Can I freeze/save extra hop rhizomes?

[Von-Wolfhausen1]

I had read that it is wise to buy 2 rhizomes for every plant you want to grow incase one of them dries out in shipping or doesn't sprout for whatever reason so I ended up buying more than I have room for.

If 2 of them end up growing, is there anyway I can dig out one of them shortly after it has sprouted and somehow save it for next year (possibly by freezing) when I have more room to grow?

Let me know if any of you have tried this and have had success with them in the following year. Thanks in advance!

 

[day_trippr]

Pretty sure freezing a rhizome would be fatal. And conventional cold storage generally only gets a rhizome through a dormancy period that typically runs around 5 months for most (non-hop) plants (not sure if hops are any different in that regard).

Could you not find some room to pot-grow the extras, even if you had to keep them pruned down like small shrubs?

Cheers!

 

[DirtyOldDuck]

Did you plant two of each kind next to each other? If so, just let the strongest bine from each of them climb a single line together. Cut back all of the other bines. Of course, next year you are going to have a ton. day tripper's idea of putting the second one in a pot and keeping it trimmed back might work, but freezing would probably be a very idea.

 

[SpentGrains]

Freezer is a no go, pot it and keep it trimmed or pot it then sell it when it starts to grow.

 

[HALIFAXHOPS]

If your plants grow you can always cut new rhizomes off of the crown in the spring.

 

[Von-Wolfhausen1]

Thanks for the help guys and sorry for the delayed reply. Pretty much I dug some sections out (about 3'x3') of the ground and replaced the clay-ish dirt with good soil, manure, and sand. In each section I placed 2 rhizomes next to each other. So far most of them have sprouted.

In the sections where 2 have sprouted, do you think it's best to go 'dirtyoldducks' method and just use one shoot per plant? Or just stick with one plant to keep things consistent and not overcrowd? I feel like the first method would be a good way to go, but at the end of the day you have 2 plants within inches of each other and according to all of the manuals they are supposed to be 3 ft apart.

This is my first crack at this so just trying to do it right.


Thanks

 

[day_trippr]

Trying to "think like a plant", I'd want my own space to put down roots and grow towards the sun, and not have to contend with a sibling.

Perhaps pot the culls and gift them away?

Cheers!