Hops & Frost Damage

Looks like we may be in for some frost warnings here in mid-Michigan this week. Last year's hop plants have already sprouted and are about 6" long.

Q: How frost resistant are hops? Should I cover them in the case of a frost/freeze warning?

I'm not an authority (this is my first year, too) but i think I read that the bines are suceptible to frost damage. However, as with most garden plants, putting a bucket or blanket over them the night before is adequate protection from the frost.

Can anyone back me up on this? This is all I did a couple weeks ago when we had frost warnings in Cincinnati when my hops were just breaking ground. They survived just fine and are just about to start climbing the twine!

Hops are pretty resilient but, it is ALWAYS best to cover plants in the event of a frost. At the very least it will protect the new shoots so the plant won't have to focus on re-creating them plus, by saving the shoots it'll get you that much closer to plant maturity for the season.

cant relate to hops... i know whenever you have a frost or chance of you want to cover plants up. Most of the damage will be stopped by what you covered it up with. BTW if u get a real heavy front make sure the blanket isn't sitting on the plant itself, you can crush the plant with the extra weight of a heavy frost.

We've had 5-6 days of frost and 4 days of snow since the hops sprouted. Of the eight plants, only the Mt. Hood is showing any damage. Just covering them with a bucket would help.

I have some tomato tents around here somewhere that I was going to use on the hops, but haven't been able to find them. They're two sheets of plastic welded into a set of tubes. You put them around the plant and fill the tubes with water. Holds the heat in overnight without interfering with the sunlight and you can leave them in place.

Man.... We're about to get hit with a possible hail
storm here in Va. today. I think frost would be the least
of my worries. My bines are a good 2' up the rope, and
still very delicate.

I had some cascade the might have been damaged by frost, but more likely lack of water. In any case, I would cover at night. Better safe than sorry.

whew my cascade survied hopefully the last frost.....it was barely frost, but enough to damage my green beans and cucumbers...but my raddish, peas, squash, lettuce and hops have seemed to survive....

I think (hope) that's the end of the frost in Mid-Michigan.

Here in south-central MI I've never done anything to protect my ladies from frost. I've had the cascade in the ground for four seasons and have had a harvest every year. If some shoots die the roots will just send up more. As a bonus those will be hardier/stronger!!

That said first year growers probably should be more cautious. I'm remembering what it's like worrying about that gentle little shoot as it emerges as I anxiously await my first from each of the three rhizomes that I planted this year(I've already lifted them to check for growth). The good news is the fear of frost should be over here!

Okay, how about the other end of the year? We have an (unseasonally cold) frost warning for the next two nights. My hops (Saaz, Sterling, Willamette) are about 14' tall, with some beautiful hops sets. I'd hate to lose these, but how do you cover a 14' tall vine?

Once they are an established plant, like yours, I don't think that the affect is as severe. Sure it may stunt there growth but one or two nights should not greatly affect them. You should be able to harvest them still.

Again I am no expert on how frost affects hops, but I have picked tomatoes after the frost and they tasted fine to me.

IMHO: Any experience with any other plant should tell you what to expect with hops.

Anyone else, feel free to chime in.

- WW

We are expectin freezing temps in Montana tonight, and more than likely some snow.

I planted a little late, so my hops aren't all that big yet. I have a hallertau that has a bunch of little shoots and a Williamette that has one decent shoot.

I covered them with some grass mulch then with carboard covered the cardboard with plastic to protect it from rain/snow and put some rocks around the edges to weight it down. Probably overkill, but I figure better safe than sorry.

I also am from southeastern Michigan (Ann Arbor area), and we have had several frosts and freezes already since the hops came up. Mine have always done just fine through all the frosts, down to 29 F. They are second yeaar plants, now already 12 feet high and looking good. They are growing on untreated twine trellises up the south side of a 15 foot white pole barn. We also had gusty winds up to 45 mph, which took the bines off the trellis tops, but they caught on again and are doing well.

Hops are pretty frost tolerant. Mine have survived two nights of below freezing weather since they emerged. one at 31 F and the other to 27 F. There has been no visible damage either time.

Well, We got hail this weekend and I can say, the mild frosts didn't affect the bines, but the hail sure beat the snot out of them. Had some hail up to golfball size though most was mothball sized. Those large leaves made lovely targets. Will have to see in a day or two how the bines continue..... SIGH!

We got a frost on May 1st this year. I have a second year chinook that was already over 6 ft high. The frost beat that particular bine up pretty good. All the leaves from about 4 ft up are dead. A lot of the lower/newer bines are looking ok. I'm not sure whether to let the tall one stay and regroup or if I should just "cut my losses" and trim it off to let the plant focus on the healthy bines instead. I learned this year that frost can and will damage your hops.

My chinnok has 6 bines about 4' tall Im a little worried that the temps tonight will damage them, the f-ing birds keep nipping the tops off too! I swear I'm going to do them in! Im in Utah and weve had above 40 degree wether the past 5 months, so they got off to a great start, Anyone experiencing this same stress!