Growing hops in Oklahoma

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ThinBlueLine

ThinBlueLine

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So I decided to try my hand at growing hops in Oklahoma. I couldn't find any articles from anyone who had grown in OK and with our crazy hot weather I'm not entirely sure what to expect. The area I placed the beds will give the hops sun until about 2pm and then the area will be partially shaded from the hottest afternoon sun.

After reading about all the different set-ups, I decided to go with 2 8'x8' beds with 4 plants (1 in each corner) in each bed. I brought in a load of sandy loam and composted it with manure and cotton burr compost. Each bed will have a 20ft steel pole in the middle with and eye bolt at the top. A piece of twine will run from each plant to the top of the pole. I think this is called tent style?

It seems from what ive read that cascades are the easiest to grow/most heat tolerant so I have 4 of those in the first bed and in the other bed I have one of each of centennial, magnum, nugget, and willamette.

With all of that said... He are my questions.... Has anyone tried growing in Oklahoma or in a similar environment and if so, what were the results? Do you think the hop varieties I chose will tolerate the summer heat? Has anyone used the tent style hop trellis and if so, pro/cons or tips?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
 
This is my bed setup... This is late afternoon so as you can see, it will receive partial shade during the hottest part of the day. I plan on waiting until the hop bines get some length on them to put the poles up

image-2336808301.jpg
 
Hello ThinBlueline, you're not the only fellow brewer in Oklahoma wanting to grow their own hops! I hope you've had some success now that Oklahoma is officially under a burn ban with no rain in site! I'm interested in growing hops but I have no idea what will work here in this state with this brutal summer heat. Let us know how you turned out!
 
I'm growing willamette, chinook, cascade, and centennial. I'm in the panhandle (that doesn't get rain). I somehow got my cascade and centennial mixed up as my marking blew away and I didn't have them stored on paper... Anyhow the chinook are growing well.
 
I'm trying my hand at some cascade for the first time. I live in Edmond and its been an interesting year. I got a late start (planted in may) bc we were n the middle of building a house/moving. I initially planted 6 rhizomes, 3 each in 2 separate whiskey barrels. No less than 2 weeks after I had growth we got that crazy hail storm that completely knocked out one of the two barrels (and destroyed my 2 week old roof). The remaining barrel has taken off but is now suffering from the heat and lack of rain. My goal this season was more so to establish solid root growth due to the late start, now I am struggling to keep them alive. I think if I do, they will be much heartier next year. We shall see. OK is unforgiving of attempted hop growth.
 
Where do you purchase the plants? I was thinking of trying this out myself. I live here in Tulsa. I know it's probably too late to start this year, but I would love to get some growing next spring along the side of the house. Can anyone tell me where to purchase plants? I've got a bit of a green thumb and think I could get something to grow at least unless next summer is as brutal as this one was. Thanks guys.
 
I'm curious to see how your hops turned out? I have little to no space to grow my own, but still trying to figure out a way to do it where I live in Yukon.

Do you have any pics of the hops growing at their peak? Also, maybe some of the harvest?
 
Sort of an old thread folks-
I was just wondering how everyone did with their hops.
I am thinking of putting 1-2 verities in myself when I get home in a couple of weeks.
 
Okie - I tried for 2 seasons to grow hops in OK and whether it was the heat, hail, or wind, I didn't have much luck. The first year they got destroyed by hail. I wasn't too worried about it considering I was just trying to establish a good root system. The second year (last summer) we got MORE hail, and then the heat set in. I actually moved to Charlotte NC in the middle of last summer and brought the hops with me (planted in whiskey barrels). It's amazing what a change of climate and some rain will do. My hops showed up to NC looking pretty rough. By the end of the summer, they were going OFF with little to no care from me. We are finally settled in a house and I have them in a good spot. Here's to hoping for my first good crop.

With all the research I did in OK, I would recommend cascades. They seem to be the most resilient to the heat. Good luck!
 
Cascade, centennial still growing and chinook. Even in the heat here.


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Good to know. I'm currently trying to come up with a plan to do some container hops somehow in my front yard so I can keep my dogs out of them, but we do have a bunch of strays running around. Also, I genuinely enjoy annoying the neighbors with weird plants and yard art.
 
I fought for survival of 13 species over 5 years of bending over backwards to help them suffer through hail, wind, scorching heat, grubs, caterpillars, etc...

Best thing I ever did for them is just let them die.
 
Yeah its been rough going weather wise here for a while. We've received a ton of rain the last few weeks, but we are still like 5 inches below for the year. When we do get rain...it rains and then some, so planting anything here isn't for the faint of heart for sure. But I was under the impression that hops are weed like...and if they are anything the little bastards in my lawn I should be set!
 
zeptrey said:
Yeah its been rough going weather wise here for a while. We've received a ton of rain the last few weeks, but we are still like 5 inches below for the year. When we do get rain...it rains and then some, so planting anything here isn't for the faint of heart for sure. But I was under the impression that hops are weed like...and if they are anything the little bastards in my lawn I should be set!
Click to expand...

Yep, one irony for me was fighting to save hops from an Oklahoma monsoon. Too much rain, too often suffocates the roots and appears as nutrient deficiencies in the plant.
 
Least u got rain finally got rain here in panhandle it never rains hede


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Czm said:
Least u got rain finally got rain here in panhandle it never rains hede


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Click to expand...


That's true and the temp swings out there are crazy.


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I too would like to hear how the growing went. Did you install irrigation? How much were you able to harvest?
 
Jodalee said:
I too would like to hear how the growing went. Did you install irrigation? How much were you able to harvest?
Click to expand...

Who? Me?

Yes, I had irrigation. I put in one of those micro systems from Lowes.

Most years it was half a pound (dry), or less, per plant. 1 year I was able to harvest 2+ pounds (dry) per from at least 3 or 4 of the surviving plants.

Once the price of hops came back down it just didn't make sense to struggle so much for so little.
 
Used sprinklers. One year never water just let nature take course. You be amazed how hardy some varieties are.


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Last year I planted 4 types in Corpus Christi, TX. Cascade, Centennial, Magnum, Willamette. I put in an irrigation system (low flow bubbler). Down here water is the key. I started at 10 minutes every other morning. Well I went on vacation for a week and the timer stopped working. They were all but dead in one week! I nursed them back to health. The Cascade was the best. Even with the lack of water it bounced right back. Second best was the Centennial until my pet pig found out she likes hops as much as I do. She ate the entire 5 foot plant including the roots. I got some chicken wire around the others before she woke up from the hops coma.

Water, water, water! I had to up my water from 10 minutes every other day to 10 minutes twice a day during the summer heat. They are a lot of work down here. But not enough that will stop me from adding more centennial and cascades this year. I think I will get a pound per plant this year. I got nothing the first year but that is not uncommon in first year plants.
 

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