Pot size and what soil

[olotti]

I have these given to me yesterday and I need/want to get them into pots since I don't have a permanent spot for them. How big of a pot do I need for each and what do I use for soil? I was thinking of mixing potting soil, and manure. So update this is what I ended up buying. Figured I'd mix potting soil with a little manure and the compost/peat mixture, transplant the bine and then cover with the top soil peat mixture and call it good ? View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1430762599.791204.jpg
View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1430782446.997315.jpg

 

[ACbrewer]

They sell some fairly large pots - in the 2.5 to 3 foot Diameter range.. I'd probably go with something like that.

 

[olotti]

They sell some fairly large pots - in the 2.5 to 3 foot Diameter range.. I'd probably go with something like that.

Would that equate to like a 5 or 10 gal pot?

 

[Vandulus]

I'd stay away from the Miracle Gro in a pot as the salts can build up over time - unless you exchange the soil every couple of years. I use a mixture of Epsoma blood and bone meal. Lots of goodness in slow release form so you don't worry much about nitrogen burn.

I've been growing my new hop plants in a compost and topsoil mixture and they're doing very well. Great drainage due to the organic material, lots of nutrients (to start) and it retains water fairly well.

 

[olotti]

Bumped for any other thoughts.

 

[ffaoe]

I have recently become a huge fan of 5 gallon buckets after transplanting my crowns to larger containers. At this point I do not want to put them in the ground where I'm living. My trellis is in the center of the yard, and buckets with handles make it easy to move them in a small circular pattern every few days as to not put dead spots in the grass. I used potting mix as a growing medium.

 

[thaymond]

Aldi just had large pots on sale for cheap. Probably 7.5 gallon pots. It doesn't need to be fancy but it does need to accommodate a huge rootball and lots of root growth. When I used pots, the hops roots all found the drain holes and burrowed into the ground. If you're leaving the pots stationary in your yard for a season, expect the roots to dig into the ground there.

I cut a small root, about 2 inches long, last year and Potted it as a gift. I put it in a small plastic pot from a small rosebush. In the month of growing, it's tiny bines grew 8 feet tall, and it shot roots out of all four holes in the pot and rooted into the ground. They grow fast and will outgrow pots in no time. My now fourth year nugget plant has almost completely outgrown it's 4x4 enclosure. Next year I'll have to cut all the roots and rhizomes to manage it.

What kind is she? Receiving hops as gifts is always awesome.

 

[olotti]

Aldi just had large pots on sale for cheap. Probably 7.5 gallon pots. It doesn't need to be fancy but it does need to accommodate a huge rootball and lots of root growth. When I used pots, the hops roots all found the drain holes and burrowed into the ground. If you're leaving the pots stationary in your yard for a season, expect the roots to dig into the ground there.

I cut a small root, about 2 inches long, last year and Potted it as a gift. I put it in a small plastic pot from a small rosebush. In the month of growing, it's tiny bines grew 8 feet tall, and it shot roots out of all four holes in the pot and rooted into the ground. They grow fast and will outgrow pots in no time. My now fourth year nugget plant has almost completely outgrown it's 4x4 enclosure. Next year I'll have to cut all the roots and rhizomes to manage it.

What kind is she? Receiving hops as gifts is always awesome.

Well I will leave them stationary for this growing season only just so they don't die that's the on.y reason I'm putting them in pots. The ones I got are 6 gal I think and they have drain holes at the bottom. So should I expect the root to shoot through the drain holes? If so oh well they'll go to a more permanent spot next year out of the pots.

I found out today they're a rhizomes from a really old decendant cascade plant that was part of coors co. So my mom says. So I think it's a cool story so I really want these to make it.

 

[thaymond]

Well I will leave them stationary for this growing season only just so they don't die that's the on.y reason I'm putting them in pots. The ones I got are 6 gal I think and they have drain holes at the bottom. So should I expect the root to shoot through the drain holes? If so oh well they'll go to a more permanent spot next year out of the pots.

I found out today they're a rhizomes from a really old decendant cascade plant that was part of coors co. So my mom says. So I think it's a cool story so I really want these to make it.

From my experience, the roots that go through the drain holes die off once you cut them from the main plant and will likely not return. I've had 4 potted plants, and not one of the cut roots came back as a plant. The crowns are all doing amazing. The 6 gallon pots would be fine for a year. I've seen people use the cheap Walmart rope buckets, Rubbermaid tubs, Homer buckets, and garbage cans to try and contain them. In the end, it's an invasive plant and will take over sections of the yard provided the opportunity. You'll need to maintain them once their in the ground, or they'll take over. It will eat that swingset if you need ideas for a low profile build, PM me.

 

[olotti]

From my experience, the roots that go through the drain holes die off once you cut them from the main plant and will likely not return. I've had 4 potted plants, and not one of the cut roots came back as a plant. The crowns are all doing amazing. The 6 gallon pots would be fine for a year. I've seen people use the cheap Walmart rope buckets, Rubbermaid tubs, Homer buckets, and garbage cans to try and contain them. In the end, it's an invasive plant and will take over sections of the yard provided the opportunity. You'll need to maintain them once their in the ground, or they'll take over. It will eat that swingset if you need ideas for a low profile build, PM me.

Thanks for the info I plan on refurbish the swing set at some point as my kids are to young to use it and eventually all the area around it will be torn up and I'm either going to put in mulch or sand like a real playground so I don't care if it gets abused again for another year. I'll pm you on a build though as I'm still trying to figure out what to do and I have a couple good spots in my yard as it gets sun pretty much all day as I only have two 30' pine trees in my backyard and that's it. I'm thinking of a t shape about 10-12' and maybe adding one other hop but I'm not gonna be the guy that has like 5 hops growing I just really don't want the responsibility Id just like to grow a couple I use a lot of and cascade is one.

 

[ACbrewer]

Would that equate to like a 5 or 10 gal pot?

I'd guess a pot with a 2.5ft diameter is probably pushing a15 gallon range, or larger. But that is just a guess. I put a fig tree into on, had to drill drain holes for the water. It is close to the "this is more than I should be lifting" - a sort of "much more and I risk injury" level.

 

[Turdhammer]

I planted my hops in mineral lick tubs that the local farmers get when they buy minerals for their cattle. They are black plastic and are the size of a half barrel. They are rather heavy, too heavy when wet, to move around.
The reason I like this size is that in my zone 5 area the hops can overwinter outside in the tubs without freezing and killing the plant. The combination of mass and the black plastic absorbing heat are what I think allows this to happen.

As far as soil I used a combination of potting soil, garden soil, and decomposed wood from the bottom of a pile of tree trimmings the electric company tree trimmers dump in my front yard yearly.

 

[bobbrews]

Do you think hops work well in containers? I would think they would topple over after a certain point. The container will also restrict growth as the plant matures and your only option will be to place it into a much larger container at that time, or transfer it to the ground.

On organics and manure... Container gardening is not particularly suited for this type of fertilization...

Inorganic fertilizers are the way to go for containers. The delivery of the nutrients in organic fertilizers can be very erratic and unreliable. The reason is that nutrient delivery depends on the organic molecules being broken down in the gut of micro-organisms, and micro-organism populations are boom/bust, varying widely in container culture. There is also very little soil tilth/turnover in a container.

Some of the things affecting the populations are container soil pH, moisture levels, nutrient levels, soil composition, compaction/aeration levels ..... Of particular importance is soil temperatures. When container temperatures rise too high, microbial populations diminish. Temps much under 55F will slow soil biotic activity substantially, reducing or halting delivery of nutrients.

It is wise to include various formulations of fish emulsion for the nutrient program at certain times of the year, but don't rely on them for container plants; choose chemical fertilizers instead. Chemical fertilizers are always immediately available for plant uptake and the results of your applications are much easier to quantify.

Reference: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1389454/fertilizering-containerized-plants-iv

Container soil mixtures are also key. You don't want something too heavy and wet like manure or pure top soil. The best container soil allows for maximum drainage.

Gritty Mix is ideal for woody plants and long-term plantings (going 2 - 3 years between re-pottings).

4 parts turface
3 parts fir bark
2 parts granigrit

The 5-1-1 mix is ideal for annuals (container floral plantings), vegetable crops, and vigorous plants that will be re-potted after a season's growth - sizing up conifers or maples, for example.

5 parts pine bark fines
1 part sphagnum peat
1-2 parts perlite
garden lime
controlled release fertilizer (Dyna-Gro Foliage Pro 9-3-6 or similar NPK ratio fertilizer)
a micro-nutrient source (seaweed emulsion, Earthjuice, Micro-max, STEM)


Reference: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/2842847/container-soils-water-movement-and-retention-xxii
Reference: http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/2086932/gritty-mix-questions
Reference: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1378483/taplas-5-1-1-container-mix-in-more-detail