be needed to get a decent harvest (5 gal or bigger once they are mature plants). Expect later flowering and harvesting times though due to higher indoor temps during the fall.

Any off-the-shelf potting soil should be a good substrate for hops. I wouldn't just use vermiculite though. Naturally, the better your soil conditions, the healthier your plants will be and the bigger your yield will be come harvest.

As far as nutrients go, generally any of the "complete" fertilizers out there should work well; either slow release or direct feed is fine. Higher nitrogen will help during vegitative growth, and higher potassium will be beneficial during flowering, IIRC. The best is supposedly bat guano, but good luck getting that. Make sure that whatever fetilizer you choose contains all necessary micronutrients as well. Water often but make sure you have good drainage.

Keep in mind, hops are a cousin to that wondefully infamous plant known colloquially as "Weed." As such, they do tend to grow like... well... weeds. Generally any climate and any soil will yield at least some results.

@ bigjon88: yes they'll grow in AZ, but expect to use a ton of water keeping them from wilting. A healthy plant can grow as much as 18" a day!!! That kind of growth requires a lot of water.

Click to expand...

Sorry, I didn't mean to just mix the nutrients and fertilizer with vermiculite, you still need soil.

I'm glad someone else brought up the black sheep cousin of hops. The first time I heard about that relationship, I thought to myself, "Self, if the two plants are that closely related, what would a weed bittered beer taste like?" Too bad I didn't start brewing back in the day, I bet it would have been a BIG hit with the peeps I hung out with

Fingers said:

They will never flower indoors because of light pollution. The dark period must be pristine for that chemical mentioned earlier to build up to the critical level. If you have lights on in the house in proximity to the plant, it will believe that it is experiencing daytime and you won't get a flower period. It takes suprisingly little light to arrest the flowering period.

So I've heard...

Click to expand...

Good point.

Time for a grow room, OP.

Ok, i'll bite.

plant your rhizome the 1st year, let it root and plant to form above.

year 2, dig her up, break lose all the soil

*do not damage the Tap root! this is most often the thickest root and in the center.

trim some of the roots on the side.

buy a bunch of this stuff "Hydroton Gro-Rocks"

buy a 1 gal bucket that is more like a bucket screen (lots of openings on sides and bottoms but not large enough for the gro-rocks to go thorugh)

buy a 10 gal or larger rubbermaid tub or similar. Cut a hole in the lid so the 1 gal bucket can sit through it.

buy a small water pump. this will be used to circulate water from the tub into the top of the 1 gal bucket with your hop plant.

also buy an air pump and air stone or 4. the more, the better. you'll be pumping air into the water basin. Roots love O2!

eventualy the roots will grow through the 1 gal bucket into the larger water supply below.

use liquid fertilizer purchased from a hydroponic store.

monitor it with a PH monitor. It's easy to find what PH hops like.

if growing with artificial light, start it with a 24hr cycle. Don't wory, the plant doesn't need rest. Keep the area well ventilated. Too hot will stilfe growth

above your tub, create a cross hatch of string. you will use this to weave in and out your vine to maximize it's light exposure.

after the plant reaches 1/2 to 2/3 the total size you want, switch it to 12 hr on, 12hr off with your light. RESPECT the night cycle. DO NOT ALLOW ANY LIGHT POLUTION!

when to harvest?

examine the hops under 10x magnification. You should see oils on the leafs. when about half of these oils turn golden or dark, harvest!

drying, this is where you can inprove hops the most. Big process places hang them or put them in the atic space like in europe's old hop houses. The key in great curing is to do so as slowly as possible. You have the ability, time and patience to do it far better then commericial opperations.

hang them from 2-5 days in a reletivaly dry enviroment. if it's colorado or arizona dry, 2 days. Adjust per your humidity.

after that cut off the leaves and stems leaving the hop cones
loosly fill them into glass mason jars.

Once a day for an hour, remove the lids and let it breath, the rest of the day, keep it sealed.

once a week, empty the jar, pour it out and refill it so it mixes them a little bit.

after 3 weeks they should be wonderful in aroma. Keep the jars sealed until you want to use it!!

if they dry out too much, take a q-tip, cut it in half, wet the swab and tape the stick to the bottom of the lid, this will rehydrate a little but not so much as to worry about mold.

-it's amazing what you'd learn going to college in boulder...
and no, none of this historic knowlege is under practice so please don't ask.

got plenty of info to offer but thats it

Now that's the way to do it if you're serious about indoor!

bigjon88 said:

Does anyone know if hops grow very well in arizona?

Click to expand...

Put mine in the ground in March. They grew great...

until June.

Fried even on drippers watering once per day.

Full sun does not mean the same thing here in the desert, does it.

That was along a N-S wall with Eastern exposure.
Next year, I'll try more shaded areas.

I have been considering growing a hop bine in my office. I wanted to train it around my ceiling... my office is a 18'x12' rectangle with a 5'x10' window facing NE.

From what I read here I am worried about two things:

1. Not enough light for sufficient growth
2. Light Pollution during the night. (The lights do get turned off at night)

WHat does everyone think? Doable? Crazy?

bump..... no opinions?

There is an article on this in the latest issue of BREW magazine. A guy has been able to grow a hop plant in a container at his downtown Chicago high-rise office! It has not produced cones yet, but I think you could do it if you have a BIG planter, a ton of sunlight and you water/feed it religiously. Train the vine up and down.