Dialog with Wife

[Teromous]

Ok, so my wife has been planning out how she's going to do her garden this year. She usually plans it so on paper it looks like there's no space between anything at all. In reality there's plenty of space. So I order a couple of hop rhizomes and I'm telling her on the phone, it went something like this:

"Hey I'm ordering some hop rhizomes for the garden"

"I don't have that in the plan." (her way of saying no)

"Yeah, I know but they don't take up much space."

"Oh, ok..." (probably trying to figure out how how I'll get hops from a small plant)

"Yeah, they grow vertically."

"How big?"

"Oh, they'll probably only get about 20 feet or so"

"WHAT?!"

 

[Zen_Brew]

Enjoyed that zinger at the end didn't you?

LOL Nice

 

[Seabee John]

I had a similar experience about four years ago. I got the ok to plant 3 crowns "out back" after she watched them grow, she asked me if I could build a trellis for them... long story short, I've got six plants and looking into adding 3 more... do a few this year and be creative... maybe she'll like them...

 

[Teromous]

I had a similar experience about four years ago. I got the ok to plant 3 crowns "out back" after she watched them grow, she asked me if I could build a trellis for them... long story short, I've got six plants and looking into adding 3 more... do a few this year and be creative... maybe she'll like them...

Very nice, and good idea.

 

[Baldy_Beer_Brewery]

I imagine many women are put off by the thought of a twenty or thirty foot plant. But hops can be very decorative if done right.

 

[DrJerryrigger]

But hops can be very decorative if done right.

This is quite true. Many people grow hops with no intention of ever picking a cone. If you grow them on an arbor or on a fences they will be happy, and they could fit into your wife's garden plans (if you had told her a few months ago).

Hops are invasive and take up a good deal of soil space if you let them. I would suggest making some efforts to contain the horizontal root growth.

 

[Teromous]

I'm planning on container growing them and training them to twine. That way if need be I can move them, and don't have to worry about them spreading or taking over my grape vines.