abrew4me
Member
I know that SC is hardly the place to grow hops (just shy of the recommended 35 degrees--40 by some recommendations--latitude) but I'm giving it a go, none the less.
I've had two rhizomes (one Mt. Hood and one Nugget--the two which seemed to be the best choice for a hot and humid climate) in the ground for just over a month now. The Mt. Hood took off nearly instantly, but the Nugget are not doing as well. Although, the Mt. Hood rhizome already had quite a few nice buds and roots well formed upon arrival; the Nugget just looked like a bare root. Out of curiosity, I pulled the Nugget "stick" out from the ground and inspected it a few days ago. There were a very few spindly-looking roots forming off of the rhizome, so I replanted it with the addition of some fertile soil from my raised vegetable garden at a shallower depth.
The trellis I constructed is made of galvanized fence tubing with PVC (I think) electrical conduit tubing anchored in the ground with Quick-Crete. The 1-1/4" galvanized tube fits perfectly into the PVC tubing, allowing me to disassemble the structure when not in use. The total height is 13' 6"--plenty enough, in my opinion. The cross bar is more fencing material (2"), and the elbows are the pointed, cone-shaped connectors used at the ends of the fence (I'll provide photos if anyone is interested). The cross bar is 10 feet wide. I installed four eye bolts in the cross bar (a tricky maneuver which required a yard stick and some duct tape) for stringing the twine and drove wooden spikes nearly two feet into the ground and topped each with an eye lag. It is attached to the south-facing side of my house with hinged loops used for hanging pipes from industrial buildings.
As mentioned before, the "Mt. Hoodlings" are doing well and are nearly ready to be trained onto the twine. I still have hopes for the Nugget.
One thing I have notices is that the twine is already beginning to go slack. I just used basic twine, thinking that it would be sufficient for the first years limited growth. Next year I will order some of the proper hop twine.
I also fortified the soil with loads (pardon the pun) of cow manure and fertilize every two weeks with Miracle Grow.
Happy hopping!
I've had two rhizomes (one Mt. Hood and one Nugget--the two which seemed to be the best choice for a hot and humid climate) in the ground for just over a month now. The Mt. Hood took off nearly instantly, but the Nugget are not doing as well. Although, the Mt. Hood rhizome already had quite a few nice buds and roots well formed upon arrival; the Nugget just looked like a bare root. Out of curiosity, I pulled the Nugget "stick" out from the ground and inspected it a few days ago. There were a very few spindly-looking roots forming off of the rhizome, so I replanted it with the addition of some fertile soil from my raised vegetable garden at a shallower depth.
The trellis I constructed is made of galvanized fence tubing with PVC (I think) electrical conduit tubing anchored in the ground with Quick-Crete. The 1-1/4" galvanized tube fits perfectly into the PVC tubing, allowing me to disassemble the structure when not in use. The total height is 13' 6"--plenty enough, in my opinion. The cross bar is more fencing material (2"), and the elbows are the pointed, cone-shaped connectors used at the ends of the fence (I'll provide photos if anyone is interested). The cross bar is 10 feet wide. I installed four eye bolts in the cross bar (a tricky maneuver which required a yard stick and some duct tape) for stringing the twine and drove wooden spikes nearly two feet into the ground and topped each with an eye lag. It is attached to the south-facing side of my house with hinged loops used for hanging pipes from industrial buildings.
As mentioned before, the "Mt. Hoodlings" are doing well and are nearly ready to be trained onto the twine. I still have hopes for the Nugget.
One thing I have notices is that the twine is already beginning to go slack. I just used basic twine, thinking that it would be sufficient for the first years limited growth. Next year I will order some of the proper hop twine.
I also fortified the soil with loads (pardon the pun) of cow manure and fertilize every two weeks with Miracle Grow.
Happy hopping!