Hop growing for 2007

[oblivious]

Fantastic SteveD

There is probably enough there for one pint of your IPA

[SteveD]

Fantastic SteveD

There is probably enough there for one pint of your IPA

You think so? Maybe if I use them for aroma hops only

[delboy]

Ok im going to buy rhizhomes next year, of the wee plants i bought this year two died and the other two grew about two feet and three feet respectively.

Seems the rhizhomes are certainly worth the extra cash.

[Chiltern Brewer]

Quite a few of the goldings on the left hand branch are browning like this - and the odd fuggle. Does that mean they should already have been harvested earlier - 1st week Sept is normal - or is there some other problem?


Cheers,

Steve

Steve, my Challenger hops seem to be a week or so earlier than last year. If the weather holds out this week I'll probably start picking them as some of the more developed hops are browning like yours. I always take this as a sign that the hops as a whole are ready to be picked, but I also like to get them to "green up" as much as possible (if that makes sense) before picking! I would say your hops are about the same point. Any overly browned hops should be left out. Any way well done... looks like a good crop for the first year! Where did you get your plants from again?

In comparision, my Cobb Golding harvest looks very disappointing this year... the bine took a bit of battering from the wind, rain and cold earlier in the "Summer". It is also an older plant so might be losing some vigour. Perhaps this Winter I'll try dividing and transplanting it?

Have you given any thought to how you will dry the hops? This year I've constructed a drying screen from PVC coated fly-screen mesh and bamboo canes that I plan to hang from the rafters of the brew hut and fan dry a la dartgod.

I'll post some pictures in a week or so!

[SteveD]

Ok im going to buy rhizhomes next year, of the wee plants i bought this year two died and the other two grew about two feet and three feet respectively.

Seems the rhizhomes are certainly worth the extra cash.

Mine were rhizomes, with shoots and roots just starting when I got them in March for £7.50 each. As you can see they've done quite well. I did prepare the soil with a 70L bag of compost dug into the soil to about 18 inches deep with some extra sand for better drainage, built up into a hop hill for the same reason. Plus, heaping more compost on top as a mulch. Then during the fast growth in early/mid summer I gave them a couple of feeds with miracle-gro. All the while I watered them when necessary (not that neccessary May-Jul )

[SteveD]

Quite a few of the goldings on the left hand branch are browning like this - and the odd fuggle. Does that mean they should already have been harvested earlier - 1st week Sept is normal - or is there some other problem?


Cheers,

Steve

Steve, my Challenger hops seem to be a week or so earlier than last year. If the weather holds out this week I'll probably start picking them as some of the more developed hops are browning like yours. I always take this as a sign that the hops as a whole are ready to be picked, but I also like to get them to "green up" as much as possible (if that makes sense) before picking! I would say your hops are about the same point. Any overly browned hops should be left out. Any way well done... looks like a good crop for the first year! Where did you get your plants from again?

In comparision, my Cobb Golding harvest looks very disappointing this year... the bine took a bit of battering from the wind, rain and cold earlier in the "Summer". It is also an older plant so might be losing some vigour. Perhaps this Winter I'll try dividing and transplanting it?

Have you given any thought to how you will dry the hops? This year I've constructed a drying screen from PVC coated fly-screen mesh and bamboo canes that I plan to hang from the rafters of the brew hut and fan dry a la dartgod.

I'll post some pictures in a week or so!

Cheers,

I got the feeling they were coming along fast. I intend to pick them tomorrow when I've built a couple of stackable drying 'oasts' - square flattish boxes with perforated lids and bottoms - powered by a hair dryer as read about in a book about growing your own hops and barley, etc.

I think I got my plants from Essentially Hops - from the link provided on page one of this post

[Reaper]

Hi all
My mornings harvest, a bucket full,just over 600g, not sure how im going to dry them. Either going to spread out in the conservatory or put in a cool oven with the door open.

Regards Paul

[Chiltern Brewer]

I've posted the story of my 2007 hop harvest here.

700g (dry weight) of Challenger Hops:

[johnmac]

Can you grow hops in a shady garden?

Would it be possible to grow them through a hedge, or do they have to have some sort of framework?

[SteveD]

A framework is best because they'll much easier to manage and harvest although there is no reason why they can't grow up through a hedge or into a tree, it's just that you run the risk of parts of your treasured hop crop becoming inaccessible. Depends on what your hedge is like.

The framework doesn't have to be elaborate or intrusive. I screwed some hanging basket brackets to the posts along the tops on my panel fences, strung some twine along them and trained the bines up and then along the twine, left and right, to make a T shaped plant. Worked a treat, wasn't expensive, and you don't notice it in the garden. Plus, it was a doddle to train the bines, and harvesting was a breeze. As to the site, hops like to start off in the shade and grow up into the sun, but I don't think they are particularly fussy. If you let them grow vertically enough, I'm sure they'll find some sun.

Make sure you prepare the ground by digging in a load of compost and pile it into a heap (a hop hill). It helps drainage. If your soil is heavy with clay it wouldn't hurt to dig in some sand and gravel as well to help with drainage. Although they like a lot of water, they don't like being waterlogged.

I posted pictures earlier on this thread, so you can see what I did.

Cheers,

Steve

[johnmac]

Thanks Steve, I can't grow them through the hedge because I'll loose them when I trim the hedge, so I'll forget that particular blond moment

I think I'll try growing them against a fence.

[Buzz]

Sorry if these points have been raised already but I didn't have time to trawl through all 11 pages

Are hops prone to any pests - aphids, birds etc. or, are they quite an easy crop to grow?

Also, how on earth do you get know what your alpha acid content is??

[SteveD]

Sorry if these points have been raised already but I didn't have time to trawl through all 11 pages

Are hops prone to any pests - aphids, birds etc. or, are they quite an easy crop to grow?

Also, how on earth do you get know what your alpha acid content is??

Aphids sometimes - but no big deal, and not birds. The other hop maladies (moulds, mildews, etc) tend to be concentrated in hop farming areas. I couple of plants growing elsewhere will in all likelyhood not be troubled.

They are very easy to grow. Give them rich well drained soil, plenty of water, and something to grow up, and you won't be able to stop them.

[BurtonBrewer]

I have 2 varieties both dwarf:

Primadonna (First Gold)
Golden Tassels

Has anybody come across Golen Tassels hop before? Its a new one to me

[billvelek]

Will someone please provide me with contact info for A-Plus Hops? I've visited the web-site but it doesn't contain, as far as I've been able to find, any contact info whatsoever -- no email address, mailing address, physical address, phone number, or any on-line message page. TERRIBLE WAY TO DO BUSINESS, but that's their decision. Anyway, I've been trying to list sources of hop rhizomes in the United Kingdom on my 'Grow-Hops' Yahoo Group, for the convenience of any members from the U.K. in need of assistance.

So far I have found only two: A-Plus Hops, but I don't know the city where they are located, or if it's in England, Ireland, Scotland, or Wales; the other link is for Beertech. I'd very much like to know if there are any other sources of rhizomes, plants, or seeds for hops in the U.K.

'Grow-Hops' now has 641 members who are either growing, planning to grow, or are considering growing their own hops. Everyone is welcome to join. If interested, please visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Grow-Hops

Cheers.

Bill Velek