How much does a single hop plant yield?

[stickyhops]

Hey I was wondering how much one hop plant grows. I keep finding information on acre yields, or pounds, but I was hoping to find out how much one plant will produce.

I have some one or two year plants of 'Cascade', 'Chinook', and 'Cascade' if that makes a difference. Also, I grow in eastern Kansas where we get about three feet of rain a year.

 

[mongoose33]

Wouldn't that all depend on when the rain falls, if there are intermittent drought spells, the quality of the soil and the fertilizer you use, whether pests are stressing the plant.....?

 

[stickyhops]

Wouldn't that all depend on when the rain falls, if there are intermittent drought spells, the quality of the soil and the fertilizer you use, whether pests are stressing the plant.....?

Yeah, I mean I guess assuming I took pretty good care of the plants, and watered them when they need it was what I was thinking. I am not going to just let them grow with just the climate, but I think I only watered when I planted, and once or twice after that in the last year.

Hops grow wild all around here in the creek and river bottoms, so I think we have a really good climate for them to grow.

Just looking for like a bare bones harvest estimate.

 

[bleme]

I have seen a 2-year old Cascade produce only a handful while on the other side if town one produced a 3-gallon bucket full.

 

[stickyhops]

I have seen a 2-year old Cascade produce only a handful while on the other side if town one produced a 3-gallon bucket full.

Were they both in full sun?

 

[ancientmariner52]

Have you checked with your state ag department? They probably studied all this a century ago and wrote a great thick book about it.

 

[stickyhops]

Have you checked with your state ag department? They probably studied all this a century ago and wrote a great thick book about it.

No, I have not checked there yet. Thanks

 

[bleme]

Were they both in full sun?

They were both in full sun but the first guy works 60hrs/week and the other is a retired farmer so there is probably a significant difference to the amount and quality of attention they got.

 

[Leezer]

I’m pretty new to hop growing but I think it can vary a lot. My third year harvest was 10oz picked (2oz after drying), which was about twice the second year amount. My first year was about 2 cones. In the meantime I read of others who have much larger harvests, including some who say they hardly pay any attention to their plants. I know my 6 ft trellis limits my yield, but I am pretty good at keeping up with watering and fertilizing. I’ve come to the conclusion that there is no standard amount to expect per plant. Factors such as age, soil quality, trellis size, water, fertilizer, etc can have an effect, but then there seem to be others who do well with no special attention paid to those things. That’s my observation from my limited experience anyway.

 

[B-Hoppy]

From strictly a production standpoint, you can look at the individual varieties yield/acre on this chart and get a general idea of which ones are big producers and which are poor. https://www.hopsteiner.com/variety-data-sheets/

The further away you get from their optimum growing region will most likely have a detrimental affect on their production. There are way too many variables to pinpoint a certain value but commercially they are harvesting anywhere from 1000-2500 pounds per acre which can roughly be translated to 1-2.5#/plant.

 

[PapaBearJay]

B-Hoppy is correct. In Kansas you are far further south than where hops have been grown commercially. Most of the varieties that are available to you are adapted to more northernly latitudes, making it difficult to judge just how much yield you will actually get. I would presume that you have a conservative estimate in mind and start with half those amounts, especially if you’re planning to grow commercially.

 

[Sbe2]

Depends on variety, disease, nutrition, care etc. My disease free Galenas I got 6 lbs dried from two plants. Newport with some mildew 2 lbs from two. Centennials 6 oz from two with heavy downy mildew. All are 4 yr old plants

So it is hard to say how much u can yield. Lots of ppl on here grow hops in the SW, not that it helps. I think the biggest thing would be to find a variety that thrives at your latitude and soil composition.

 

[stickyhops]

Depends on variety, disease, nutrition, care etc. My disease free Galenas I got 6 lbs dried from two plants. Newport with some mildew 2 lbs from two. Centennials 6 oz from two with heavy downy mildew. All are 4 yr old plants

So it is hard to say how much u can yield. Lots of ppl on here grow hops in the SW, not that it helps. I think the biggest thing would be to find a variety that thrives at your latitude and soil composition.

What kind of trellis system do you grow on?

 

[Northern_Brewer]

I have some one or two year plants of 'Cascade', 'Chinook', and 'Cascade' if that makes a difference. Also, I grow in eastern Kansas where we get about three feet of rain a year.

As has been mentioned, it's hard to generalise and your local agricultural extension people are the best people to talk to about specifics in your particular area.

If everything is perfect, you can get 1-2lb of dried hops from a full-grown plant, but that does assume everything is right, and does depend on variety (sexy aroma hops tend to have lower yields than "boring" bittering hops). It generally takes three years for them to get up to full speed - it's not quite as simple as 1/3 of the adult crop in year 1, and 2/3 of the adult crop in year 2, probably more like 10-20% in the first year.

The thing to remember is that hops are from temperate zones - the classic hop areas like Bohemia and Kent are 49-52°N. I'd imagine in Kansas you're getting pretty close to the 35°N limiting latitude for growing them successfully. It's not just a matter of climate - although they need a good frost to "reset" them in winter, they are also very sensitive to day length and that's what prevents them cropping successfully nearer the equator.

36" of rain is if anything on the high side - 24-30" is typical of the traditional hop regions - so fungal diseases may be a problem. OTOH the rain does have to come at the right time - August is the wettest month of the year in parts of Kent.

They're hungry plants that appreciate deep rich soil and being kept well-fed.

 

[stickyhops]

As has been mentioned, it's hard to generalise and your local agricultural extension people are the best people to talk to about specifics in your particular area.

If everything is perfect, you can get 1-2lb of dried hops from a full-grown plant, but that does assume everything is right, and does depend on variety (sexy aroma hops tend to have lower yields than "boring" bittering hops). It generally takes three years for them to get up to full speed - it's not quite as simple as 1/3 of the adult crop in year 1, and 2/3 of the adult crop in year 2, probably more like 10-20% in the first year.

The thing to remember is that hops are from temperate zones - the classic hop areas like Bohemia and Kent are 49-52°N. I'd imagine in Kansas you're getting pretty close to the 35°N limiting latitude for growing them successfully. It's not just a matter of climate - although they need a good frost to "reset" them in winter, they are also very sensitive to day length and that's what prevents them cropping successfully nearer the equator.

36" of rain is if anything on the high side - 24-30" is typical of the traditional hop regions - so fungal diseases may be a problem. OTOH the rain does have to come at the right time - August is the wettest month of the year in parts of Kent.

They're hungry plants that appreciate deep rich soil and being kept well-fed.

That's something else man. We got hops all over around the river valley here in Lawrence. Its crazy to think they grow them all the way over there, and they just grow wild around here too.

I appreciate the advice and information. That was a really good response. Last year, I did not have much fungal growth at all. I did have a bit of powdery mildew on leaves, but that did not set in until after the hop cones had matured. It is really hot here that time of year. Like at least 90 most days, if not more. August is also our wettest month. The soil where they grow is sandy loam river alluvium.

 

[PapaBearJay]

That's something else man. We got hops all over around the river valley here in Lawrence. Its crazy to think they grow them all the way over there, and they just grow wild around here too.

I appreciate the advice and information. That was a really good response. Last year, I did not have much fungal growth at all. I did have a bit of powdery mildew on leaves, but that did not set in until after the hop cones had matured. It is really hot here that time of year. Like at least 90 most days, if not more. August is also our wettest month. The soil where they grow is sandy loam river alluvium.

Do you pictures of powdery mildew infested growth? Powdery mildew is commonly misdiagnosed.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

That's something else man. We got hops all over around the river valley here in Lawrence. Its crazy to think they grow them all the way over there, and they just grow wild around here too.

Probably not the same as the classic European hops though, either they will be one of the US natives like neomexicanus or pubescens, or alien species like japonicus. Again, your local ag extension people will know.

 

[Sbe2]

What kind of trellis system do you grow on?

It’s just a two post system, not sure what style it is. The span between the posts at the top is 30’ with the hanging wire 20’ above the surface. When I put it up, I probably didn’t put it in the right spot of my lawn, but they grow.

 

[stickyhops]

View attachment 552065 View attachment 552063 View attachment 552063
It’s just a two post system, not sure what style it is. The span between the posts at the top is 30’ with the hanging wire 20’ above the surface. When I put it up, I probably didn’t put it in the right spot of my lawn, but they grow.

Nice hops man

 

[stickyhops]

Do you pictures of powdery mildew infested growth? Powdery mildew is commonly misdiagnosed.

I do not have pictures. What else have you seen that looks like it?

 

[stickyhops]

Probably not the same as the classic European hops though, either they will be one of the US natives like neomexicanus or pubescens, or alien species like japonicus. Again, your local ag extension people will know.

We have Japanese hops, and another species too. I am not sure which of those other species that they are though.

 

[PapaBearJay]

We have Japanese hops, and another species too. I am not sure which of those other species that they are though.

Japanese hops (Humulus japonicus) is an alien, invasive species. Common hop (Humulus lupulus) has three native subspecies or varieties. One, var. pubescens, is native to the south central US (i.e. Kansas). It should be noted though, that commercial hop cultivation is recorded in almost all 50 states in some point during the history of the US and mostly during periods of early settlement and state incorporation over the past 150 years.

 

[B-Hoppy]

We have Japanese hops, and another species too. I am not sure which of those other species that they are though.

Could also be lupuloides: https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=HULUL. If you go to the main page on hops you can find info on all the others that can be found here in N America.

Also, not the greatest, but a few pics of powdery mildew.