New Hop Garden 2014 (pic heavy)

[BaylessBrewer]

How much blood meal per plant do you use each time?

 

[thaymond]

How much blood meal per plant do you use each time?

I went overboard and used about a cup per plant. Maybe a cup and a half. I also watered the heck out of it to try and prevent nitrogen burn.

 

[thaymond]

Here is a progression of the cage view over the last month and a half. A good idea on how fast these things grow. The first picture is mid April, the last is the end of may.

View attachment 1464626572877.jpgView attachment 1464626589028.jpgView attachment 1464626603952.jpgView attachment 1464626615967.jpg

 

[Galek]

What are you using for lines? You weren't happy after the first year and got something better, but after seeing those two lines break would you recommend something stronger? I know I could always purchase something stronger, but at some point there will be diminishing returns in strength with exponentially higher costs.

Thanks for posting everything. First saw your design in Brew Your Own, and was glad it came from posts here for some yearly updates and improvements.

 

[WilliamSlayer]

I use a 20lb nylon line. Still thin, but strong enough for hops. Got mine @ Lowes.

 

[thaymond]

What are you using for lines? You weren't happy after the first year and got something better, but after seeing those two lines break would you recommend something stronger? I know I could always purchase something stronger, but at some point there will be diminishing returns in strength with exponentially higher costs.

Thanks for posting everything. First saw your design in Brew Your Own, and was glad it came from posts here for some yearly updates and improvements.

I've been using a 4 ply sisal for the 2 years. I fixed that with a 2 ply baling twine with 80 lb test. We'll see how that holds. To be fair, the 4 ply is close to 20 years old...

 

[thaymond]

I went back through and looked at previous posts to get an idea of how far along each plant was at about this time last year, then the year before. I wanted to gauge where I was for the season. I think it is safe to say that I am ahead of schedule on all plants. This post will be in two parts. These pictures are taken within a week of each other vertically over the 3 years of this post. I did my "hack back" on the 15th of April this year, and it looks like I did it sometime late April/early May last year. In 2014, it all was fair game.

2014 NuggetView attachment 1465214412687.jpg
2015 NuggetView attachment 1465214435930.jpg
2016 NuggetView attachment 1465214456771.jpg

2014 ZeusView attachment 1465214470480.jpg
2015 ZeusView attachment 1465214495611.jpg
2016 ZeusView attachment 1465214516140.jpg

 

[thaymond]

This is Part 2.

2014 CascadeView attachment 1465214687669.jpg
2015 CascadeView attachment 1465214700990.jpg
2016 CascadeView attachment 1465214727174.jpg

2014 ChinookView attachment 1465214736980.jpg
2015 ChinookView attachment 1465214747811.jpg
2016 Chinook View attachment 1465214768964.jpg

I see some pretty stark difference in the growth pattern with just a few weeks of cutting early. Depending on harvest date and yield amount, I may be setting my "Down to the Crown" date to near tax day in following Seasons.

 

[thaymond]

I'll add profile pics. The first post didn't work right...

View attachment 1465215202489.jpg

 

[thaymond]

Profile pictures, for those that care to see them.

2014 Profile (June 3)View attachment 1465215316086.jpg
2015 Profile (June 10)View attachment 1465215326241.jpg
2016 Profile (June 6)View attachment 1465215338318.jpg

I have given up of the back of the cages. I had all kinds of creepy crawlies in there (a couple of orb weaver spiders, a garden spider, a bunch of lady bugs) and I just don't care enough to stick my whole body in there and get a face full of spiderwebs.

 

[WilliamSlayer]

Amazing difference. Very stark contrasts. Would you say something Major changed, or does the maturity of the plant ( and the fact that you could trim it back) seem to be the biggest contributor?

 

[55x11]

Profile pictures, for those that care to see them.

2014 Profile (June 3)View attachment 357593
2015 Profile (June 10)View attachment 357594
2016 Profile (June 6)View attachment 357595

I have given up of the back of the cages. I had all kinds of creepy crawlies in there (a couple of orb weaver spiders, a garden spider, a bunch of lady bugs) and I just don't care enough to stick my whole body in there and get a face full of spiderwebs.

Great photos and design. Do you think the criss-crossing twines/ropes (some at very shallow angle) help the hops? Do you hook them onto the twines, or just let train by themselves? I planted my own hop garden a month or so ago, nothing as advanced as yours, but a few plants are already over 8 feet and keep climbing so I need to do something to redirect them.

 

[thaymond]

Amazing difference. Very stark contrasts. Would you say something Major changed, or does the maturity of the plant ( and the fact that you could trim it back) seem to be the biggest contributor?

I'd say plant maturity. All my plants were harvested for Rhizomes this year, so they are now mature plants. 2014 was their first year, with the exception of Nugget. You can see big differences in 2014 Nugget compared to 2014 Zeus, Cascade, and Chinook. All 2015 plants fared equally, and I think suffered from all the rain we had last year. This year, I did soil testing for the first time, and adjusted my fertilizer to try and meet the plants demands for nutrients, pH, etc. Before, I was just assuming they were getting what they needed. I found I needed to significantly boost my nitrogen source early, so I did with extra Bloodmeal. I'll need to test again soon, as it's been about a month since that application. The pH was right in range as well.

Something new that I did that I never considered before was draining my pool cover onto the plants. Before anyone loses their mind about possible chlorine poisoning, the pool cover is water tight and I tested the water to ensure no chlorine was present before using to water. Once I drained the bulk of the water, I get down to the gritty grimy leaf matter water, which I pumped onto the plants. They were slightly acidic (about 6.0) and my soil tested at slightly basic (8.0) I figured it would work out to about 7 ish, so I figured why not. I'll repeat this on coming years, as this seemed to help growth out as well, and I'm seeing no signs of disease or chlorine poisoning.

Great photos and design. Do you think the criss-crossing twines/ropes (some at very shallow angle) help the hops? Do you hook them onto the twines, or just let train by themselves? I planted my own hop garden a month or so ago, nothing as advanced as yours, but a few plants are already over 8 feet and keep climbing so I need to do something to redirect them.

Thank you for the kind words. Each plant has a 90 degree turn every 4 feet. If you try to make a "tight" turn, you will risk snapping the bine. I try to start leading the bine through the turn about 6 inches on either side of the wood post. This way, it's more of a gradual 90 degree turn and not something abrupt.

I do have to continually train each bine, as naturally they want to grow up. I take the upward growth and carefully wrap it around each line. If you have a vertical trellis, you won't have to train them after they take hold of the line. They will naturally climb vertically.

My very first year, I had a 5 foot climbing trellis, something you'd use for rose bushes, and tied lines to them leading to the roof of my house. This helped give me extra vertical room for them to grow, and they were able to train themselves more naturally. That may be a solution to your height problem.

 

[DurtyChemist]

Looking good. I ran my lines only I used WAY more line. I will post up in the 2016 thread so you can see how much extra I used. One line from the top, around the bottom, back up and I think back down. It's probably 100' of line.

 

[thaymond]

Looking good. I ran my lines only I used WAY more line. I will post up in the 2016 thread so you can see how much extra I used. One line from the top, around the bottom, back up and I think back down. It's probably 100' of line.

I probably run about 100 feet per box. I start at the top, wind to the bottom, then wind all the way up, then 'x' the top box, and dropped 6 feet to the middle of the box. I've found that a plant of established hops will use up all available growth line until the plant itself cannot grow anymore. My Nugget tops at about 25 to 30 feet.

 

[thaymond]

Update: I'm starting to see burrs forming, so I can't use Nitrogen fertilizer anymore. I hope that the bloodmeal I put down a few weeks ago has been used up to its fullest extent. Every plant has burrs on it, and we're over a week from solstice. I have some small sidearms poking out of nodes, so it will be really interesting to see how these guys bush out when the sidearm growth is in full swing. Here's to a bountiful harvest!

NuggetView attachment 1465906388513.jpg
ZeusView attachment 1465906402371.jpg
Cascade View attachment 1465906415772.jpg
Chinook View attachment 1465906427131.jpg
Profile View attachment 1465906445770.jpg

 

[BaylessBrewer]

thaymond,
Have you figured out what you will be using for your fertilizer during burr and cone formation?
I'm looking at buying Alaska More Bloom 0-10-10. http://m.homedepot.com/p/Alaska-32-oz-0-10-10-Morbloom-Fertilizer-100099251/202817750
It ships free to your local HomeDepot. They also carry it in a 1gal jug for like $15.

 

[thaymond]

My PK numbers were all surprisingly high when I tested my soil. I'll look into those. I'm interested to see how they would perform.

 

[Robx]

Triple Phosphate is a good economical solution for P - it's slow release, but faster than bone meal and doesn't contain any nitrate. Because it's granular it won't run off like the liquid. And because it's slow release it won't cause nutrient lockout from spiked P.

http://www.espoma.com/product/triple-phosphate/

 

[thaymond]

I found this, in case you have a B&G near you. 12 bucks for a gallon.

http://www.brewandgrow.com/grow/pla...ish-emulsion-hydrolysate/alaska-morbloom.html

 

[BaylessBrewer]

I found this, in case you have a B&G near you. 12 bucks for a gallon.

http://www.brewandgrow.com/grow/pla...ish-emulsion-hydrolysate/alaska-morbloom.html

No B&G near me but that is a good price! I ordered a 32oz bottle today from HomeDepot. Should be ready for pick up next week. Total cost $6.
I only have 3 first year plants so it should last the rest of this season. For the time being I mixed up some blackstrap molasses and water to feed them with until I get my morbloom. I mixed it a little strong for the one that has burrs on it @ 1cup to a gal of water and the other plants got a drink of 1/2cup to a gal each.

 

[thaymond]

No B&G near me but that is a good price! I ordered a 32oz bottle today from HomeDepot. Should be ready for pick up next week. Total cost $6.
I only have 3 first year plants so it should last the rest of this season. For the time being I mixed up some blackstrap molasses and water to feed them with until I get my morbloom. I mixed it a little strong for the one that has burrs on it @ 1cup to a gal of water and the other plants got a drink of 1/2cup to a gal each.

I've never heard of using molasses. Does it have soluble P and K?

 

[BaylessBrewer]

I've never heard of using molasses. Does it have soluble P and K?

It's not high in P but it is a good source of K along with a whole host of other vitamins and minerals. It's good for the soil too and controls some bugs. Most bugs don't have a pancreas so they can't process the sugar/carbs in it and they die. Here's a good read on its use and benefit. http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/feeding-plants-with-molasses.htm

 

[thaymond]

It's not high in P but it is a good source of K along with a whole host of other vitamins and minerals. It's good for the soil too and controls some bugs. Most bugs don't have a pancreas so they can't process the sugar/carbs in it and they die. Here's a good read on its use and benefit. http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/feeding-plants-with-molasses.htm

Good read. I never knew that. Thanks

 

[thaymond]

Happy Solstice! I added some natural fertilizer. I read you can use wood ash and coffee grounds as a bloom booster. We have a steady supply of both of those things. I mixed and added a little bit to each plant. We'll see if this helps the blooms. Every plant is starting to grow long sidearms and sprout flowers.

Nugget View attachment 1466468257382.jpg
Zeus View attachment 1466468271315.jpg
Cascade View attachment 1466468312242.jpg
Chinook View attachment 1466468324012.jpg

Cascade added a friend View attachment 1466468350245.jpg

 

[WilliamSlayer]

Lol. Does he scare the aphids away?

 

[olotti]

So do the plants naturally slow down growth around the solstice or will they keep going and do their own thing. I just noticed on my one pot I trained 3 bines, one is clear and away the lead and the others were doing well but are now slowing down and I notice the bine itself is starting to get thinner and smaller near the leading node. So this made me ponder my initial question, if maybe their in slow down mode to get ready to flower although there's minimal sidearms at this point.

 

[thaymond]

Lol. Does he scare the aphids away?

The garden spiders, orb weavers, and ladybugs do a bang up job at annihilating anything that flies in my hops. He's the overseer of insect extermination, 6-legged genocide coordinator, Harbinger of bug obliteration, Aphid Decimation Administrator. Pick your title. I call him Henry.

 

[thaymond]

So do the plants naturally slow down growth around the solstice or will they keep going and do their own thing. I just noticed on my one pot I trained 3 bines, one is clear and away the lead and the others were doing well but are now slowing down and I notice the bine itself is starting to get thinner and smaller near the leading node. So this made me ponder my initial question, if maybe their in slow down mode to get ready to flower although there's minimal sidearms at this point.

When my bines are done growing, there is a terminal bud, meaning that it will flower directly at the top of the last node, preventing other growth. I they grow like mad from now until mid July, even the thin spindly ones get big and vigorous. Sidearms and flower nodes form and go nuts. It will be interesting to see what end of July growth looks like, as it appears I'm about a month ahead of the previous years' growth. I have tons of flower spurs starting already, which is early.

The day length is supposed to trigger flowering in these plants from what I have read. So once the days begin to get shorter, that spurs the flowering of the plant, which halts growth vertically and puts energy into sidearms and flowers. Youll see when the lower leaves begin to yellow signaling it is using up lower plant energy to the upper plant to provide extra nutrients for this.

You can see in some pictures that there are yellowing leaves at the base of my plant, and it yellows up to about 3 or 4 feet. That's basically a useless height on my plants anyway, so I don't worry about it too much. It's the top 3/4 of the growth I am most interested in, because that's where the majority of my cone production will take place.

Tl;dr - You should see sidearms and flowers from this point on, and vertical growth slow to a halt.

 

[olotti]

Thanks for all the great info. Guess I'll see what happens here.