2011 Hop Garden Picture Thread

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Most recent pics of my hop Trelis. I went back home to the country this past weekend to get away from the city and check on my babies. They are doing quite well. My Chinook is the one on the end who isn't as bushy :mug:

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Just had my first harvest for the year (and first ever). I just planted this year, but am quite encouraged by the productivity. I only picked the ones that seemed ready and I probably have twice this left on the vines with new bines still appearing. I trained them to go up the ropes and then around the base of the railing on my back deck. I only have like a 20 foot yard below the deck until another small building, so this is proof you don't need much space to grow these, as long as the sun angle is decent.

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That is a beautiful Bowl of Cones Jmarshall! I can't wait until mine start flowering. I have burrs on them just no cone formation yet. It is a rewarding process from tilling the soil to seeing them rocket up the twine. My Chinnook put on a foot just while I was at my Dad's for the weekend. My Nugget and cascade seem to be done with the vegative stage and are starting to focus on flowering.
 
Thanks. I imagine in Chicago the harvest might be a little later than here in Virginia. It sounds like there is the beginnings of some commercial hops growing around here, at least on the small scale. I know at least one local brewery growing and using their own, all cascade.
 
Let's say I'm a bad hop-daddy.

I have two rhizomes going, halltertauer and santiam.

I ordered them in March, got them in April, and planted them in May. I never got around to putting up any kind of support for them and have been out of town quite a bit this summer...

So they were more or less in a tangle still this morning. I strung up three twines per each rhizome and picked the healthiest vines, trained them on the string, and pruned the others back.

Will they make it?

The Santiam looks sad, but it's still going. The Halltertauer is a little more abundant but kinda floppy and wilty. So I watered them. The anti-weed matting might not really be helping matters there but SWMBO went through a lot of trouble for it and I dare not remove it.

The Santiam:
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The Hallertauer:
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Please feel free to judge me. I do. :drunk:
 
All first year plantings, in the ground first week of April when the epic snowbank below the decks finally melted (it was up to the second level at its peak!).

Four cascades, three made it to the top railing (the closest one is the laggard). Lots of side shoots that I've been mostly training back to the cord to keep them from tangling in the Butterfly Bush and the Trumpet Vine
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Four Chinooks - these all made it to the railing and are running back and forth along it.
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Four Centennials - three of four made it to the railing and the other is striving. There are also three potted baby Fuggles rhizomes (tucked in behind the Centennials) that someone gave me in late May and I went ahead and planted just for grins. They're way behind but starting to flower and put out side arms.
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All of the bines that have reached the upper railing had hundreds and hundreds of flowers that have been rapidly turning into hops - way more than I would have expected for first-year plantings. And the emerging side arms are bringing even more flowers into play.

Chinook
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Centennial
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Cascade
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Now I'm just hoping nothing dramatic happens weather-wise. The entire hop garden is on an automatic drip irrigation system, likely responsible for getting through the unbelievable hot spells we've had in the Northeast this summer, and perhaps for the real nice production so far!

With all the new flowers from the side arms I suspect any harvesting is going to be strung out quite awhile once it gets going...

Cheers!
 
This thread makes me so jealous! I wish I could grow my own hops. It sucks living in a desert with drought restrictions.
 
This thread makes me so jealous! I wish I could grow my own hops. It sucks living in a desert with drought restrictions.

there are still ways. rainwater (yes i know you dont get much) collectors saving waht you do get and using it later. lol only have 1-2 plants in a pot use tap water to water them better ur hops gets it than u. is it canibalistic to feed em beer? any way the point is where there is a will there is a redneck way to get er done
 
They are cascade. Second year. I have since moved to Texas but I visited home back in June. Buffalo had a very wet spring and they appreciated it.
 
there are still ways. rainwater (yes i know you dont get much) collectors saving waht you do get and using it later. lol only have 1-2 plants in a pot use tap water to water them better ur hops gets it than u. is it canibalistic to feed em beer? any way the point is where there is a will there is a redneck way to get er done

I guess I can try... It seems like it would be a lot of work and very easy to screw up all of that hard work just by forgetting to water them once or twice.
 
You have a ways to go before harvest.It looks like you are just out of burr stage into cone.Looking good

Yeah I'm going to wait as long as possible, to make sure I don't pick them too soon. Waiting patiently. Looking forward to harvest day!
 
Here are some pics of my first year hops I'm growing on my south facing Vancouver balcony. The first 2 pics are from June, the last three I took tonight. I ordered my rhizomes from Crannog ales. They were huge and grew like crazy. Nugget, Willamette and Cascade in 100L of potting soil in rubbermaid containers, Centennial and Mt Hood in large pots I already had. I ran lines up to the upstairs balcony and lowered vines into coils over my railing as they hit the top. Cascade is about 20ft long with more than 500 burrs. Next year I'll get rid of at least 2 of the plants as I definitely don't have room for them - I only ordered 5 because of the shipping costs and I didn't know what would grow. If I can't convince my friend to take them, I'll guerrilla plant them in the park. The weather has been crap here this summer (very cold and rainy) and I had some issues with aphids and mold. Lately its been great and I'm finally winning the war with the bugs. These are awesome plants to sit under, drink a pint and watch them grow - on a hot sunny day, they will do half a rotation around the twine in the time it takes to finish a drink.

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gbx said:
Here are some pics of my first year hops I'm growing on my south facing Vancouver balcony. The first 2 pics are from June, the last three I took tonight. I ordered my rhizomes from Crannog ales. They were huge and grew like crazy. Nugget, Willamette and Cascade in 100L of potting soil in rubbermaid containers, Centennial and Mt Hood in large pots I already had. I ran lines up to the upstairs balcony and lowered vines into coils over my railing as they hit the top. Cascade is about 20ft long with more than 500 burrs. Next year I'll get rid of at least 2 of the plants as I definitely don't have room for them - I only ordered 5 because of the shipping costs and I didn't know what would grow. If I can't convince my friend to take them, I'll guerrilla plant them in the park. The weather has been crap here this summer (very cold and rainy) and I had some issues with aphids and mold. Lately its been great and I'm finally winning the war with the bugs. These are awesome plants to sit under, drink a pint and watch them grow - on a hot sunny day, they will do half a rotation around the twine in the time it takes to finish a drink.

Is there a better place to enjoy a beer than under a canopy of hops? Cheers!
 
That's def a great place to sit & 'ave a pint,mate. I figure that since they're of the Canabinacea family,they would tend to grow quickly. Same family,different genus.
 
Went home again this weekend. Checked the status of my hops this is the cascade. The nugget and Chinook pretty much look like they did a few weeks ago with some nugs hanging on them. It is clear that the cascade will be the star of what ever brew I do with them. I plan on taking all of the hops from this harvest and making one insane IPA with them . :mug: Cheers guys.

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All first year plants, Rhizomes from Northern Brewer

Chinook growing nicely on trellising around the patio
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Cascade climbing nicely to create a screen for the deck
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Some nice cones developing, no smell yet..
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rniles said:
That looks gorgeous! Did the same with my first year hops. Made a harvest ale. Just used the average for the type of hop and it came out quite well. Picked and into the wort within 15 minutes. Yummy.

Thanks. Those are in a big Barleywine (with too much chocolate malt) along with some chinook pellets. I am hoping for an all cascade harvest ale from a second harvest. If I am really lucky my Zeus will put out again and it will be a CTZ/Cascade DIPA as big as the hops will allow.
 
these are my first year centennials. i planted 3 rhizomes. i know i'm not supposed to expect much of a yield on first year plants, but i'm wondering if i can do something to induce cone production.
should i rdwhahb and wait til next year, or do they look like they might get some cones growing?

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Hey NorthSide, My First year Centennials didin't do anything. I havested my centennials about a month ago and didn't get much from them this year either. I am located about a 100 miles west of you. My Cascades however were amazing this year. I got 42 OZ from a one string and the bottom third of the second. that consisted of 3 bines each string. Last night I pulled another 22 Oz from the second and have about 2 feet of the top to harvest.

Are the pictures recent, they are really flowering late. You may want to fertilize them as they requre a lot of nitrogen during growing, and flowering.
 
zrule - the photos are current. i used miracle grow once and it seemed to work as one of the plants that was turning yellow got a lot healthier. i guess i should use some more and hope for the best.
your cascades sound amazing. thanks for the help.
 
Here are our third year centennial plants. They were first in a barrel outside NYC and were moved to eastern MA last summer. Doing great this year.

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Ok first year harvest. 1oz centennial, .25oz chinook (smallest rhizome), and no measurable amount of cascade :( The cascade had the most vegital at about 4 bines per line thats why i think it didnt produce as much as the other two, but im sure its roots are massive. Centennial was the tallest at 15' with one bine per line. All in all i am quite pleased with the results this year and am quite excited for next years harvest, im sure it will be larger (weather permitting).
 
Hey NorthSide, My First year Centennials didin't do anything. I havested my centennials about a month ago and didn't get much from them this year either. I am located about a 100 miles west of you. My Cascades however were amazing this year. I got 42 OZ from a one string and the bottom third of the second. that consisted of 3 bines each string. Last night I pulled another 22 Oz from the second and have about 2 feet of the top to harvest.

Are the pictures recent, they are really flowering late. You may want to fertilize them as they requre a lot of nitrogen during growing, and flowering.

Took another 5 gallon bucket last night from my cascades. Up to over 100 oz. from 4 strings 3 bines each. Have a few left probably about 10 oz. I have yet to harvest the Chinook. Estimate these at only around 10 oz total from two strings 3 bines each.
 
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