Homegrown Hops

[user 574]

Update on my rhizomes first planted this year; Cascades are already 4' tall but my nuggets are being a bit more stubborn. One is about 1' and the second is still only 2" off the ground. Don't think the nugget are getting enough direct sun and thinking about moving them.

 

[Schlenkerla]

My are slower than yours. I don't have the heat you have. I have plenty of moisture though.

Nugget #1 - Two bines 1' each
Nugget #2 - Two-three bines, 3" each
Cascade #1 - Two bine 1' each, third bine 6"
Cascade #2 - 5 bines 3-4" each.

They need some hot wheather!!!! I have a garden hose!!!! :fro:

 

[david_42]

Mine still aren't doing much. I scored a Mt. Hood at the Brewcrew meeting Thursday and as a first year sprout, it's as big as my plants from last year! I've got a great view, but I think the elevation is slowing things down. I had frost last Tuesday and tomorrow the forcast is 93F.

Looks like another dry summer, so I plan on watering more often. Once the roots get about two feet down, they should be fine year round.

So, now I have Willamette, Fuggles, Cascades, Northern Brewer and Mt. Hood. Three empty spots. Maybe some EKG?

 

[HopsFarm.com]

Hey There, We're a new hops farm in Paris, Maine. We'll be posting pictures on our website(s) as the hops and farm progress. We'll also be offering organic whole hops and rhizomes for sale after harvest. www.parisviewfarm.com or www.hopsfarm.com

Cheers!
Rick,
Paris View Farm

 

[todd_k]

Hey There, We're a new hops farm in Paris, Maine. We'll be posting pictures on our website(s) as the hops and farm progress. We'll also be offering organic whole hops and rhizomes for sale after harvest. www.parisviewfarm.com or www.hopsfarm.com

Cheers!
Rick,
Paris View Farm

sort of.

Shouldn't this be in the vendor section?

 

[Brewiz]

My Centennial grew 11/2" in 2 days now about 12" and only in the ground since 4/22, Cascade is about 2-3" behind.

 

[user 574]

My Centennial grew 11/2" in 2 days now about 12" and only in the ground since 4/22, Cascade is about 2-3" behind.

Yea, they start growing fast once they get the idea. My two cascades are 10' tall already. I'm not sure when I planted them but think it was around Apr 1st. My Nugget aren't getting enough sun, or they grow slower, about 4' tall. All 1st year rhizomes.

Side note for those more experienced; how do they do when they have to start growing sideways? I planted them near a horse cover and now they're cruising sideways. Seem ok...

 

[Schlenkerla]

My Hops are finally starting to get some warm weather. Just a few days of heat and they are really starting to take off.

My support is a teepee, a 12' post w/ 18' of climbing length.

#1 Cascade: 6-8 bines all about 8-12"
#2 Cascade: 4-6 bines 3-4', several revs around the rope.
#1 Nugget: 5-7 bines 4-5', many revs aroung the rope.
#2 Nugget: 2 older bines 4" several new bines about 2-3"

From what I understand sometime soon the extra bines need to be clipped off.

Any of you experts do the same? I have heard two schools of thought, clip'em in June or let'em all grow.

 

[Dude]

My Hops are finally starting to get some warm weather. Just a few days of heat and they are really starting to take off.

My support is a teepee, a 12' post w/ 18' of climbing length.

#1 Cascade: 6-8 bines all about 8-12"
#2 Cascade: 4-6 bines 3-4', several revs around the rope.
#1 Nugget: 5-7 bines 4-5', many revs aroung the rope.
#2 Nugget: 2 older bines 4" several new bines about 2-3"

From what I understand sometime soon the extra bines need to be clipped off.

Any of you experts do the same? I have heard two schools of thought, clip'em in June or let'em all grow.

If these are first year hops, clip all the bines but 2. Next year let 3 grow, the year after 4, and so on.

You won't get any type of yield this year--so the best thing to do is cut the extra bines and let the energy go into the root system.

One other note of interest--if you want to grow rhizomes for friends or to increase your hops harvest, at the end of the year cut all but the bottom 3 feet of the bine and bury that in the ground. By the next spring you can use that bine as more rhizomes.

 

[MrSaLTy]

From what I understand sometime soon the extra bines need to be clipped off.

I am no expert, and Dude may certainly be right about growth for the first few years. But I did hear the guy from Hop Union on the Brewingnetwork a few weeks back. Hop Union is a huge hop supplier for many of the largest homebrew stores including More beer. He said the reason big growers like them trim down to 1 or 2 bines is because they have to pick with machines and need to have the bines fead into a slot to pick. He suggests that home growers just let any bines that grow continue growing and there will be no problem. Take that for what its worth... I got no idea.

 

[Baron von BeeGee]

The Nugget BOSTON gave me continues to climb...the Fuggles I bought a few weeks ago are just peeking out. Hopefully they'll at least get established this year.

 

[Schlenkerla]

I have deer eating my cascade hops..... sob......

On the bright side, only of the leaves were eated off the plant, the bines are still intact.

Roughly 50% of them were picked off. I hung some irish spring soap from from the hop ropes in SWMBO's stockings. I hope this will keep them at bay until I can fence the area in.

The hops are next to the garden along with the new berry bushes. The SWMBO probably won't mind the fence considering the expectation of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, not to mention blackberries & red raspberries. When they bear fruit I imagine every wild animal will want at them.

This totally ruins my morning. Planned on making continental pilsner....

Off to Menards & Wally World... for fencing, brewing water, shot gun shells....

Damn Deer!!!!

 

[boo boo]

Deer = venison = good eating. Problem solved.

 

[Brewiz]

Mine are going crazy, my Cascade is growing about a 1/2 inch a day. My son and I just constructed a overhead rope to haang the hop string on. Pictures to follow..

 

[david_42]

Still not much action. I planted three early maturing hops this week, but the ones from last year are only 2-3 feet tall.

 

[Boston]

Mine have reached the top of the twine, about 14' up, and are now running horizontally along the cable support. My eyesight is failing, but I see rudimentary hop cones developing up there.
Jeff

 

[user 574]

Here's my Cascade. About 2.5 months old and 10' high and 2' moving horizontal.

Close-up of a flower in the sunlight.

Nugget isn't doing as well. Maybe 5' tall.

 

[Boston]

Awesome, DesertBrew
Who says you can't grow hops in the southeast/southwest?

 

[chask31]

Ok this topic is new to me...what do you use to grow the hops? I have some pellets that I didnt use from my last recipe...can I bury them and hope for some magic beanstalks?

 

[Lou]

Ok this topic is new to me...what do you use to grow the hops? I have some pellets that I didnt use from my last recipe...can I bury them and hope for some magic beanstalks?

you can hope all you want, but unless they really are magic, you're not going to grow any hops like that...
you need rhizomes, which are essentially roots. you can get them from hops distributors like freshops.com -- i think they are usually sold in the late winter/early spring...

 

[Forestgrover]

Yeah it really all depends on where you are, here in Oregon there are tons of people growing them and you can find people here who will just waste the day away talking about everything they know and often will offer to give you a rhizome or two for free, but you can buy them online just as easily, www.freshops.com is good, so is http://www.thymegarden.com.

 

[Forestgrover]

Do you divide them at the end of the season to split them?

 

[Schlenkerla]

My hops survived the deer feeding session. I was fortunate that they only ate the leaves. My neighbor suggested hanging irish spring soap from SWMBO pantyhose, it seemed to work and was a lot cheaper than fencing

I have a 12' tent pole set up....

Nugget#1 - Doing well 12' or longer 3-4 bines over the full span. Pretty thick bines

Nugget#2 - Really Slow starter, 5', 3-4 bines still pretty young , many leaves but still small

Cascade#1 - Fully recouperated - Going gangbusters 16' 3-4 bines all thickening

Cascade#2 - Slow Starter - 8' - Growing better as it gets hotter​

I need to start watering with Miracle Grow....

 

[Robbw]

Mine are probably 2 feet tall right now. I need to weed though!

 

[boo boo]

My 6 plants are just starting to take off. About a foot each. Time to string them up.

 

[david_42]

Four days of bright sun and high temperatures. Mine are finally starting to grow: Fuggles in the lead. I checked the soil, one more time. The compost & manure seem to have taken care of the the nutrient problems. Haven't had much water pressure the last few days and the plants are upslope from the house, it's a real snoozer trying to deep water at one QUART a minute!

 

[Brewiz]

I have cones!!!!!!!! Cascade ones.

 

[david_42]

My tallest is all of eight feet now. Some that haven't even gotten up to the twine yet. By the book, they've got perfect growing conditions. All day sun, good drainage, compost, etc. No feeding by the deer, either.

I think I have a Black Patent thumb!

 

[EvilTOJ]

my cascade hops died back from 8' to about 4' when we had 100+ temps for three days and I didn't water them enough. The poor thing is bouncing back, but I'm afraid my chances of getting cones this year is pretty slim.

 

[Todd]

I'm curious how long it would take and how many vines you need to have enough to brew? Is this mostly for fun or will you guys actually be able to harvest enough to brew?

Also why don't you train them to run horizontal like grape vines? Seems to me that harvesting from 14' high would be tough.

This might be something I'd like to do if it is usable, I already grow a garden each year.

Todd