2016 Hop Growing Thread

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Hey guys. I have 7 plants in 10 gallon Home Depot buckets. After I harvest and cut down the bines, what is the best way to store the plants. I am not sure if I will plant these permenantly next year or the year after. Can I just move the buckets inside our shed, or do they still need to be outside and watered? Also, what is this business about trimming the root ball in the spring?
 
Evreikipresvia said:
Hey guys. I have 7 plants in 10 gallon Home Depot buckets. After I harvest and cut down the bines, what is the best way to store the plants. I am not sure if I will plant these permenantly next year or the year after. Can I just move the buckets inside our shed, or do they still need to be outside and watered? Also, what is this business about trimming the root ball in the spring?
Click to expand...

Once you hack the bines completely, move them to the shed fornwinter. They have to get cold and have their dormancy period. However, you could leave them outside. I've done it both ways, and my plants have survived.

If this is a first year plant, leave the rootball. If you're planting it in the ground in the spring, leave all your roots as in tact as possible. This will help them get established for great growth. The following years, you'll want to harvest any rhizomes and cut those back to your crown.
 
Great, thanks.

The plan is to plant them in the ground year two or three. But I'll leave them in the pots until next spring at least.
 
Evreikipresvia said:
Great, thanks.

The plan is to plant them in the ground year two or three. But I'll leave them in the pots until next spring at least.
Click to expand...

I transplanted my 1st year plants in the fall last year and they have come back very well for year two. If you have a place for them it probably wouldn't hurt to get them in the ground.
 
This my Cascade that is 2nd year.6 bines creeped to the top of the trellis and then started to grow down the other line.The Centennial on that line was doing just as good back in June but then one night all of the bines withered and died.It came back and it now about 6 feet and has some hop cones formed.

Burrs sprouted on the Cascade a while back and I started seeing cones last week.We have had the wettest summer in Calgary in years.In the last week we have finally been getting some sunshine and after work each day I have been giving the Cascade a drink with some miracle grow.

I think I will do a nice wet hopped SMASH IPA using Maris Otter malt :mug:

RMCB

IMG_20160819_175609.jpg


IMG_20160819_175630.jpg
 
Just picked and dried another one of the seedling selections from last year. This one won't knock your sox off but has a very pleasant "general hoppy' aroma to it. Not good at descriptors but using it in a beer will help tell it's fate. 13+ ounces

BH 15-2 pick 8:16:16.jpg
 
View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1471900300.397684.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1471900325.176521.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1471900353.457079.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1471900370.807022.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1471900384.523171.jpg
These are my Cascades and Centennials first year harvest!
Cascades did awesome with 9.1oz total after drying in their oasts. Centennials only got 2.4 oz
View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1471900403.032637.jpg
My Chinooks didn't come through as early than the other two but they're almost there. Here's one split open. They're still soft to the touch and don't have that papery bounce back feel/sound/look.
 
I think I got downy mildew on my first year cascade hops.

2 part question

Is it ok to use the hops that were affected?

What's the protocol for year 2, can I keep them or do I need to start over? (They are in 5g lowes buckets right now the plan was to plant them in the ground next year)
 
eelgerg said:
My hop garden is nearing harvest time. Looking forward to drying and using these babies! All are second year plants. One problem - my labels completely eroded and now I have no idea which is which. My bad!!!
Click to expand...

I was worried about remembering what plant is where - so I planted mine in alphabetical order. lol
 
These are my first year Cascades. While I'm getting some citrus aroma, I detect some onion and grassiness as well. So I'm thinking it's going to be at least another week before they're ready.

Cas Vert 2.jpg


cas vert 3.jpg


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I harvested my Cascade today.In hindsight I should have lowered the trellis and selectively picked the largest cones and then let the rest keep growing.Instead I cut the plant down and took it into the kitchen the pluck it clean.All told I got 10 ounces of wet hop cones from a 2nd year plant.My Centennial is smaller due to having all the bines just suddenly die back in June but it cam back with 2 new bines and grew to 7 feet.Would have been a lot better if we actually got some decent sunshine this summer but it has been the wettest summer I have ever seen in Calgary.

I am going to make a SMASH wet hopped IPA with all 10 ounces this weekend.I will do a 50/50 split for bittering and aroma.

RMCB

IMG_20160824_170527.jpg
 
copper2hopper said:
View attachment 367347View attachment 367348View attachment 367349View attachment 367350View attachment 367351
These are my Cascades and Centennials first year harvest!
Cascades did awesome with 9.1oz total after drying in their oasts. Centennials only got 2.4 oz
View attachment 367352
My Chinooks didn't come through as early than the other two but they're almost there. Here's one split open. They're still soft to the touch and don't have that papery bounce back feel/sound/look.
Click to expand...

And those are first year? Wow, their huge. My first year Chinooks are no where near that big.
 
10 oz dried off my 1st year cascade. Not too pungent smelling though...

Centennial and Columbus harvest next

20160822_094527.jpg

20160822_105559.jpg
 
I'm embarrassed to post pics of my hop garden this year. a month of temps over 105F and a total of 1 inch of rain all year (before this week) devastated my bines. But they are coming back, I'm collecting ripe cones every day, and with another 2 or 3 months of growing season they should make a full recovery. I've gotten a couple of ounces already, mostly from one Cascade, but I'm also starting to pick Neomexicanus and Centennial.
 
Started harvesting some of my 1st yr Cascades today. 7.5 oz so far. Hope to start picking some Chinook tomorrow.

 
What temp and how long do you guys that use a dehydrator set it at? I have heard a few temps/times...one in a book said 125-135 overnight...I thought it sounded too hot and long, I did that with the first few that came off...they were like dust in the am. I bought a new 10 tray dehydrator today instead of the ancient one I got 2nd hand.
 
Lupulin just a bit too "sunshine yellow " this weekend and a subdued aroma. Guess I'll have to wait till next weekend...
 
Harvest on Chinook and Cascade may take place sometime this week. Chinook tossed another round of 4 foot sidearms in what seems to be over night. They're lower on the plant, so I may just cut apart the top canopy and harvest the bottoms later. The difference might be and extra oz of hops, so it will likely be a game-time decision. Zeus and Nugget are still forming their cones. The Zeus cones are super tight and heavy. Nugget just began forming and will likely be the last plant to make it to harvest.

View attachment 1472388417048.jpg
 
BrandonMH said:
What temp and how long do you guys that use a dehydrator set it at? I have heard a few temps/times...one in a book said 125-135 overnight...I thought it sounded too hot and long, I did that with the first few that came off...they were like dust in the am. I bought a new 10 tray dehydrator today instead of the ancient one I got 2nd hand.
Click to expand...

My rookie year with hops, but I set my dehydrator to its lowest setting which is 95. I checked that temp over several hours and seemed pretty steady. Mine have been in for about 15 hrs and they're close. The spine is just a tad moist still.
 
My favorite beer I've made so far takes 1.5oz Mt. Hood and 1oz Centennial. Will those grow well in southern PA and how many plants would I need to make it a couple times a year?

Edit: I'm guessing from looking at some of the pics in this thread that one plant of each is more than enough for the little bit I need.
 

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