Growing Hops

Does anyone grow their own hops?

My father loves my homebrews, and he wants to grow hops for me. The thing is none of us know anything about growing them.

We're situated on Long Island, NY. I don't know if the northeast climate is ideal or which types can grow here. Am I making a bigger deal of this than it really is?

What types can I grow here? I'm a big fan of the noble varieties. If he can grow Liberty, Hallertau, Tetts or Goldings, that would be great. Cascades or Amarillos would be nice as well.

What kind of maintenance do they require? Also is there anything that I need to do with them after harvesting them?

Thanks in advance!

The 'hops growing' forum or a search up top should give you some good information. I've never tried growing them myself, but a lot of people on here have success with it. I'd expect that long island would be a great climate for hops, but i'm not positive.

Oh sorry I didn't notice the hops growing forum.

Hops should grow pretty good there. They are very easy to grow, but can grow to a height of 20 feet or more. Check out www.freshops.com for some good information on growing them and it's also a good place to buy them in the early spring.

Hops do well in New York - all varieties of hops will grow there. They are low maintenance and grow like weeds. It is best to have some vertical space to grow them, but they will take what you give them. Maintenance is easy, just water them unless it is raining.

Once you harvest them, just dry them out, vacuum seal them and store in your freezer (the ones you do not use immediately). There are several books and websites out there on the subject. I chronicled 2 years of growing hops on my hop blog. From soil prep, to planting hop rhizomes, to trellising, to harvest. It is easy to grow hops and I would recommend it.

How to grow hops

Do raccoons eat hops?

Raccoons and deer come through my yard often at night (almost daily during the summer) and I have not had any sign of hops or hop leaves being eaten(tomatoes and Tiger Lilies are a different story). That is my experience over the last 2 years.

You must be near the river valley, growinghops? You have some really nice plants on your site! I grew Cascade, Chinook and Centennial this past year.

Gridlocked,
I about a mile from the Minnesota River valley - Hyland park/reserve is at the end of my block - plenty of critters. Thanks, the hops do pretty well here. I like your setup too. How did it pan out for you this past year? Second year really rocks. I may add Chinook this year, we'll see.