Ive just ordered some hop rizzies

[MartialAnt]

So if they come this side of xmas when is best to plant them? Do i do it before the frost or wait till after?

[SiHoltye]

I'd suggest a pot at least a foot and a half deep, filled with John Innes compost kept in a shed or greenhouse over winter to avoid frost. If you don't plant it in something it'll dry out and die.

Out of interest what variety have you gone for?

[MartialAnt]

Ive gone for these:-
WGV
Brambling Cross
Fuggle
Wye Challenger

Ive ordered them as bare root. Ive taken a big chance and ordered them from Aplus hops. Reading a thread on here they sound like they can be hard work at getting an order. But im a persistent barstard so it would be in there best interest to just bloody well send them.

As im really really green fingered i am confident that i will have a good crop at the end of next summer. Ive been adding stuff to the area they will be planted in for the past few months. Very well nourished is the soil.

[MartialAnt]

Just checked my Emails & have got this from Aplus hops.

Order to Aplus Hops‏
From: Kerrie Dairy-farm-nursery.co.uk (kerrie@dairy-farm-nursery.co.uk)
Sent: 04 October 2008 22:45:29
Reply-to: kerrie@dairy-farm-nursery.co.uk
To: martial_ant@hotmail.com

Mark Harding, order dated 30.09.08

Dear Sir,

Thank you for your order. I just wanted to let you know that we will begin lifting the new bare root plants from the middle of this month and that orders will be dispatched from early November onwards.

If you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact me.

Regards

Kerrie, Aplus Hops.

Bloody hell! I have to wait that long to get my hop roots. Does that sound like a genuine excuse?
She's working a bit late, 22:45.

[Russ]

Hi MartialAnt

Yep sounds like a genuine excuse to me infact it's best practise. Bare root plants should be sent out dormant. They will start lifting now and are likley to cold store to force dormancy and allow them to get everything in. Once harvesting is complete they will collate the orders and start despatch. I have worked on bare root nurseries it's the norm.

Re planting yer hops..... if you get them from Aplus

My advise would be to get em in the ground pronto, don't wait. Planting bare root stuff should be done ath this time of year, thats why it's sold at this time of year, when it's lifted. The golden rule is to make sure the roots don't dry out.

Frost isn't going to bother them if there planted now- there hardy and they've been growing outdoors, even if the top growth (if there is any which there shouldn't be) got knocked off by a frost it dosn't matter, the things should die back to groun level anyway at the end of the season.

If you pot them in a shed or greenhouse come the spring they are likley to start growing earlier than they would outdoors, then when you plant them out this soft new growth would be libale to frost damage, which could knock them back.

[MartialAnt]

Thanks for the info Russ.

Will plant them as soon as i get them.

[MartialAnt]

Well i took the risk & its been 6 weeks now & no sign of my hop rizzies. Mr wright doesnt answer his phone & this 'Kerrie' person isnt responding to my emails.

Well its now time to be the persistent bugger that i am. Ive just bombarded them with at least 50 emails in 1 go so its not like they can miss seeing my email. I shall do the email bombarding twice a day until i get a bloody answer.

Does anyone know steven wrights direct email address?

[MartialAnt]

Finally got a response. Maybe it was due to me clogging up there inbox today with hundreds of Emails.
This is it:-


RE: Order to Aplus Hops‏
From: Kerrie Dairy-farm-nursery.co.uk (kerrie@dairy-farm-nursery.co.uk)
Sent: 14 November 2008 18:59:17
To: mark harding (martial_ant@hotmail.com)

Hi Mark,

My apologies for not replying to your e-mails, we have now started lifting the hops - hence i haven't been in the office to check e-mails - the hops cannot be lifted until they have had some frosts on them to make the tops die back. As i say we are now lifting them and once we have lifted all the varieties you have ordered i will dispatch your order. I will e-mail you to let you know when your order is on it's way.

Regards

Kerrie


Hmm, why cant they just chop the tops off instead of waiting for a frost? Most hop growers on here just cut them back after harvest. So why cant they just do that?
Am i smelling a hint of bullshit here?
What if there wasnt any frost? What if we had a really really mild winter, would they still be waiting for the tops to die back then?
I want my FU*KING hop rizzies!!! and i want them FU*KING now!!!
Ive paid for them so i FU*KING want them!!!

[Russ]

Hey Mate Chill Out!

Get your point that you've paid so you want them but there not going to do anything 'till the spring except sleep, so wont matter to the hops if you get them this week on next month

Not sure why they have to wait for a frost, maybe it helps to get them to go dormant so they store better before despatch ?

Hope you get them soon and there worth the wait

Russ

[subsub]

Last year I had to threaten legal action before they sent my hops. They came bloody quick after that as they'd had my money for a couple of months.

[YetiBrewer]

Where would people recommend you buy from? Being a keen gardener I would love to be able to grow my own crop of hops.

[MartialAnt]

Still no sign of my hops. So i emailed them YET again.

Hi Kerrie & Steven Wright,
Hows the hopping coming on? Well i hope.
Hows my £25 doing in your bank account? Hope its making you some nice interest.
Seeing as you've had my money for 2 months now how about you throw in another hop variety free of charge. As your site did not state that i would have a long wait for my purchase. A Northern Brewer bare root would suffice.
If i had known that it was a waiting game then i would have waited nearer the time before ordering.
I have heard a bit of bad feedback from people that have used your company before. Please prove them wrong for me.
Can you please explain why you have to wait for a frost? I would have thought lifting the roots in September/October then put them in a cold store would force dormancy saving a few months of waiting. (I hate that word WAITING). But what would i know?

Anyway, looking forward to a response sometime soon.
Mark Harding.
________________________________________

So whats the chances of having an extra root thrown in free of charge?
Oh i only sent it 12 times instead of 50+ last time.

[pantsmachine]

I think you are well on the way to annoying them if you are sending that many mails(12 times)! and in that tone. Why don't you ask for a refund and buy elsewhere? Might be less stressful for all concerned?

[MartialAnt]

UPDATE

Still no hops, but have a response to the last Email.


RE: Order to Aplus Hops‏
From: Kerrie Dairy-farm-nursery.co.uk (kerrie@dairy-farm-nursery.co.uk)
Sent: 28 November 2008 07:42:41
To: mark harding (martial_ant@hotmail.com)

Mark,

All orders will be dispatched early next week. We have to wait for the frosts to cause the tops of the plants to die back, we cannot go about it your suggested way. We ship thousands of plants at a time to growers around the country and the varieties MUST be kept separate. To lift 250 - 500,000 plants and put them in cold store is not an option.

I will pass on your request to Stephen regarding the extra plant.

Kerrie
______________________________________

About May then?

[YetiBrewer]

Is it worth putting an order in now you reckon ?