I planted 2 Cascade rhizomes in early march this year in a 3'x3'x18" planter box (I live in Arkansas). One survived and is doing well, one was decimated by black ants. I am getting some good cones that are ready and have the pretty lupulin, however the hops dont have much smell or nose to them. I used about half compost, half sandy loam soil. About 6-8 weeks ago I dumped some manure on them (pre-bagged from Home Depot). I gave them some nitrogen fertilizer at first but backed off before flowering. I went to my local homebrew store and the owner sold me some Hawaiian Bud 5-50-17 to try to kick start some of the flowers. Any other suggestions or anybody else ran into this.
First year Cascades. Not much nose
- Thread starter Arkhomer
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The nose tends to become more pronounced once dried, IME.
The hops are papery and crinkle. I've heard you can put them in a ziplock and place them directly in the freezer without drying. Just once you remove them from the freezer they need to be used immediately. Is this a decent approach or it is better to dry? I'm just confused on the best way to dry and vacuum seal if they are coming off at different times.
I've always dried mine, then vacuum sealed them and stored them in the freezer. If you don't dry them, you'll need to adjust the weight you use because of the water in them. I've never used them that way, so I don't know how much more (by weight) you need to use.
