# 2016 Hop Plantations, Show Us Your Hop Garden!



## Yob

With People starting to get some nodes through, its probably time for a new season thread..

Show us your Hops :beerbang:


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## mofox1

Mine were covered in frost this morning... Sleep in little ones!


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## Belgrave Brewer

Potting up the rest of the rhizomes today. They'll get planted next month once the infrastructure is in place.


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## Lowlyf

Does anyone grow hops and own dogs? How can you keep them away?


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## Belgrave Brewer

Lowlyf said:


> Does anyone grow hops and own dogs? How can you keep them away?


My dogs have never shown interest in the hops. A simple chicken wire fence with star pickets should keep them out if you are concerned.


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## Camo6

Yeah, my dog wouldn't look twice at a hop flower on the bine. A few have had trouble with rhizomes being dug up but this is probably more due to soft 'diggable' soil. Just be sure to dump any sweet spent hops from the kettle where they can't get them.

That looks awesome Belgrave Brewer, how many varieties are you growing?


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## Belgrave Brewer

Camo6 said:


> Yeah, my dog wouldn't look twice at a hop flower on the bine. A few have had trouble with rhizomes being dug up but this is probably more due to soft 'diggable' soil. Just be sure to dump any sweet spent hops from the kettle where they can't get them.
> 
> That looks awesome Belgrave Brewer, how many varieties are you growing?


The core is Chinook, Cascade and Victoria along with the contentious Dwarf Cluster. I also have small amounts of Super Alpha, Nugget, Columbus, Cluster, S. Hellertau, Mt. Hood, Hersbrucker, and UK Gold, but not sure if I'll use them. It's a big project with 5 35 meter rows at 5 meters tall, and 3 25 meter rows at 4 meters tall.


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## Exile

First time grower 







My Cascade comes to life


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## Lowlyf

Exile said:


> First time grower
> 
> My Cascade comes to life
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Cascade.jpg


Haha reminds me of a proud parent


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## Dae Tripper

It is happening again, yay! now I will have to plan some real trellises for its 2nd year.


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## Curly79

Where are you located Dae Tripper?


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## Dae Tripper

Singleton NSW. I think it might be early because it was so close to the surface after I got a cutting for a mate.


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## hoppy2B

Seeing as none of you have anything interesting happening at the moment.....

I'm having a go at growing mushrooms in the hop garden at the moment. I pulled up a huge pile of weeds from in and around the hop garden. The pile measures about 2 metres across by 1 metre high. I chopped up about 100 grams of White Oyster mushroom into tiny pieces and sprinkled it through the pile as I built it up. I also put in some sheets of newspaper and sprayed some fertilizer and humate through the pile.

Hopefully I get a feed at the end of it.  Then I will distribute the lovely compost around my hops etc.


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## spog

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Potting up the rest of the rhizomes today. They'll get planted next month once the infrastructure is in place.


Looks like Yob has a new supplier.


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## hoppy2B

spog said:


> Looks like Yob has a new supplier.


We all know Yob is infatuated with the Dwarf Cluster.


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## Belgrave Brewer

spog said:


> Looks like Yob has a new supplier.


Actually, just got 13 chinook rhizomes off Yob last week.


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## Yob

hoppy2B said:


> We all know Yob is infuriated with the imaginary Dwarf Cluster.


FTFY


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## Judanero

hoppy2B said:


> Seeing as none of you have anything interesting happening at the moment.....
> 
> I'm having a go at growing mushrooms in the hop garden at the moment. I pulled up a huge pile of weeds from in and around the hop garden. The pile measures about 2 metres across by 1 metre high. I chopped up about 100 grams of White Oyster mushroom into tiny pieces and sprinkled it through the pile as I built it up. I also put in some sheets of newspaper and sprayed some fertilizer and humate through the pile.
> 
> Hopefully I get a feed at the end of it.  Then I will distribute the lovely compost around my hops etc.


Try thoroughly rinsing and then pasteurising some spent grain and innoculating that before adding it to your compost pile, add into that a large amount of matured horse manure and pea straw that is also pasteurised.

If you have an old esky it's a pretty straight forward process and oysters are super easy to grow.

Adding previously harvested substrate to the compost seems to always make a few pop up from time to time, I haven't been actively engaged in mycology of late but made a great shiitake chicken and veg soup last week that has me keen to innoculate again... Good luck with it.


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## Camo6

Well, not very interesting, but noticed a few bines peeking through from my relocated Cascade and Chinook. Actually, I lie. These are my Ultra Dwarf Cluster from last season nearly ready to flower...


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## Grainer

4 dogs never been interested in em


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## spog

hoppy2B said:


> We all know Yob is infatuated with the Dwarf Cluster.


A Dwarfs Cluster ? Oh my !


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## mistermillennia

My little baby Victoria (thank you DrSmurto!) is already poking through







I was so out of sorts seeing the shoots growing already that I assumed it was a weed!


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## Danscraftbeer

I have Cascade 2nd season with many nodes under mulch ready to pounce again.
I have planted rhizomes of Victoria and Chinook (supplied by Dr Smurto) . 2 Victoria shoots are already up, In this bitterest of winter. 
I will post a compilation sometime. B)


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## hoppy2B

Judanero said:


> Try thoroughly rinsing and then pasteurising some spent grain and innoculating that before adding it to your compost pile, add into that a large amount of matured horse manure and pea straw that is also pasteurised.
> 
> If you have an old esky it's a pretty straight forward process and oysters are super easy to grow.
> 
> Adding previously harvested substrate to the compost seems to always make a few pop up from time to time, I haven't been actively engaged in mycology of late but made a great shiitake chicken and veg soup last week that has me keen to innoculate again... Good luck with it.


My compost heap has dirt and stuff in it because it contains weeds with their roots and all. There would be no point going to the trouble of making grain spawn to inoculate it when a bit of finely chopped mushroom will do just as well. Super easy was the idea. If it doesn't work out, there will be no great loss.


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## AJ80

Mt Hood, Cascade, Chinook, Goldings and the world's smallest Red Earth rhizome have all been planted. Most are first year rhizomes, but have my fingers crossed for a small harvest.


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## sp0rk

Dae Tripper said:


> Singleton NSW. I think it might be early because it was so close to the surface after I got a cutting for a mate.


How did your hops go last year?
We've just moved to Muswellbrook and I've got a few zomes of my Hallertauer left, not sure whether to bother with them or not
Really should have grabbed some chinook


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## BottloBill

Some of mine starting to show now.
Located Newcastle


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## goatus

Chinook poking through.


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## Curly79

AJ80 said:


> Mt Hood, Cascade, Chinook, Goldings and the world's smallest Red Earth rhizome have all been planted. Most are first year rhizomes, but have my fingers crossed for a small harvest.


I got about 150 g (dry) off my first year cascade goldings and chinook last year AJ. Looking forward to more this year.


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## Matplat

150g each, or all together?


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## Curly79

Each.

Actually I got bugger all off the Goldings. Can someone tell me if goldings is anything like East Kent Goldings?


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## syl

Anyone got Rhizomes to sell? My ex has my Cascade and Chinook 3rd year plants... 

Time to start fresh I suppose... Can't see any in buy and sell at the moment.


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## goatus

Would be stoked with 150g dry. I have previously grown cascade at my old property, got 6 chinooks this year ready to climb all over my brew-shed at my new property. I am going to see if i can poke one inside once it gets to ceiling height, and see if it will run along the roofline inside the brewshed so I have hops hanging down over the bar (there is a skylight panels directly over the bar) - will most likely fail terribly, but should be interesting. haha.

Any crop this year will go in a wet hop IPA.


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## Curly79

I've got a small POR you can have. Where are you mate?


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## syl

Curly79 said:


> I've got a small POR you can have. Where are you mate?


I am Brunswick West / Coburg mate if you are Melbourne based.

Cheers for the offer. Love some fresh Super Pride or PoR.


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## Curly79

syl said:


> I am Brunswick West / Coburg mate if you are Melbourne based.
> 
> Cheers for the offer. Love some fresh Super Pride or PoR.


I sent you a PM. Cheers


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## syl

Also contacted the ex - she is going to let me grab my Cascade and Chinook. WHOOOOO!!!!

Also have about 8 50L CUB/Lion kegs at the back of her joint.


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## Matplat

Curly79 said:


> Each.
> 
> Actually I got bugger all off the Goldings. Can someone tell me if goldings is anything like East Kent Goldings?


I asked Hoppy2b the same question, and he confirmed that they were...


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## syl

Matplat said:


> I asked Hoppy2b the same question, and he confirmed that they were...


They are the same hop. Just different growing area, a'la champagen!


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## Yob

syl said:


> They are the same hop. Just different growing area, a'la champagen!


If you still want some, come see me.

Anyone else, I've got a bag of Canterbury Goldings out back, if they aren't collected, I'll be planting them down the rivulet to see if they won't catch and grow wild.

I can probably dig up a Victoria zome or two, but you best hurry. In a few weeks I'll be less willing to disturb them. 

Free pickup only.


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## syl

Yob said:


> If you still want some, come see me.
> 
> Anyone else, I've got a bag of Canterbury Goldings out back, if they aren't collected, I'll be planting them down the rivulet to see if they won't catch and grow wild.
> 
> I can probably dig up a Victoria zome or two, but you best hurry. In a few weeks I'll be less willing to disturb them.
> 
> Free pickup only.


You around much this weekend? I may order some hops and come past? (pekko + au casc + au galaxy)


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## Curly79

Matplat said:


> I asked Hoppy2b the same question, and he confirmed that they were...


Thanks [emoji106]


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## Yob

syl said:


> You around much this weekend? I may order some hops and come past? (pekko + au casc + au galaxy)


Back Sunday arvo


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## syl

Yob said:


> Back Sunday arvo


Dang. Sunday wont work!

All good mate and thanks, I will work with curls also have the 2 C's coming from the ex and another rhizome from my mate on friday. Cascade, PoR, Chinook, Victoria - perfect for my bath tub planter!!! Thanks gents!


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## goatus

What are people using to string up the hops? Ive heard mixed comments on "string / rope will snap", to "hops wont climb on metal cables". Whats the best option?


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## Leviathan

I used regular twine last year and it worked just fine.


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## Camo6

It'll climb up steel wire no problems. I use sisal twine and double it over and even put a twist in it with the cordless. In three seasons I've had maybe two strands break towards the end of the growing season. Then it gets tossed in the bin with the bines.


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## mofox1

I used some thin sisal from from big green shed. One line broke, was replaced with some spare cat5.

Will probably go something a lot less environmentally friendly than the sisal this time around.


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## Camo6

I doublde mine over, tied it to the trellis then stuck the loose end in the cordless and twist it until it's like hop twine. Works a treat.

Cat 5? Any issues with cross-talk between varieties?


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## mofox1

Camo6 said:


> I doublde mine over, tied it to the trellis then stuck the loose end in the cordless and twist it until it's like hop twine. Works a treat.
> 
> Cat 5? Any issues with cross-talk between varieties?


My bad, it was 5e. End to end throughput was improved with an overall reduction of dropped cones.


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## Pogierob

This year you boys better use cat6.


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## Belgrave Brewer

Got all the poles standing & packed in, and all wires in place with assistance of friends in 2 very hard and long days. Still need to tension the guy wires once the wire clamps have been tightened properly on the high wires. My working platform isn't ready yet, so an a-frame 5 meter ladder was cut into 2 ladders and countless trips up and down, moving ladder, up and down.

Rhizomes in pots are starting to poke their heads out...time to plant!
Rain capture roofline, water tank and watering system will be next, then fitting out hop drying room.


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## Curly79

Very nice BB. How many varietys will you be growing?


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## yum beer

Cleaned up the hop yard on Monday, been left to its own since picking time.
Pulled out the old crap and picked around, nice to find 10 or so nodes poking their heads out on each of 5 varieties.
Looking good for decent crop this year, rhizomes a 2nd and 3rd year this season.


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## Yob

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Got all the poles standing & packed in, and all wires in place with assistance of friends in 2 very hard and long days. Still need to tension the guy wires once the wire clamps have been tightened properly on the high wires. My working platform isn't ready yet, so an a-frame 5 meter ladder was cut into 2 ladders and countless trips up and down, moving ladder, up and down.
> 
> Rhizomes in pots are starting to poke their heads out...time to plant!
> Rain capture roofline, water tank and watering system will be next, then fitting out hop drying room.


Epic


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## Hpal




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## Belgrave Brewer

Curly79 said:


> Very nice BB. How many varietys will you be growing?


4 core varieties (Chinook, Cascade, Victory & Cluster) and then a row of small amounts of various varieties.


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## Yob

Victoria?


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## Mardoo

Yep, Victoria. Good work BB. No, wait, AWESOMENESS! Epic works for me too. Very impressive.


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## Belgrave Brewer

Yob said:


> Victoria?


Yep, Victoria.


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## Belgrave Brewer

Mardoo said:


> Yep, Victoria. Good work BB. No, wait, AWESOMENESS! Epic works for me too. Very impressive.


Cheers Mardoo! Let me know if you are going to make it in this week and I'll bring the trays.


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## BottloBill

Goldings off and running


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## blekk

Dug up this monster from last years pot to give some cuttings to a mate. First year using a mound and going to put 3 HEALTHY sized cuttings down in the next few days


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## blekk

On a side note - has anyone brewed with the Red Earth hops yet?


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## Mardoo

Haven't myself but I've had a few brews with them. Very nice hop!


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## LiquidGold

Finally got around to mulching the hops the other week and found some of the nodes looking ready to shoot so gave em a good watering and checked all the drippers still work. Bamboo tipis might need replacing before stringing up the twine since this years yield should be much bigger than last seasons.


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## Weizguy

Good idea for me to clean the weeds out of the beds and commence the watering/ feeding/ mulching regime.

That may take a while to sort, as the weeds are owning the plot.

Then it's time to erect the trellis again.


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## Pogierob

Scraped back the top 5cm of soil to find a Rhizome for a mate. This is what I found. All the water was used to clean away the soil so I didn't damage the plant.


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## Yob

Nice and fat, could easily cut a few off that


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## Judanero

BottloBill said:


> Goldings off and running


With the size of that crown I'd be worried if it wasn't!


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## Weizguy

OK, started on the hop beds today, as the hacksaw-slotting copper manifold task was getting to me.

Only weeded one bed so far, but found there was signs of life there, with the Cascade rhizome (maybe there was 2 in there?).



Watered with 40 litres. not sure if that was even enough to dampen the plot.


Here's the mess before weed elimination.


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## BottloBill

Judanero said:


> With the size of that crown I'd be worried if it wasn't!


In reference to the Goldings crown you gave me, thanks again! you are a very generous bloke


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## BottloBill

Foliage starting to begin


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## Everest

so thought id better post something up after a year of watching you guys, 
the pride of ringwood and red earth are throwing up some good shoots already, cascade have barely broke the surface... chinook is still hiding,, but still pretty cold here in perth..hoping it isnt a dud
so with 3 cascades, golding, por, red earth and chinook, this should be a good year... ill post a photo up of my ghetto trellis when i rewire it in a few weeks...


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## Everest

another photo


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## Spohaw

Here's my only hop I managed to grow from seed last year 

starting to shoot again


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## hoppy2B

Spohaw said:


> Here's my only hop I managed to grow from seed last year
> 
> starting to shoot again
> 
> 
> 
> 
> littlehop.jpg


If it turns out to be a male don't turf it as I am sure there would be a few people on here that would be interested in using it for breeding.


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## Spohaw

I'm hoping for a male to do the same hoppy 

If it is female I'll still keep it


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## Matplat

how many seeds did you sow in order to get your single plant?


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## Spohaw

That's kinda embarrassing haha

50 it was .....had a few more sprout but they didn't make it


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## Alex.Tas

I know sod all about gardening - see what i did there?

I replanted a vine cutting into one of my pots. Over the weekend i emptied the pot to see if i could make a cutting. I forgot about the vine cutting i made, and found that it had in fact started a decent root system of it's own. I replanted it in it's own pot to see how it goes.

If i took the vine cutting from a female plant, does that mean that the new plant will be female too?


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## LiquidGold

Yep, rhizome or vine cuttings will be genetically the same as the parent plant


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## Spohaw

I'll be taking some soft wood cuttings this year , try and bulk out on hop plants


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## LiquidGold

I haven't tried it myself but if you bury a living bine it will turn into a rhizome and put out roots. Suppose to have a better strike rate than simple cuttings.


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## BottloBill

I buried three long bines and struck six of my Chinook. I put down a layer of seed raising mix and a layer over the top hold them down with a piece of stiff wire bent into a U shape. I recommend giving it ago


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## Spohaw

Has anyone tried cloning from the shoots you cut of when reducing them down to the three best looking bines ?


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## Weizguy

Spohaw said:


> Has anyone tried cloning from the shoots you cut of when reducing them down to the three best looking bines ?


I have, with some success, until the plantlets were allowed to dry out (edit* - best to avoid that).


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## Alex.Tas

Spohaw said:


> Has anyone tried cloning from the shoots you cut of when reducing them down to the three best looking bines ?


Yeah that was what i did. I got a strike rate of one from two.

This year I'll try the method that LiquidGold and BottleoBill suggest.


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## flave_7

Planted some random rhizomes I got from a guy in Bridgetown (being in WA can't get **** all from interstate, damned quarantine laws) so I've got a P.O.R., Flinders and Weurtemberger. Anybody got any info on what these are like?

I'm basically trying to grow these in a view of seeing what works and what doesn't. However, IF these work out and I get some decent hops I'll brew something that would work with these hops.


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## Spohaw

Flinders is pretty much my favourite hop I have then cascade , people say it's like Columbus but I've never tried Columbus

I like flinders in ipa's as late additions ( 10-0 mins ) and just chuck in 90 odd grams .... No idea what the aa% would be but it never seems too bitter .....more a pleasant style hop IMO

I still use pellet hops for bittering additions though ( at 60 mins )


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## Trevandjo

In Bavaria at the moment. Staying with a friend who's garden is overtaken by hops that have blew in from somewhere. She's treated them mean and they've got bigger. Off to the German hop museum tomorrow to investigate. 

Slightly off topic. Met a brewer today who is now primarily using Vic Secret and Southern Cross


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## Matplat

So this is a pic of my cluster, the larger unhealthy looking bine at the front was the very first bine that came up. Do you think it is unhealthy because it was early? The reason i ask is that it is the only bine of all my plants that look like this and they have all had the same treatment....


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## Spohaw

Looks like it's lacking something maybe give it a real weak feed of power feed ....

Anyone in WA selling or swapping any cluster rhizomes ???? 

Lovely hop


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## Wilson Brewing Company

Spohaw said:


> Looks like it's lacking something maybe give it a real weak feed of power feed ....
> 
> Anyone in WA selling or swapping any cluster rhizomes ????
> 
> Lovely hop


I've got Cluster Dan, we can nick a couple of cuttings off it when you come round for that beer. 

;?)


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## Spohaw

Wilson Brewing Company said:


> I've got Cluster Dan, we can nick a couple of cuttings off it when you come round for that beer.
> 
> ;?)


Woohoo cheers Matty ! 

I'll be around for those beers as soon your back ..... Really want cluster ! 

Cheers !


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## Weizguy

Matplat said:


> So this is a pic of my cluster, the larger unhealthy looking bine at the front was the very first bine that came up. Do you think it is unhealthy because it was early? The reason i ask is that it is the only bine of all my plants that look like this and they have all had the same treatment....


not because it was early, but it's needs are not being met. Either drying out or nutrients.
Doesn't appear to look like overfeeding.
I'd get some liquid seaweed or worm juice and dilute it and spray the foliage (foliar feeding) as well as water it well into the soil.

If the soil is kept too wet, this may also be stunting the bines, as roots need oxygen to metabolise sugars made in the green parts above ground.
You should be able to diagnose from these points, as you will know how wet the soil is and if you've been feeding them.


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## Matplat

Well, i put a handful of pelletised chicken manure in each pot when i planted the rhizomes 2ish months ago and havent given them anythin since then. I didnt think they would need much yet considering they aren't growing much yet. i soak them once a week but have just stepped that up to a lesser soak twice a week. I guess I'll scratch some more pellets into the surface and hope that sorts it. Thanks all!


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## flave_7

Wilson Brewing Company said:


> I've got Cluster Dan, we can nick a couple of cuttings off it when you come round for that beer.
> 
> ;?)


Is this an open invite to WA Brewers? I'll happily bring some beers too! [emoji12]


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## flave_7

We have action!! My first attempt at growing. This is POR. 

It's not the size that matters right? That's what the wife keeps telling me.

Is mulching a necessity? If so what do people use?


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## Weizguy

Matplat said:


> Well, i put a handful of pelletised chicken manure in each pot when i planted the rhizomes 2ish months ago and havent given them anythin since then. I didnt think they would need much yet considering they aren't growing much yet. i soak them once a week but have just stepped that up to a lesser soak twice a week. I guess I'll scratch some more pellets into the surface and hope that sorts it. Thanks all!


I'd recommend some foliar feeding too. Dilute some seaweed food to 50% recommended and water the planter and plant with watering can and rose head.

Seems the nutrients in the planter were leeched out since last season. Some top dressing with well-composted manure or mushroom compost or similar, and then some mulch on top will help.
That's what I plan to do with my planter boxes (1.2m square).


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## flave_7

Can I use lupin mulch? It's what I've got left over from the veggie patches.


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## BottloBill

Well that escalated quickly. I decided to take some rhizome cuttings off the Goldings crown I was given by Judanero, I took 27 in total and divided them up between 9 pots and have decent action happening in all.
I also have Cascade, Chinook and POR going gangbusters.

Photo 1 & 2 are the Goldings
Photo 3 the Cascade 
Photo 4 the Chinook 
Photo 5 & 6 are the POR
Photo 7 is the main crown Goldings


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## Danscraftbeer

This is second season Cascade. There's over 20 shoots this time and I have 3 of these.




2 of these new beds for Dr Smuto's ryzolmes. 2 each bed of Chinook and Victoria. Mulched with sugar cane mulch with wire mesh pinned down over them to stop those fecking pecking Black Birds from taring it all to shreds to get those good worms.




Victoria off to a early start. They like a little greenhouse over them until spring gets a bit warmer.


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## Alex.Tas

I've spent a bit of time in my garden this weekend, repotting some hops into larger planter boxes. This one is showing some nice growth (or at least nice enough for my standards). I didn't split the rhizome as it is only 1 year old and wanted to maximise its yield potential this year. 



I've now to both a columbus (far right) and a Chinook (centre) in larger planter boxes. I haven't repotted the Cascade (Left) yet. The pot in the centre is the chinook i grew from a cutting last year. Each pot has a nice layer of sugar cane mulch, and been given a good watering with watered down worm juice.



The Columbus has put up some visible shoots



As has the cascade. I should get this out of its pot soon and into a larger one.



Here is to hoping i can eclipse my 11g of dry yield from last year!


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## Wilson Brewing Company

Spohaw said:


> Woohoo cheers Matty !
> 
> I'll be around for those beers as soon your back ..... Really want cluster !
> 
> Cheers !


I've got a Golden cluster too which is different again. More spicey, also known as 'Pride of Pemberton' its a clone of the main hop grown for Swan Brewery for 50 years.


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## Wilson Brewing Company

Moved 20 of these a few months back. 15 different varieties. 

3rd year crowns grown from rhizome. 

Cheers
Matty.


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## BottloBill

Wilson Brewing Company said:


> hop crown.jpg
> 
> Moved 20 of these a few months back. 15 different varieties.
> 
> 3rd year crowns grown from rhizome.
> 
> Cheers
> Matty.


Nice looking alien crown


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## Matplat

That crown is almost as awesome as the beard


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## Matplat

I realise it's pretty late in the day to be asking, but I just got some cascade in the mail yesterday, and my goodness they smell amazing!

Is there anyone out there with one available?

Cheers, Matt.

Edit: I just checked ebay.... looks like I have options


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## Spohaw

know the diggers club sells them


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## Hpal

Spohaw said:


> know the diggers club sells them


I was on the mailing list for diggers club and they emailed me saying the cascade was back in stock.


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## Matplat

Diggers for the win.... easily the best price, and it comes in a pot! some peeps going crayzay on ebay!


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## Mardoo

Diggers Club is awesome. You can get wasabi from them too!


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## BottloBill

I know it's only been less than a week, but I thought I would put up a couple of progress pics of the Cascade and goldings


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## Danscraftbeer

BottloBill, where are you? That's a hell of a head start you've got there for still being in Winter.

and the Diggers Cascade I can vouch for. I bought 4 of those pots and got 1.3kg (Wet) hops in the first season. They are now big crowns ready to fire up soon.


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## Spohaw

Danscraftbeer said:


> BottloBill, where are you? That's a hell of a head start you've got there for still being in Winter.
> 
> and the Diggers Cascade I can vouch for. I bought 4 of those pots and got 1.3kg (Wet) hops in the first season. They are now big crowns ready to fire up soon.



I got 1.2 kg dry off 3 first year cascade from diggers last season , they out performed all my other hops


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## BottloBill

In Newcastle Mate, the weather has been up/down and we had a 28 deg day last Saturday which in turn gave them a kick off. I have four varieties all in different stages, I wasn't expecting much from the nine pots of Goldings but the four pictured are getting the most sun.


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## Danscraftbeer

Damb, our top temps of 12 to 15c down here these days.

Spohaw I'm embarrassed now haha, just kidding. I learnt that I planted mine in the wrong place kinda. They seemed to like to grow horizontally to the east and I had to try and persuade them to grow west against their will. Maybe had something to do with it but I was stoked as with my first home grown hops.. :beerbang:


----------



## Camo6

Was giving the hop garden a bit of TLC today when I noticed this big bugger poking his head up.



Looks like something Muad'Dib might call up from the Deep Desert.


----------



## Spohaw

Is that a dune reference ?


----------



## Camo6

Maaaaaybe.


----------



## Spohaw

Glad I'm not the only nerd here haha


----------



## Yob

Spohaw said:


> Glad I'm not the only nerd here haha


You're joking right? It's essentially a prerequisite of being here...


----------



## Spohaw

Cascade 



Flinders 



Red earth 

Had to pot them up from the garden a few weeks ago so they probably aren't as good as they should be 

They are going into their second season


----------



## Spohaw

Yob said:


> You're joking right? It's essentially a prerequisite of being here...


That made me feel more comfortable here haha


----------



## Yob

Get some mulch on them mate, 2" or so


----------



## Spohaw

I got some coco coir here to top up the pots a bit more 

Rhizomes were a little to big for the pots when I planted them out and I didn't make enough soil mix to go around that's why they are a little uncovered 

I was ment to do that today but I was busy brewing/drinking and prepping for visitors


----------



## Benn

I'm after a Cascade Rhizome (Melbourne) if anyone is selling?


----------



## Yob

Starting to get a bit late mate. Most are starting to shoot so not a great time to be digging them up.


----------



## Matplat

I just ordered one from the diggers club....


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Benn said:


> I'm after a Cascade Rhizome (Melbourne) if anyone is selling?


I might have some extras. I'm planting out the rest today so I'll have a better idea this evening.


----------



## flave_7

Where dya get your red earth from Spohaw?


----------



## kahlerisms

Spohaw said:


> reducing them down to the three best looking bines ?


Is this an agreed upon technique? I tend to just let mine go but I've had pretty small harvests these past two years.


----------



## Spohaw

flave_7 said:


> Where dya get your red earth from Spohaw?


Pretty sure I got it from Colin from hops west in Albany wa , Wilson brewing company put me onto them ... Your best bet is to ask him for some contact info flave


----------



## Spohaw

kahlerisms said:


> Is this an agreed upon technique? I tend to just let mine go but I've had pretty small harvests these past two years.


Think I read that on here and in the "for the love of hops " book by stan hieronymus 

The book doesn't have a great deal of info in it about growing so your best bet is to search around ahb for info on growing 

I've only done one crop so far so you are better off asking/listening to people who have grown them for a while tbh 

I'm kinda just winging it


----------



## flave_7

Spohaw said:


> Pretty sure I got it from Colin from hops west in Albany wa , Wilson brewing company put me onto them ... Your best bet is to ask him for some contact info flave


Thought as much. Was wondering if there was someone else in WA selling them. A mate got a goldings, cascade and red earth from them. I got some wet red earth hops from them too. Gonna IPA with it see how that goes.


----------



## flave_7

POR first attempt


----------



## blekk

What’s everyone using for fertiliser, mulch etc...?? I've found Organic Xtra to be great as a base fertiliser and Seasol as a bit of a booster. As for mulch, Teatree mulch as its a little denser then lucerne so it doesn't end up looking like a snow storm has hit my yard after some winds... and it smells good too which is a bonus


----------



## BottloBill

Miracle grow max feed for me


----------



## Reman

Victoria (from Hammer)



Chinook (from DrSmurto)



Currently in pots until they get slightly bigger, these are first year rhizomes so just babying them a little till they get bigger.

Also have a Cascade from Diggers Club on its way.


----------



## Benn

Thanks for the Zomes BB :beer: That makes 2x goldings 1x Vic & 1x Chinook for my first season. Happy Days!


----------



## BottloBill

Shit is starting to get out of control here, glad I have the next 3 days off to sort out the strings before its to late.


----------



## Matplat

What are you feeding them! are these first year plants?


----------



## Spohaw

They are pumping bottlo !


----------



## BottloBill

Yes mate all first year. I am using miracle grow max feed for vegetables, I have only given them one dose so far and water every second day. This is a second year Chinook on the same feed schedule.


----------



## Matplat

Hmmmm seems I need to up my game.... and/or watering schedule!


----------



## Spohaw

Thinking I should start watering mine


----------



## The Judge

Christ Bottlo! Those are some healthy looking bines...


----------



## BottloBill

I am pretty happy with them. I am just following my growing notes from last season, minus the use of hydro solutions I had laying around the shed from my younger days>_>
Have been told to not expect much from the Goldings so "boom" just plant shit loads and see what comes of it☺


----------



## Spohaw

Hydro solutions "laying" around hey ? Haha


----------



## BottloBill

Yeeeeessss! Strawberries and Tomatoes among other things


----------



## Spohaw

Nice cover story bottlo


----------



## BottloBill

Those days are long gone spohaw,
I would say 20 years ago easy.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Benn said:


> Thanks for the Zomes BB :beer: That makes 2x goldings 1x Vic & 1x Chinook for my first season. Happy Days!


Cheers Benn! Both had shoots so they should be all good.


----------



## maxim0200

My first hop plants, just planted. They are cascade from diggers.


----------



## Antsvb

Hi.
The bride's on a gardening phase atm. So talked her into trying some hops for me. Got some cascade on the way from diggers club.

Anyone around newcastle/lake mac able to hook us up with anything else?


----------



## Yob

Getting a bit late to be cutting up zomes, most are shooting already and it's not a good idea to be disturbing them


----------



## flave_7

Top left clockwise: Flinders (finally started to shoot), Weurtemberger and POR. 
When should I start using a string line for them?


----------



## Alex.Tas

No real need for a string line until the look like they need it. Maybe around a foot or so? No harm in putting it in early though.


----------



## The Judge

Just to get everyone giddy. Here are Spalt hops picked yesterday (from old bine growing at our family house in Bavaria). 



Hopefully my actual plants back in Perth are shooting!


----------



## Mardoo

Dayum. What's it like fresh? That there is high on my favourite hops list.


----------



## The Judge

Smells spicy, quite grassy, touch of fruitiness and the lup is golden and plentiful.


----------



## Spohaw

Sounds great judge


----------



## The Judge

Sadly I don't brew when I'm holidaying over here so might go into a teapot :-S


----------



## flave_7

Not even a quick 5L SMASH brew?


----------



## The Judge

I really should just buy a couple of bits and pieces and do that one time. Given I'm here once a year that'd give it plenty of time to lager!


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Cascade here in Victoria, a good 8 inches. Won't be long now for the rest of them.


----------



## mofox1

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Cascade here in Victoria, a good 8 inches. Won't be long now for the rest of them.


Slightly jealous I'm missing out on the early excitment... same part of town, but my 'zomes don't get much sun on the ground right now. ETA for first shoots is late October at best. They do alright once they start to grow into the "sun zone" though (~1m high due to shadow tracks of house, garage, trees, etc).

Going to have to put up with a lot of "look at my shoots!" posts before I see any....


----------



## Alex.Tas

mofox1 said:


> Going to have to put up with a lot of "look at my shoots!" posts before I see any....


Yeah I hate those posts!
But i still check this thread all the same.
Maybe I'm a hop masochist.


----------



## blekk

This is going to sound like a stupid question but what is considered first, second and third growth?? For example the attached pic, would this all be considered first growth?


----------



## Spohaw

Guessing it is , unless you have cut shoots off prior to these growing


----------



## AJ80

mofox1 said:


> Slightly jealous I'm missing out on the early excitment... same part of town, but my 'zomes don't get much sun on the ground right now. ETA for first shoots is late October at best. They do alright once they start to grow into the "sun zone" though (~1m high due to shadow tracks of house, garage, trees, etc).
> 
> Going to have to put up with a lot of "look at my shoots!" posts before I see any....


Am hearing ya mate. Nothing poking through in my garden yet.


----------



## Hazzy J Blaze

First growth of Hallertau....


....and Goldings. All this after being away for only a week!
Going to have to get the scissors out.


----------



## BottloBill

Still powering on here too!


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

mofox1 said:


> Slightly jealous I'm missing out on the early excitment... same part of town, but my 'zomes don't get much sun on the ground right now. ETA for first shoots is late October at best. They do alright once they start to grow into the "sun zone" though (~1m high due to shadow tracks of house, garage, trees, etc).
> 
> Going to have to put up with a lot of "look at my shoots!" posts before I see any....





AJ80 said:


> Am hearing ya mate. Nothing poking through in my garden yet.


If it makes you feel better, the majority of mine are yet to poke their heads up, and most that have, are just sitting there waiting. My 1 Cascade that has taken off must be a mutant.


----------



## Danscraftbeer

1-2 foot tall already? Is this climate change or something? I thought my 4 inch tall Victoria sprout (in SE Vic) was a freak.
I still think it is! Many 2nd season nodes poking up but still dealing with top temps of as low as 11c. First 20c day is forecast.


----------



## Spohaw

Cascade starting to get some leaves coming out


----------



## osprey brewday

Cascade pushed through this week 
i think its them


----------



## Spohaw

Getting some leaves on them ..... Wish they would grow quicker ...... Want to try clone some 

Flinders 



Red earth 



Different cascade ... I should be able to clone a few of these shoots


----------



## mistermillennia

Since it has been a while (like, a whole month I think?) since I updated you guys on how my Victoria is going, here is a little update:






I did get worried there for a bit because they flat out stopped growing, but they have started to grow again now that they are in the pool area and a few hours more sun.

Also I have a bug problem. I think I'll have to order one of those containers full of 1000 lady bugs to sort things out if the insecticide doesn't sort them out this time.


----------



## Spohaw

What sort of bugs are they, I hope it's not spider mite 

Product called neem oil works pretty good , it's not an instant bug killer it's more a mutagen that makes the "baby" bugs unable to mature to a reproductive stage


----------



## mistermillennia

Spohaw said:


> What sort of bugs are they, I hope it's not spider mite


Honestly dunno what sorts they are, there are a few of various sizes, but there was a lot of them




Spohaw said:


> Product called neem oil works pretty good , it's not an instant bug killer it's more a mutagen that makes the "baby" bugs unable to mature to a reproductive stage


The stuff I'm using is an instant killer, but like Neem Oil it stays on the plant and offs them if they go for a snack. I'll check and see if I can pick any up though, because I've heard that some insects attract more of their kind when they die.


----------



## Spohaw

Can you take a picture of them mate ? 

Two pronged attack sounds smart


----------



## mistermillennia

Spohaw said:


> Can you take a picture of them mate ?
> 
> Two pronged attack sounds smart


I sprayed the insecticide yesterday, and they weren't around today, but if they come back (hope not) I'll snap a picture and get back to you.

Hope I can deal with them before any buds develop - Would suck to have extra protein in my beers.


----------



## Spohaw

Main problem would be if they get on your flowers , probably wouldn't go hard with insecticide this early neem oil should be fine though 

The Chinese like high protein beers so it can't be that bad haha 

Good luck with it , looking forward to some pics ...... I hate bugs on plants ! 

Be glad to help ( if I can )


----------



## Mr B

I am new to the growing of hops.

How much room do they take up? 

I have a couple or rhizomes in a pot that are quite small, and am considering putting them in a herb bed I have.

Any estimates on the root area of say 1-3 year rhizomes?


----------



## flave_7

POR




Flinders




Weurtemberger (I was doing some reading about this and I think it's probably a variation of Weurtemberger that leans more toward Tettnang. Anybody know anything about this hop?)


----------



## blekk

Mr B said:


> I am new to the growing of hops.
> 
> How much room do they take up?
> 
> I have a couple or rhizomes in a pot that are quite small, and am considering putting them in a herb bed I have.
> 
> Any estimates on the root area of say 1-3 year rhizomes?


This is a 1 year rhizome that i dug up recently. Its hard to tell the size as there's no reference but it took up most of the space in a 30lt pot. Started out as a 12cm cutting


----------



## eresh666

guys I have a problem, 2 half wine barrels one with cascade the other has hallertau.

now being the smart person I am I thought I would remember which is what. Any idea on how I can tell them apart? One of them is about 2inches of growth the other is just starting to sprout I would assume its the cascade growing faster as it did last season before I moved them to the wine barrels.


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Mr B said:


> I am new to the growing of hops.
> 
> How much room do they take up?
> 
> I have a couple or rhizomes in a pot that are quite small, and am considering putting them in a herb bed I have.
> 
> Any estimates on the root area of say 1-3 year rhizomes?


Without digging up too much I have 2nd season Cascade in wicking beds (cut down IBC tanks 1200 X 1000) Planting other veggies in their I keep finding hop roots easily 1 meter distance from the rhizome. Basically the bigger grow space the further they go.


----------



## Yob

wen tout back to find a chook had half dug up my Cascade zome and shredded about half a dozen shoots..

not effing happy Jan


----------



## Mr B

Hmm thanks lads, not for the herb garden then. Looks like the kids sand pit is going........

(They have outgrown it)


----------



## flave_7

Mr B said:



> Hmm thanks lads, not for the herb garden then. Looks like the kids sand pit is going........
> 
> (They have outgrown it)


Even if they haven't... [emoji12]


----------



## Pogierob

eresh666 said:


> guys I have a problem, 2 half wine barrels one with cascade the other has hallertau.
> 
> now being the smart person I am I thought I would remember which is what. Any idea on how I can tell them apart? One of them is about 2inches of growth the other is just starting to sprout I would assume its the cascade growing faster as it did last season before I moved them to the wine barrels.


Best chance would be to assess the two varieties for things like cone size, season maturing time. 

http://beerlegends.com/cascade-us-hops

http://beerlegends.com/hallertau-aroma-hops

Failing that you.Might just have wait until harvest and do a.couple.of brews and compare traits.

Or, take them down to a local park and plant them , then start fresh and label the pots.


Edit. Manual corrected auto correct


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Yob said:


> wen tout back to find a chook had half dug up my Cascade zome and shredded about half a dozen shoots..
> 
> not effing happy Jan


Chicken for dinner tonight?


----------



## Curly79

eresh666 said:


> guys I have a problem, 2 half wine barrels one with cascade the other has hallertau.
> 
> now being the smart person I am I thought I would remember which is what. Any idea on how I can tell them apart? One of them is about 2inches of growth the other is just starting to sprout I would assume its the cascade growing faster as it did last season before I moved them to the wine barrels.


Not the first time this has happened mate. I sent four different varieties of rhizomes to someone last season. Long story short they all got mixed up at the other end? Not sure how to figure out which is which? Good luck.


----------



## Mardoo

Aroma will give them away for sure. You may have to wait until harvest. I haven't found it at all east to work out which is which.


----------



## Yob

Should be easy enough once the cones have developed, they'll smell nothing alike


----------



## Alex.Tas

With the last week of sunshine in Hobart, my hops have kicked off finally!

Cascade is thumping along




Columbus starting to get some leaves




Any thoughts on cutting a few back? I'm thinking cut them all back and let it reshoot. Last year (the plants first year) they seemed to respond okay to some tough love.


----------



## Bizenya

Second year plants starting to show some growth- the 
POR definitely has started its spurt- Victoria Cascade and the Mega Chinook (thanks again Hoppy2b!) are also starting to get moving, just not like the POR


----------



## mistermillennia

... So... It's been a day since I last posted (and almost as long since I last applied insecticide)... But the bugs are already back...







Can anyone identify what these little bastards are?


----------



## Spohaw

Looks like fungus gnat

Is the top of the soil wet all the time mate ?

I'd probably water less frequently and maybe even put a 15 mm top dress of sand , like a free draining sand that doesn't retain moisture ... So it keeps the top part or your soil mix dry and makes it a less attractive home for the fungus gnat larvae

You can also put some beer with a drop or two of dish soap in a small jar and sit it on top of your soil and that should attract and trap the adults


----------



## mistermillennia

Thanks for the ID.

The top of my soil might be wet, I water every second day but I have a rather thick layer of mulch on top which might be retaining some water.

I think I'll remove the mulch and replace with some sand, and if they are still around I'll try the beer and dish soap method.

Glad it's not spider mite infestation though.


----------



## Spohaw

I'd water less often while your hops are this small too


----------



## mistermillennia

Righto, how often and how much to you suggest I should be watering them?


----------



## Spohaw

Try once every three days mate but if the soil still seems wet when you go to water it hold off for another day 

You can check just by jamming your finger in the top soil bit ..... You'll know if it's still wet 

Don't know how the weathers going in your neck of the woods but it's still cold and wet here so evaporation is pretty much non existent so I only water it once at week ...... That will have to change once the plants get more leaves and the weather fines up


----------



## Mardoo

Rough guide based on my hop watering:

Water once a week, if at all, when the hops are dormant. Unless you're in a very dry area winter rains are enough to take care of dormant hops. Living in Melbourne I've never had to water my hops during their dormant phase. The biggest danger at this point is rot from standing water, so less is more.

Water two to three times a week while they are first establishing themselves in Spring. Spohaws advice about testing soil wetness is good advice. They quite often send up a few shoots that then stop growing much for a bit. This does not mean they need more water. Best theory I've heard is these shoots provide a bit of energy while the rhizomes prepare themselves for the big push. Like morning coffee for the hops 

Water about four times a week once they start to stretch. This is when they start growing very noticeably each day, roughly 15 or more centimeteres a day. They need solid watering at this point. 

Once they start sending out laterals water every day. I just got a weeping hose and a flow restrictor and left it on very low for about 12 hours a day. You don't want them sitting in water ever, but they use a crapload of water at this point. A couple 40C days without water can destroy your harvest.

Be sure you're giving them a supplemental feed every couple weeks during the lateral and flowering phase, or that your original soil is insanely nutritious.


----------



## mistermillennia

Thanks Spohaw and Mardoo, I will definitely be following your watering advice.


----------



## Matplat

Thanks Mardoo, very useful guide...

However I think you are mis-representing something. Your avatar label says, 'noob what craps on a bit' but I'm not really sure you qualify as a noob anymore considering your post count is over 3k! :lol:


----------



## wide eyed and legless

mistermillennia said:


> Thanks for the ID.
> 
> The top of my soil might be wet, I water every second day but I have a rather thick layer of mulch on top which might be retaining some water.
> 
> I think I'll remove the mulch and replace with some sand, and if they are still around I'll try the beer and dish soap method.
> 
> Glad it's not spider mite infestation though.


Don't think its fungus gnat, they look a bit to big, and now with the warmer weather approaching you will need the mulch around the plant, can you get a clearer pic of the insect, it may not be harmful to the hop's, may even be a predator after the harmful insects which may attack your plants.


----------



## Spohaw

Google fungus gnat wide , it will come up with pictures and compare it to that 

Thought the picture was zoomed in a fair bit so size wasn't to scale

3-4 mm body size looks right to me

You can always re mulch it when the weather fines up 

Do people mulch when they grow them commercially ... Wonder how they get around the absolute need to mulch as people say 

Or because they live in the proper area that hops love they just don't need too ?

Maybe their watering schedule is good enough not to need it ?


----------



## blekk

mistermillennia said:


> ... So... It's been a day since I last posted (and almost as long since I last applied insecticide)... But the bugs are already back...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Can anyone identify what these little bastards are?


Hard to tell from the pics but could be Rutherglen Bugs??


----------



## Spohaw

Yeah I could be wrong haha 

Looks pretty similar to FG's

Good way to tell is to look at your top soil and see if there are little white egg looking things there 

Says rutherglen bugs reproduce on the plant while FG's reproduce in the soil


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Spohaw said:


> Do people mulch when they grow them commercially ... Wonder how they get around the absolute need to mulch as people say
> 
> Or because they live in the proper area that hops love they just don't need too ?
> 
> Maybe their watering schedule is good enough not to need it ?


Mulching will save on watering, on a commercial basis I would imagine they would, but there are different procedures on commercial properties, I do know in Kent UK at the end of the season they lime the soil, the only reason they would do that is because the natural pH of the soil is to low (acidic soil).
I would doubt anyone would have to do that in their back yard as long as the pH level is neutral, the ideal level for hop plants.
Back onto the insects here are some images of the bugs that attack hop plants.

https://www.google.com.au/search?q=images+of+insects+that+attack+hop+plants&espv=2&biw=1024&bih=653&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0CDEQ7AlqFQoTCN-B3ujI9ccCFWUupgod-mQI1A


----------



## Alex.Tas

Amazing what one day can do!
photo below was taken yesterday.



Alex.Tas said:


> Columbus starting to get some leaves



Here it is today


----------



## BottloBill

So I didn't get around to stringing these babies during father's day weekend, I think should very very soon though


----------



## osprey brewday

Made a trellis hope it works any one see a reason it wont. i can lower the top to harvest may be bit over kill in the height but it was the only viable branch to use.


----------



## BottloBill

They could easily nail that with vigorous growth! One thing going off your surroundings, do you see many possums?

Cheers BB


----------



## osprey brewday

BottloBill said:


> They could easily nail that with vigorous growth! One thing going off your surroundings, do you see many possums?
> 
> Cheers BB


There are possums do they eat the cones ect


----------



## Alex.Tas

I'm 90% sure possums are responsible for digging up my sugercane mulch. They haven't damaged my plants yet, but i'm pretty sure they will at some stage.

That setup looks brilliant!
The only issue i see with your plan is that if the wind picks up and the branch sways, it may snap your string or snap your anchors.

I cant tell from your photograph if you have one already, but i would include a trampoline spring (or similar) in there. add it where your raising/lowering rope connects to the bridle you have at the top. This way, if the wind picks up and the branch sways, the spring increases in length rather than putting too much strain on the anchors/anchor ropes.

The alternative to this may be to have the ropes loose, so that if the branch pulls on the rope, it doesn't pull on the vine.

I like the spring idea, and I really like over complicating things.


----------



## Pogierob

Anyone know what these little fuckers are? There was a few hundred all around the rhizome of my cascade.


----------



## Spohaw

Don't know man but if they were around your rhizome you can guarantee it's been living off your zome and causing it grief 

Pretty hard to see too

Are there any mature bugs floating around the area ?


----------



## Pogierob

I'm trying to drown the buggers.


----------



## Spohaw

Were they on the top of the ground or deeper around the rhizome ?

Are you using homemade compost in your mix .... Could just be maggots haha


----------



## Mardoo

osprey brewday said:


> There are possums do they eat the cones ect


I've had possums living in my yard at three houses and only at one have they bothered the hops. Tip I got, which was totally golden, is that they hate the smell of blood and bone meal and Dynamic Lifter. Worked a treat. They only bothered the base and top of my bines so a spray of DL tea took care of the top and B&B and DL scattered around the base took care of that.


----------



## Cass22

Hey guys, my first time growing this year. I have 4 hops going and are all going quite well so far, nice and green, growth noticeable every day. Getting at least 2 shoots from each pot so far and loving it!! 2 x Cascade, 1 x Chinook and 1 x EKG.

One of my shoots about 200mm tall (Chinook Pictured) has lost its tip and I wanted to know if that can cause any growing issues or if it will keep growing as the the others will?


----------



## Spohaw

Mardoo said:


> I've had possums living in my yard at three houses and only at one have they bothered the hops. Tip I got, which was totally golden, is that they hate the smell of blood and bone meal and Dynamic Lifter. Worked a treat. They only bothered the base and top of my bines so a spray of DL tea took care of the top and B&B and DL scattered around the base took care of that.


I have a problem with ring neck parrots pinching the tips out of the bines as they grow 

I'll be doing this to see if it helps 

I was going to steep a heap of dried birds eye chillis and spray that on them to deter them so I might do both in one spray 

Hope it works


----------



## Pogierob

Spohaw said:


> Were they on the top of the ground or deeper around the rhizome ?
> 
> Are you using homemade compost in your mix .... Could just be maggots haha


they were under the soil just under the top soil as far as I know just around the main section, however I didn't dig the whole thing up yet. I've googled a bit and everything points to root maggots,
I don't use homemade compost although I did recently add some fertiliser pellets SWMBO had lying around.

They were literally bunched up against and around the rhizome so I know they are feeding on them. I drowned the pot yesterday for about and hour and a half and that seemed to kill quite a few of them, although today they are not very active but still alive. I'm going for a second drowning attempt and plan to his a nursery tomorrow with a hand full of dead little fuckers for clarification. 

Just thought someone on here might have had them before.


----------



## Spohaw

Do they have black heads ? Is your soil been pretty wet ?

Have you seen any mature bugs or flies in the area of you hop ? 

They look like larvae .... Juvenile bugs sort of thing 

Mature bugs would be easier to identifying 

diatomaceous earth seems to be used for most flies/gnats and their larvae 

Might be worth getting some


----------



## Pogierob

Spohaw said:


> Do they have black heads ? Is your soil been pretty wet ?
> 
> Have you seen any mature bugs or flies in the area of you hop ?
> 
> They look like larvae .... Juvenile bugs sort of thing
> 
> Mature bugs would be easier to identify


Yep, little black heads.

The more I read the more I think they're root maggots..


----------



## Spohaw

Not gnats or flies floatin around ?


----------



## Pogierob

Not that I have seen


----------



## Spohaw

Root maggots will turn into fly looking things

Might be early days still .... Might not be many to see yet


----------



## Pogierob

Just washed away the top 10cm of soil from the pot and it appears they aren't that deep, I'll replace the soil and see how I go


----------



## Spohaw

Might be worth trying to source some of that diatomaceous earth if you can 

Seems to treat a lot of soil based pests


----------



## LiquidGold

Pet shops sell diatomaceous earth as a kitty litter product called 'Cleansorb'. I've always got some on hand mostly to add to potting mixes but I've heard good things about using it against soft bodied insects. The dust particles are very sharp which is how it effectively cuts, irritates and dehydrates insects so avoid breathing it in.


----------



## Lincoln2

Yikes.


----------



## Mardoo

The hops must flow.


----------



## Pogierob

This is with the soil washed away.


----------



## Spohaw

LiquidGold said:


> Pet shops sell diatomaceous earth as a kitty litter product called 'Cleansorb'. I've always got some on hand mostly to add to potting mixes but I've heard good things about using it against soft bodied insects. The dust particles are very sharp which is how it effectively cuts, irritates and dehydrates insects so avoid breathing it in.


Larvae have soft bodies


----------



## osprey brewday

Alex.Tas said:


> I'm 90% sure possums are responsible for digging up my sugercane mulch. They haven't damaged my plants yet, but i'm pretty sure they will at some stage.
> 
> That setup looks brilliant!
> The only issue i see with your plan is that if the wind picks up and the branch sways, it may snap your string or snap your anchors.
> 
> I cant tell from your photograph if you have one already, but i would include a trampoline spring (or similar) in there. add it where your raising/lowering rope connects to the bridle you have at the top. This way, if the wind picks up and the branch sways, the spring increases in length rather than putting too much strain on the anchors/anchor ropes.
> 
> The alternative to this may be to have the ropes loose, so that if the branch pulls on the rope, it doesn't pull on the vine.
> 
> I like the spring idea, and I really like over complicating things.


Thanks for the advice i will go with the springs i think,maybe just a bit lighter than a tramp spring theres a bit of flex in the electrical conduit spreader at the top also.


----------



## Pogierob

Cass22 said:


> Hey guys, my first time growing this year. I have 4 hops going and are all going quite well so far, nice and green, growth noticeable every day. Getting at least 2 shoots from each pot so far and loving it!! 2 x Cascade, 1 x Chinook and 1 x EKG.
> 
> One of my shoots about 200mm tall (Chinook Pictured) has lost its tip and I wanted to know if that can cause any growing issues or if it will keep growing as the the others will?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> image.jpg


My limited experience is that once it you lose the tip it stops advancing, I wouldn't worry too much about it this early on as there will be more that shoot up most likely.
There are quite a few recommendations to cut back the first growth to encourage a stronger growth on the second batch that comes up, so theoretically you could just cut it back.
Another rumour is that if you bury a bine then it will turn into a rhizome.

I usually look for the strongest bines and then cut back a few of the weaker looking ones to encourage the plant to concentrate on the strong ones. You need a metre or two of growth before the bine will produce cones so it probably won't do you any harm to cut it back or bury it as it won't produce anything .


----------



## Bruer

Does anyone in WA have some extra rhizomes they might be willing to part with for cash. PM me if you're interested.


----------



## Cass22

There is a second at the moment that is about half the size, thinking maybe I will just cut it and see how the other one goes. May end up with another 1 or 2 pop up as well soon.

Not real keen on burying it as its a first year so might stress the small root system out a bit.

Cheers for the comments Rob.


----------



## Pagani

Hi anyone got rhizomes to sell, I know a little late in the season but thought I'd ask. Sydney based


----------



## Matplat

Diggers club may still have cascade...


----------



## sponge

Finally getting some cascade bines poking through. No sign as of yet from EKG or chinook..


----------



## Alex.Tas

osprey brewday said:


> Thanks for the advice i will go with the springs i think,maybe just a bit lighter than a tramp spring theres a bit of flex in the electrical conduit spreader at the top also.


yeah probably a good idea to use something lighter/looser. the aim is to get the spring to stretch rather than the ropes/vines.

Another alternative would be to have a pulley at the top where you have the rope attached to the tree (you probably already have one there so you can raise it). Instead of tethering the end of the rope to a fixed object, have it attached to a counter weight, so if the branch moves upwards, in high wind the counter weight will rise instead. if you don't want the counterweight hanging perilously over your hops, then you could add another pulley further back along the tree limb to keep it out of the way.
see crap diagram...


----------



## Matplat

Alex.Tas said:


> yeah probably a good idea to use something lighter/looser. the aim is to get the spring to stretch rather than the ropes/vines.
> 
> Another alternative would be to have a pulley at the top where you have the rope attached to the tree (you probably already have one there so you can raise it). Instead of tethering the end of the rope to a fixed object, have it attached to a counter weight, so if the branch moves upwards, in high wind the counter weight will rise instead. if you don't want the counterweight hanging perilously over your CHILDREN, then you could add another pulley further back along the tree limb to keep it out of the way.
> see crap diagram...
> 
> 
> 
> Doc.jpg


FTFY


----------



## BottloBill

Second year Chinook and first year Cascade on par in growth


----------



## Matplat

Bill, I'm not sure you should be allowed to post your pics here anymore. It's going to cause the rest of us 'normal' growers PTSD! ☺


----------



## flave_7

So pests with hops. Any ideas what and how to treat please!View attachment 83375


----------



## BottloBill

flave_7 said:


> So pests with hops. Any ideas what and how to treat please!
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442559918.997992.jpg


Hey flav 

Neem oil is a good one or I grab some of that chilli and garlic pest spray from the big green shed as it's safe for edibles and alike.


----------



## Spohaw

I'm seeing a lot of wet soil with these pests .... Pretty sure we are after moist not wet or water logged soil 

Wet soil has next to no oxygen in it and without it your plants will suffer .... I'd suggest water less frequently and changing it up to a free draining soil next season 

Most plants hate wet feet


----------



## flave_7

So pests with hops. Any ideas what and how to treat please!


----------



## flave_7

BottloBill said:


> Hey flav
> 
> Neem oil is a good one or I grab some of that chilli and garlic pest spray from the big green shed as it's safe for edibles and alike.


I'll give it a try cheers Bill.



Spohaw said:


> I'm seeing a lot of wet soil with these pests .... Pretty sure we are after moist not wet or water logged soil
> 
> Wet soil has next to no oxygen in it and without it your plants will suffer .... I'd suggest water less frequently and changing it up to a free draining soil next season
> 
> Most plants hate wet feet


Yeh I'd read all this and only water every 3rd day as to trying to avoid water logging. Maybe I'll just give them a light sprinkle every 3rd day until they're bigger. Cheers lads.


----------



## BottloBill

Re-using parts from the kids trampoline that was damaged in the last big storm we had in Newcastle. I managed to find a piece of a wall batten or top hat left over from the shed fit out, also used one of the U clamps from the trampoline to build a nifty 10 minute trellis structure.


----------



## BottloBill

flave_7 said:


> I'll give it a try cheers Bill.
> 
> 
> Yeh I'd read all this and only water every 3rd day as to trying to avoid water logging. Maybe I'll just give them a light sprinkle every 3rd day until they're bigger. Cheers lads.


I have been foliage feeding them first thing in the morning every 3rd day just as the morning sun is hitting them.


----------



## Spohaw

What dilution bottleo ?


----------



## BottloBill

Spohaw said:


> What dilution bottleo ?


Using miracle grow max feed for vegetables. I have pre made it to the directions, so 11 scoops to 100 litres for soil feeding and a separate batch for foliage feeding that is 3 scoops to 100 litres and administered using a garden sprayer when foliage feeding.


----------



## flave_7

Guess I'll HAVE to go to Bunnings then!


----------



## mofox1

I've got a Super Alpha up for grabs in the b&s thread...

http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/index.php?/topic/88110-[melb]-Super-Alpha-hops-plant

Edit: And now I don't....


----------



## perko8

First shoots are above ground on my cascade and super alpha. 
It's my first go at growing them, wondering how long to wait before cutting back the first growth?


----------



## Pogierob

Trellis is ready.


----------



## BottloBill

perko8 said:


> First shoots are above ground on my cascade and super alpha.
> It's my first go at growing them, wondering how long to wait before cutting back the first growth?
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442638805.326802.jpg ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442638575.027213.jpg


I would leave them be if first year,
Let them become established.

Just my 2 cents worth.

Cheers BB


----------



## goid

Attention nsw central coast brewers.

Earlier In The Year I Left Some POR rhizomes at country brewer @ toukley for local brewers to buy. It appears none of the regulars are interested. Seeing as though the season for growing is getting going I am going to make them free to whoever wants one. I am not interested in posting or distributing them. So if you are interested in one just head to toukley and see Dwayne at country brewer and he will give you one. No obligation to buy anything from his shop.

David

If you pick up one. Happy growing. May plenty of cones grow.


----------



## AJ80

First shoots have just poked through on Mt Hood, Chinook and Goldings. No sign of my Cascade yet...


----------



## Alex.Tas

perko8 said:


> First shoots are above ground on my cascade and super alpha.
> It's my first go at growing them, wondering how long to wait before cutting back the first growth?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442638805.326802.jpg
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442638575.027213.jpg


Last year my plants were all grown from rhizome. I only cut back one of the three, and it out performed the others about three fold. It may have been due to some other reason, and they were all different varieties, but after it's haircut, it went mental.

I trimmed back all of mine this weekend and dipped the cuttings in some powder which is meant to benefit root growth from cuttings. If all of them take (which they wont) I will have around 20 new hop plants for next season.


----------



## Hpal

Hey guys, here's my cascade which has been growing well but today I've noticed small spots on the leaves. Has anyone experienced this before and what was the cause and cure? Cheers


----------



## Spohaw

Alex.Tas said:


> Last year my plants were all grown from rhizome. I only cut back one of the three, and it out performed the others about three fold. It may have been due to some other reason, and they were all different varieties, but after it's haircut, it went mental.
> 
> I trimmed back all of mine this weekend and dipped the cuttings in some powder which is meant to benefit root growth from cuttings. If all of them take (which they wont) I will have around 20 new hop plants for next season.


How are you looking after the cuttings ?

Are they in a humidity crib or just out in the open ?

I want to do this this year and want to know what works the best

I was just going to put cuttings in a humidity crib some where warm with a fluro light above them

Ill be keen to hear how yours go


----------



## Yob

POR Has decided its time, this was takena few days ago and all of them are at least a few inches bigger than shown now... mulching is helping loads


----------



## malt and barley blues

Hpal said:


> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442790341.775247.jpg
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442790392.423121.jpg
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442790462.473735.jpg
> Hey guys, here's my cascade which has been growing well but today I've noticed small spots on the leaves. Has anyone experienced this before and what was the cause and cure? Cheers


Check this out, it may help.

http://ipm.wsu.edu/field/pdf/hophandbook2009.pdf


----------



## Alex.Tas

Hpal said:


> Hey guys, here's my cascade which has been growing well but today I've noticed small spots on the leaves. Has anyone experienced this before and what was the cause and cure? Cheers


Hi Hpal, check this out: https://www.freshops.com/hop-growing/hop-diseases-and-pests

In last year's hop thread, another user gave a link to the Simplot growers guide for hops. It was really great however, the guide was updated to a new format and the images didn't seem to get transferred to the updated growers guide.
Someone else seems to have copy and pasted the information, along with the relevant pictures. Check it out in the link above.


Link to the Simplot guide




wide eyed and legless said:


> Lists of mineral deficiencies and diseases in hops with images.
> https://x10.simplot.com/growersolutions/field_manuals/category.cfm?catid=7




Sophaw, see below


Spohaw said:


> How are you looking after the cuttings ?
> I'm looking pretty good thanks. Well my fiancee said I was when I left for work this morning.
> The hops were looking pretty limp, I tried to make the cuttings at least 15-20cm long, which meant I could poke them a fair way into the pots, which should help them stay somewhat upright. Some of the stems were woodier than others. I put some small stakes in the pot with them to try and hold them up.
> 
> Are they in a humidity crib or just out in the open ?
> Just in the open. Probably not ideal, but i had one success from about 4 cuttings last year, and i didn't use the cutting powder.
> 
> I want to do this this year and want to know what works the best
> 
> I was just going to put cuttings in a humidity crib some where warm with a fluro light above them
> Probably the way to go if you have one. it will likely need to be pretty tall though. I dunno how long the cuttings should be, but I wanted to give them at least 6 pairs of leaves before I snipped them off. I have no idea about best practice though.
> 
> Ill be keen to hear how yours go
> Sure. I love spamming this thread so I'll probably give progress updates. If i forget, let me know!


Edit: Beaten to it by M&BB.

Nice shoots Yob.


----------



## Yob

and the Canterbury Goldings, only really kept for (as is the POR too) ornamental value, I tend not to brew with them often.. 

The Canterbury Goldings has some historical value, coming off a 100+ year wild old mother zome




Victoria and Cascade are starting to shoot through bines as well, Chinook is typically last to show (but usually produces the most)


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Spohaw said:


> I have a problem with ring neck parrots pinching the tips out of the bines as they grow
> 
> I'll be doing this to see if it helps
> 
> I was going to steep a heap of dried birds eye chillis and spray that on them to deter them so I might do both in one spray
> 
> Hope it works


Birds don't sense Chilli's as we do. Only mammals are sensitive to Capsaicin (in theory) I'm unsure if rodents (possums etc) feel the heat. I've had possums strip all the fruit of chilli plants but then the serious Hottest chillies are often dropped half eaten then left alone haha, I would have loved to see the reactions of the possum after eating a Bhut Jolokia.


----------



## Spohaw

Good to know mate ... I use it as a pest spray and was hoping it would deter the birds 

Seems to kill bugs and make the ants piss off


----------



## rodj6

Here's my effort. Big thanks to curly79


----------



## Spohaw

wide eyed and legless said:


> What part of pH don't you understand, ask any keen gardener and they will tell you how important pH is 1 point either side of neutral is a good starting point for most plants apart from the acid or alkaline loving plants, plants cannot draw up nutrients and essential minerals if the pH is way off line, and how you contradict yourself when you say (in past posts) a good load of compost and manure if you are following your own advice how come your pH is so high, have you ever checked your pH?


I'd think a neutral soil ph would be better then one way up around 9


----------



## Spohaw

Haha this is last seasons thread


----------



## rodj6

And now the tressle is up


----------



## malt and barley blues

Spohaw said:


> I'd think a neutral soil ph would be better then one way up around 9
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1442879149.571065.jpg


It is, a neutral pH is seven, so keeping around that mark is ideal for hops, I was going to mention this to Hpal that those plants look a bit nutrient deficient so it would be worth his while to check his pH.


----------



## Curly79

Yob said:


> POR Has decided its time, this was takena few days ago and all of them are at least a few inches bigger than shown now... mulching is helping loads
> 
> 
> 
> 
> POR.JPG


So is it gunna be the Pride or the Shame of Ringwood this season Yob?


----------



## Yob

We always live in hope for a pride... 

Being in a pot still (poor ******* thing) it only takes one miss on a hot windy day to damage it but I'll be better this year and by next season it'll be in a permanent planter right next to the water tank.


----------



## JB

*HELP / ADVICE wanted!*

I have a couple of hops plants that went in last year, planted at the base of a retaining wall - so they had lots of vertical space to grow & fullish sun.

However, I'm on a sloped block so all the ground moisture moves downwards and what I didn't plan for was how wet the ground stays at the base of the retaining wall.

Last year, some bines grew like demons early - but then stopped & died off. I assumed the roots were too damp & probably rotted away & I didn't think they'd survived, let alone give them any chance of surviving winter.

This year, some bines have popped out again & looking good - but the ground is super wet (prior to the rains even) ...

Sooooo, what should I do? There's no other good in-ground locations - should I transfer into big pots? Or leave them in the ground & try to draw away as much water from them?


----------



## malt and barley blues

You could try digging a drainage ditch or put the the plants in the biggest pots you can get and make bigger holes in the bottom so the roots can go through, or another way is to make a raised bed, the rhyzomes grow laterally.


----------



## Yob

Dig them up and make an above ground planter box. You'll keep the crown dry but the roots can do whatever, this'll also help with spread


----------



## Spohaw

Your plant looks good jb , it might not be in as much trouble as you think 

You could always just dig in something that drains better than what you have there , coir perlite or even some composted mulch 

That will increase the air in the soil and might be ok 

Might also be a drainage problem , a bit of wetta soil thrown around the joint might make the water go down instead of sticking around your rhizomes 

I wouldn't be moving it now but


----------



## Spohaw

I'd probably go with the experienced hop growers advice but ^^^


----------



## BottloBill

+1 for the perlite/vermiculite or similar and start again next year, who knows they may have settled a bit this time round fingers crossed. Take no notice of this bloke^^^^^above he get all his tips from me


----------



## Spohaw

Haha


----------



## Camo6

Yob said:


> Dig them up and make an above ground planter box. You'll keep the crown dry but the roots can do whatever, this'll also help with spread



+1 to this. They look like they're planted in mud from the above pic and not much grows well without drainage. If you can get your hands on a 200l plastic drum and cut it in half as well as adding some big drain holes you've got some inexpensive 100l pots that'll get you through the season. The auto dealership I used to work at usually had a few out the back that just needed a rinse of degreaser.


----------



## BottloBill

Pride of ringwood found it's nitro. These pics are about 3 weeks apart.


----------



## Spohaw

Mine aren't growing much 

Had to remove all the mulch , ants had made a home in it .... I hate ants 

Time for the chilli water drenching I think

I'll put the mulch back on it when it starts gettin hot but


----------



## coopsomulous

All my hops are at different stages.

Pride of Ringwood has taken off.



Cascade and Perle have poked their heads up.
No sign of Saaz yet... always been a late riser but ends up the best finisher


----------



## sp0rk

Has anyone in the upper hunter had any luck with growing hops?
I imagine the 40C+ days wouldn't be great but if I can hook up some kind of constant drip feed irrigation to stop their thirst it shouldn't be too bad
I have a feeling I've killed the left over hallertauer I brought over from Coffs, so I might just get the supports set up and the garden bed well mulched and weed free this year ready for next year's crop
Might try a something a little more suited to our climate too, some Cascade, Chinook or PoR might go better than a Euro hop


----------



## Dae Tripper

Where are you now Spork? I am in Singleton and my hops went very well last year and I am hoping for a great 2nd year for them. Just one water a day should be fine. I just put in some water sprays that are timed for once a day so now I can't forget.


----------



## sp0rk

I'm in Muswellbrook, in the new estate on the east side
The dirt here is shitty, I think I'll have to get in some good stuff from a landscaper


----------



## Dae Tripper

I know the spot. Mine are currently in pots for that reason as well, till I get the lawn sorted.


----------



## roastinrich

Mine are starting to go gangbusters too.


----------



## Mardoo

So are there more than two homebrew-inspired commercial hopyards on here? Well done roastin'!


----------



## Dae Tripper

roastin said:


> Mine are starting to go gangbusters too.


EPIC!

What types do you have and expected yeild?


----------



## Curly79

2nd year victoria and 1st year POR starting to take off. Finally a bit of warm weather here in North East Victoria. . Let's hope it continues

Cheers to Crysler Strat for the POR Zomes[emoji106]


----------



## IsonAd

I've got 2nd year cascade and chinook starting to take off in my garden bed, but would prefer to move them to a different position in the garden. Is it too late to move them if they've already started shooting up (about 2cm)


----------



## Pogierob

Victoria


----------



## Pogierob

Cascade


----------



## maxim0200

First year cascade poking their heads up finally.
Also just installed a soaker hose in the pot on a timer.


----------



## goid

POR Garden

1st Years trying to get to the sky




2nd year - Trying the multiple attack




Relocated 4 year old


----------



## Bridges

Finally got around to moving mine today, into a 900 x 900 raised garden arrangement. They should love it after the little pot they were stuck in. I hope it's not too late as they were just about to poke through the mulch when I turned it over. Time will tell. 2nd year cascade got all of about 45gram dry last year so I'm keen for a bigger return this year.


----------



## Bruer

So, just potted the hops I got from Hippy. Left to right two cascades and two POR. I'm a bit late but the bines are already starting to shoot. We'll have to wait and see how they go. 

Should I mulch early or wait until the bines are a bit bigger? I'm planning on setting up a trellis to train them up soon. I'm moving in three weeks, so anything but pots wasn't an option.


----------



## Benn

Are Goldings typically late to shoot?
I've got VIC & Chinook that are coming along but nothing from my Goldings. Seeing all the action that's going on in this thread has me concerned


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Mardoo said:


> So are there more than two homebrew-inspired commercial hopyards on here? Well done roastin'!


It appears so.  Fantastic!


----------



## Mardoo

How's yours coming BB?


----------



## BottloBill

Mardoo said:


> How's yours coming BB?


We have had a lot of rain on and off in Newcastle, so not much has changed with most of mine in height.
I just took these pics this morning before leaving for work, the last pic is the POR which has began its push fast after sitting low with a million shoots per square metre.


----------



## Alex.Tas

Bridges said:


> Finally got around to moving mine today, into a 900 x 900 raised garden arrangement. They should love it after the little pot they were stuck in. I hope it's not too late as they were just about to poke through the mulch when I turned it over. Time will tell. 2nd year cascade got all of about 45gram dry last year so I'm keen for a bigger return this year.


never mind man, you still got four times as much as i did!




Bruer said:


> Should I mulch early or wait until the bines are a bit bigger?.


The shoots wont have any problem shooting through your mulch, depending on what you use. I used sugarcane mulch and I've got stacks of shoots above ground.


----------



## LiquidGold

I've noticed a few un-mulched beds/pots and would definitely recommend adding some to lower water usage.

My plants are currently with leaves but haven't begun their proper growth spurts yet which is good since I haven't found the time to renew the trellises.


----------



## timryan

Second year cascade... Central Victoria


----------



## Mr B

sp0rk said:


> Has anyone in the upper hunter had any luck with growing hops?
> I imagine the 40C+ days wouldn't be great but if I can hook up some kind of constant drip feed irrigation to stop their thirst it shouldn't be too bad
> I have a feeling I've killed the left over hallertauer I brought over from Coffs, so I might just get the supports set up and the garden bed well mulched and weed free this year ready for next year's crop
> Might try a something a little more suited to our climate too, some Cascade, Chinook or PoR might go better than a Euro hop



Dont give up on them yet, of the three I got from you, one has had a couple of leaves for about two or three weeks, another a couple of tiny ones, and the third nothing yet. They will go though.


----------



## sp0rk

Mr B said:


> Dont give up on them yet, of the three I got from you, one has had a couple of leaves for about two or three weeks, another a couple of tiny ones, and the third nothing yet. They will go though.


I may have accidentally gotten the 2 rhizomes I brought over VERY wet for a week or 2 (left them in a bag with some dirt and forgot about them) so I'm not that hopeful for them, but we'll see
I'm still working in Coffs, so I'll get wifey to check them some time this week and give me the good/bad news


----------



## goid

sp0rk said:


> I may have accidentally gotten the 2 rhizomes I brought over VERY wet for a week or 2 (left them in a bag with some dirt and forgot about them) so I'm not that hopeful for them, but we'll see
> I'm still working in Coffs, so I'll get wifey to check them some time this week and give me the good/bad news


They will probably grow once planted. Last year I had some rhizomes stored in bar fridge that had some frosting/defrosting issues. The container I had them in filled with water and submerged them for some time. Planted them. Had 100% success rate.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Starting to put up strings...


----------



## Yob

What are you planning for harvest time mate?


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Yob said:


> What are you planning for harvest time mate?


I'm hoping to have my first harvest ale released. Will dry, vacuum seal and freeze the rest. I don't expect a huge crop in the first year.


----------



## Pogierob

Swmbo put her plant next to my hops so it would get watered, it's now the cutting propagation pot for my Victoria


----------



## BottloBill

My Hallertau decided to surface 4 days ago and is going nuts so farB)


----------



## DU99

Anybody in melbourne need a plant
Its 3 years old...POT Included


----------



## MartinOC

Hop-growing virgin!!




Goldings crown (courtesy of Mardoo).




Mt Hood (multiple 'zomes in the tub, courtesy of Mardoo).

I have a single Fuggles zome (courtesy of Mardoo - can anyone see a pattern forming here??) in another tub that has shown a single shoot since planting, so I didn't take any piccies of it.

This growth is just 2 weeks from breaking the surface! OMG!!!

Now the question for the cognoscenti:

First year growth. Do I cut anything back, or let them all go? The Mt Hood are multiple 'zomes in the one pot & I don't want to destroy a shoot that may be the only one the zome has produced so far.

Next step is to get some pegs in the soil & start training them to grow all over the kiddie-fort they're next to....


----------



## Yob

Image posted a week and a half ago.




As at today.. I should also mention I cut about 20 bines off that a few days ago :blink:


----------



## BottloBill

Yob said:


> old.JPG
> 
> Image posted a week and a half ago.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 1.5 weeks.JPG
> 
> As at today.. I should also mention I cut about 20 bines off that a few days ago :blink:


Goldings Yob?


----------



## Yob

my largely ornamental POR


----------



## BottloBill

My POR is moving fast too!


----------



## Helles

6 Cascade going well 
Got twine up for them now 
6 Chinnook going slow At right end of plot
Twine going up for them next week 
Got a couple of each in pots too 
Auto watering drip feeders
Pots on the left are lime and Avo other 4 are hops


----------



## Pogierob

MartinOC said:


> Hop-growing virgin!!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> DSCN1350.JPG
> 
> Goldings crown (courtesy of Mardoo).
> 
> 
> 
> 
> DSCN1351.JPG
> 
> Mt Hood (multiple 'zomes in the tub, courtesy of Mardoo).
> 
> I have a single Fuggles zome (courtesy of Mardoo - can anyone see a pattern forming here??) in another tub that has shown a single shoot since planting, so I didn't take any piccies of it.
> 
> This growth is just 2 weeks from breaking the surface! OMG!!!
> 
> Now the question for the cognoscenti:
> 
> First year growth. Do I cut anything back, or let them all go? The Mt Hood are multiple 'zomes in the one pot & I don't want to destroy a shoot that may be the only one the zome has produced so far.
> 
> Next step is to get some pegs in the soil & start training them to grow all over the kiddie-fort they're next to....


Just remember that they die off at the end of the season, so whatever they grow up onto, you have to cut it away/off (or it gives the kids something to do)

Edit.. probably should answer your question too.

it is recommended that you cut back the first growth and then allow the second coming to grow but keep it to 3-5 (from memory) bines, so the plant can focus the nutrients into a few strong ones, therefore increasing yield. For your first year I wouldn't worry about it too much and most likely your yield won't be very big, therefore not worth worrying about. just enjoy watching it grow and research for next year when your yield is likely to be better.


----------



## Yob

MartinOC said:


> Hop-growing virgin!!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> DSCN1350.JPG
> 
> Goldings crown (courtesy of Mardoo).
> 
> 
> 
> 
> DSCN1351.JPG
> 
> Mt Hood (multiple 'zomes in the tub, courtesy of Mardoo).
> 
> I have a single Fuggles zome (courtesy of Mardoo - can anyone see a pattern forming here??) in another tub that has shown a single shoot since planting, so I didn't take any piccies of it.
> 
> This growth is just 2 weeks from breaking the surface! OMG!!!
> 
> Now the question for the cognoscenti:
> 
> First year growth. Do I cut anything back, or let them all go? The Mt Hood are multiple 'zomes in the one pot & I don't want to destroy a shoot that may be the only one the zome has produced so far.
> 
> Next step is to get some pegs in the soil & start training them to grow all over the kiddie-fort they're next to....


ever heard of mulch?  (minimum inch, 2 better)



Rob.P said:


> Just remember that they die off at the end of the season, so whatever they grow up onto, you have to cut it away/off (or it gives the kids something to do)
> 
> Edit.. probably should answer your question too.
> 
> it is recommended that you cut back the first growth and then allow the second coming to grow but keep it to 3-5 (from memory) bines, so the plant can focus the nutrients into a few strong ones, therefore increasing yield. For your first year I wouldn't worry about it too much and most likely your yield won't be very big, therefore not worth worrying about. just enjoy watching it grow and research for next year when your yield is likely to be better.


I would be less inclined to remove all growth from a first year plant, its likely to only have a few nodes. Snip any weaker looking ones, sure but keep as many as you can keep water up to... which will be a LOT of water (and often) in those pots.

set up an automatic line if you can Martin, I have now and I must say Im a very happy man for it.


----------



## MartinOC

Yob said:


> ever heard of mulch?  (minimum inch, 2 better)
> 
> 
> I would be less inclined to remove all growth from a first year plant, its likely to only have a few nodes. Snip any weaker looking ones, sure but keep as many as you can keep water up to... which will be a LOT of water (and often) in those pots.
> 
> set up an automatic line if you can Martin, I have now and I must say Im a very happy man for it.


Yeah, I'll be getting some mulch today.

OK, thanks. Judicious snippage to follow.

The plan is to get a 200L drum & put it up on the platform, set up with a drip-feed system. I'll fill the drum from my bore (good for 5000l/day), so plenty of water available.


----------



## Straya

I'm currently renting guys and aim to buy some brick grips and hang the vines from the side of the house to avoid drilling holes which i'm not allowed to do  
My Saaz, Perle, Hersbrucker and Hallertauer are cranking at the moment so will aim to have the brick grips up in a week or two and hopefully my first ever season growing will be a good one. Will add pictures tomorrow night


----------



## mofox1

Did the recent hot spell in melbs make anyone else's hops go gangbusters? My super alpha grew about about a meter over Sunday and Monday, had been sitting around 30cm earlier in the week and now it's over my head.

Chinook had only just poked through and got a quick burst of growth.

Cascade?... Cascade?!... Hello?! Wake up you lazy bugger!


----------



## Curly79

Two days over 30 and now back to jumper and beanie weather. I think mine have chucked a U-Turn and are heading back underground


----------



## kunfaced

moved house this year. Ripped up and divided my cascade with my mate a couple of months ago. One has maybe a foot of growth and the other is just a few inches. I'll try to get a photo of my mates, it's gone ape shit. It has bines over 1m tall now. Also planted a few POR rhizomes last week, thanks to Imperial Prince. They are already shooting too. Those few days of sun were spectacular for the entire garden.

My cascade was from bunnings a few years back


----------



## kunfaced

AND I may have calypso on the way.


----------



## Yob

From where?


----------



## kunfaced

A friend I met at the beer spectapular. I have to go out regional vic to get it though, and don't know if I have the time to pick it up before it's too big.


----------



## LiquidGold

Here's the slow progression of my hops this year, seems to be a repeat of last year.

Popped it's head up (10/8/15)




Bit of growth (3/9/15)



Getting there (8/10/15)



At least in those two months I finally found the time to renew the bamboo tipis, string or more bamboo risers still to go up.




I'm thinking not enough water? I turned the drippers on when i first saw shoots but I've been a bit slack about keeping the barrel always topped up.
I gave them all a good drenching with some diluted fish waste from the aquaponics which I hope will give them the boost they need.


----------



## GrumpyPaul

Unknown hop plant, allegedly a German variety according to the man selling it at the market.

And Super aroma courtesy mofox


----------



## Bruer

It's interesting, one of my POR plants is going absolutely mental (about an inch per day). The other POR and the two cascades less so. This is their first year, but I got the rhizomes from Hippy and they were pretty well established. At the moment I'm just waiting for them to go crazy too, but I'm not sure what's really happening. They're all in large 30 L pots with premium potting mix and additional soil wetter crystals. They're also all in full sun and getting heaps of water.

Can I expect them to go mental soon too? I'm in Perth and we're facing about a week of very warm weather.

Any seasoned hop growers care to lend their opinion?


----------



## AJ80

Mt Hood (thanks Mardoo!) has gone nuts, the main bine has put on a foot since Sunday and I've got new bines poking up all over the place. One tiny little shoot off the Goldings, the one shoot I had on the Chinook grew to about 1cm before dying and still nothing from the Cascade...at least one has gone crazy!


----------



## BrutusB

South East Gippsland. Cascade second year. Currently growing at 15cm a day. String over SS wire, spawn 5m up.


----------



## Nizmoose

No idea how people are getting the insane growth that they are but here are my three new plants (photo as attachment?) they've already beaten my last year's cascade growth for the entire year. Only my second year of growing hops and last year I got not a single cone, things are looking more promising this year. One question I have is do I need to cut away some bines as some people seem to do? I'm not sure if I can bring myself to do it. And if I did I'd want it to be big enough to throw in a pot to see what happens.


----------



## Spohaw

Had a go at cloning some hops just to see how they go 

I'll take some more soon and try them under fluros in a humidity crib just to see which method works better 

Read that people have better luck taking semi ripe cuttings from laterals later on in the season so I'll give that a go as well

Only got one cascade growing a decent amount each day , they all sort of went off the grow for a couple weeks 

Cascade clones


----------



## wide eyed and legless

I tried that a couple of years ago, but found the quickest way for them to get a strong root system going was to lay the bines down an bury them in another pot, better than just cutting off excess bines and binning them.


----------



## mofox1

Spohaw said:


> Read that people have better luck taking semi ripe cuttings from laterals later on in the season so I'll give that a go as well


Another easy method is to cut away the late bines to pop up, and make sure you get a bit of root material on them. Re-pot straight away.

I did two of these last year, and while they did not grow much after being potted, they still established a good root system (had to cut away half a meter of roots coming out of the bottom of the pots!). First of my plants to start growing this year... although possibly just because the pots warmed quicker than the ones in the ground.

Time will tell how good they go, I gave one away to GrumpyPaul and the other to Symphony1974(?).


----------



## mofox1

wide eyed and legless said:


> I tried that a couple of years ago, but found the quickest way for them to get a strong root system going was to lay the bines down an bury them in another pot, better than just cutting off excess bines and binning them.


Lol. That sounds even easier.


----------



## Spohaw

I'll try air layering as well ( which is what wide said ) ... Might just try and do it with some plastic bag full of moist coco taped around a small cut , I'll jam a bit of match in the cut to keep it slightly open and see how it compares ... How quick did yours root wide ???

I've got a couple hops here that I'll chop up like you recommended too mofox , don't see the harm in trying ... Thy are only in small pots and need to be transplanted any way 

Cheers


----------



## Bruer

So my notion of "mental" a week ago is now totally different. I've got one POR growing at half a foot per day. The other POR and the two cascades are still slow to take off, but they had much smaller 'zomes.

What fertilisers are people using? I'm growing in pots and gave them all a feed of seasol the other day. Any other recommendations?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

I did mine in the hydroponic set up I experimented with, the main vines went out of the top of the green house where they were greeted by the local possums, if I remember right I had decent roots forming within 4 weeks.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Bruer said:


> So my notion of "mental" a week ago is now totally different. I've got one POR growing at half a foot per day. The other POR and the two cascades are still slow to take off, but they had much smaller 'zomes.
> 
> What fertilisers are people using? I'm growing in pots and gave them all a feed of seasol the other day. Any other recommendations?


Seasol is fine, it REALLY does work for establishing a root system and keeping the plant healthy until they really start to take off, when the buds start to form that's when to use the fertilizer, to much fertilizer at the start of the growth will impair them and make them sickly. Yates's Dynamic Lifter is a good fertilizer.


----------



## Bruer

wide eyed and legless said:


> Seasol is fine, it REALLY does work for establishing a root system and keeping the plant healthy until they really start to take off, when the buds start to form that's when to use the fertilizer, to much fertilizer at the start of the growth will impair them and make them sickly. Yates's Dynamic Lifter is a good fertilizer.


Great! They're in a really good quality potting mix and have only been there for a few weeks. Is it still worth giving them a feed with Dynamic Lifter or should there be enough nutrients in the potting mix for a while?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

What I do is keep my plants a bit hungry until you notice them really starting to go, the Seasol every couple of weeks is fine until then, there is no NPK in Seasol or very little and it will help your plants take up the nutrient from the potting mix.


----------



## Nizmoose

wide eyed and legless said:


> I tried that a couple of years ago, but found the quickest way for them to get a strong root system going was to lay the bines down an bury them in another pot, better than just cutting off excess bines and binning them.


So by this you mean literally cut the bine, put a bit of dirt in a new pot chuck in the bine horizontally, then cover with dirt? How long would you let a bine get before cutting it with the aim of giving it new life in a new pot?


----------



## Spohaw

Nizmoose said:


> So by this you mean literally cut the bine, put a bit of dirt in a new pot chuck in the bine horizontally, then cover with dirt? How long would you let a bine get before cutting it with the aim of giving it new life in a new pot?


He wouldn't cut it off the main rhizome but just bury a bit of the bine in the dirt and roots should grow where it's been buried then once it's established a decent amount of new roots where it's been buried you cut it off the main plant 

Was thinking you would just wait until it's finished flowering then cut the bine back to a few sets of leaves and then cut It off the main rhizome 

Or just do it to a lateral so it isn't to big for the new root system to handle

I was thinking of doing a few different bags with coir up a bine every few sets of leaves and when it's finished flowering I can cut underneath each set of new roots and have a few new plants per bine 

All theory ATM but


----------



## wide eyed and legless

If as we see in these posts growers are cutting off the excess bines, instead of cutting them off bend them and either peg them in to the ground where leaves have sprouted, those leaves will then turn into roots, like with spuds, you build up the soil covering the leaves and those leaves will turn into roots which will bear more spuds.
If everybody did this with their bines there would be heaps of rhizomes to be had next year and its easy to do, Spohaw's method of the cuttings is a bit more complicated using hormone powder or rooting gel but that is how the commercial growers multiply their stocks.


----------



## Spohaw

Wide's method sounds the easiest and most fool proof tbh 

Mines all trial and error this year as it's only my second year actually growing hops haha

I've probably got to move before hop harvest time so I figured I'd try focus on propagation this year


----------



## Nizmoose

wide eyed and legless said:


> If as we see in these posts growers are cutting off the excess bines, instead of cutting them off bend them and either peg them in to the ground where leaves have sprouted, those leaves will then turn into roots, like with spuds, you build up the soil covering the leaves and those leaves will turn into roots which will bear more spuds.
> If everybody did this with their bines there would be heaps of rhizomes to be had next year and its easy to do, Spohaw's method of the cuttings is a bit more complicated using hormone powder or rooting gel but that is how the commercial growers multiply their stocks.


Thanks a lot for this, how long would you let the bine get before doing so??


----------



## LiquidGold

I've used this method for propagating other plants and I just wait until it's obvious that the plant has established itself and has lots of new leaves. At that point I usually cut it from the main plant but leave it in the same pot for a little while longer to make sure it's going good by itself then pot up when I have the time.


----------



## 2much2spend

One out of three that's starting


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Nizmoose said:


> Thanks a lot for this, how long would you let the bine get before doing so??


As soon as you can bury part of the stem.


Simple Layering
Most plants with low growing branches or stems, such as vines and woody shrubs, take well to simple layering. Use a dormant branch in early spring or a mature branch in late summer.
Bend a flexible, low-growing branch to the ground and place it in a small hole about 4-inches deep. Remove leaves and side-shoots from the portion of the branch that will be buried and cover it with soil. You may need to place a rock on top of the soil to hold the branch underground. It is important to leave at least 6-12 inches of the branch tip out of the soil and stake it upright to keep it growing straight — this will be the top portion of your new plant!
Usually, the bend in the buried portion of the branch is enough to encourage rooting, but by scraping, or wounding, the bark on its underside, you can help speed rooting along. Keep the layered area moist and free of weeds and within a season or two a root mass will have developed. Cut the layered section from the plant and it’s ready for transplanting.


----------



## Benn

I'm an hour away from returning home to my hops after an 8 day sojourn, hopefully they've grown a bit and even more hopefully my mate has been watering them as promised.


----------



## LiquidGold

I totally misread the question. Very good description of the layering technique.


----------



## leighaus

Looks great.. My second year Chinook (possible a cascade, as it got mixed up) has just taken off. Had a tough start to life last season and got no yield. Seems stronger this time around. Heaps of nodes/shoots which I'll trim once it takes off a little more..

Looking forward to finally getting some cones!







https://www.dropbox.com/s/pgfsfa0l7289not/DSC_0165.JPG?dl=0


----------



## Nizmoose

wide eyed and legless said:


> As soon as you can bury part of the stem.
> 
> Simple Layering
> Most plants with low growing branches or stems, such as vines and woody shrubs, take well to simple layering. Use a dormant branch in early spring or a mature branch in late summer.
> Bend a flexible, low-growing branch to the ground and place it in a small hole about 4-inches deep. Remove leaves and side-shoots from the portion of the branch that will be buried and cover it with soil. You may need to place a rock on top of the soil to hold the branch underground. It is important to leave at least 6-12 inches of the branch tip out of the soil and stake it upright to keep it growing straight — this will be the top portion of your new plant!
> Usually, the bend in the buried portion of the branch is enough to encourage rooting, but by scraping, or wounding, the bark on its underside, you can help speed rooting along. Keep the layered area moist and free of weeds and within a season or two a root mass will have developed. Cut the layered section from the plant and it’s ready for transplanting.


brilliant thanks for this really useful!


----------



## BottloBill

Came back from Bathurst and boom plenty of new bines and growth all round except my Cascade and potted Goldings.


----------



## Spohaw

Little hop from seed is growing slowly ..... Hope it flowers this year so I can see if it's a male it a female .... Hope it a male !!


----------



## botch

Any idea what's going on here dudes?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

I would have a guess at Downy mildew, more possibly you have hit the leaves with water on a sunny day and burnt the leaves slightly.


----------



## AJ80

Mt Hood continues to reach for the sky, putting on around 10cm per day. 

3 small Goldings bines poking through the mulch now. 

Cascade and Chinook finally have one bine each just starting to emerge. 

Progress.


----------



## mondestrunken

Baby Goldings








Tardif de Bourgogne planted last year on the site of an old compost heap. Twine attached to a big-ass Photinia (yeah I knew there was a use for those things).





/

There's also a Cascade in size between these two but the photo angles didn't work out.

Not sure how to make the images smaller any advice would be appreciated.


----------



## osprey brewday

Update pics of the hops rhs cascade lhs goldings


----------



## osprey brewday

I have a question.do u only let 1 shoot run up a string or can u let multiple or do they strangle each other?


----------



## Curly79

You can have a few on the one string mate. Just remember they get pretty bushy and heavy later on in the season. Make sure your strings can handle it.


----------



## mofox1

Finally some progress!

Hop trellises up, and some good growth happening.

Trellis, just shy of 5m each:



Cascade:



And Chinook, the couple of bines continuing out of shot are up around head height.



Oh yeah, there is a super alpha out the front climbing over the roof...


----------



## Curly79

Put the bamboo poles and strings up for the victoria today. Cascade Cluster Chinook and Goldings all got dug up and rearranged last winter so not expecting much from them this year


----------



## mofox1

Curly79 said:


> Put the bamboo poles and strings up for the victoria today. Cascade Cluster Chinook and Goldings all got dug up and rearranged last winter so not expecting much from them this year


Bamboo is bloody great, right?


----------



## Curly79

Sure is. Cheap as chips and strong as


----------



## real_beer

When the seasons over you can use it for doing your house renovations.


----------



## LiquidGold

+1 for bamboo

I got some strings up today which I doubled using the drill trick, bloody annoying to work with though because anytime its not tight it coils on itself.


----------



## soniusly

Hi,
I have been thinking it would be great to try plant my own hops!
does anybody have any spare rhizomes or do you know where to get them from?

Thanks!


----------



## Curly79

Where are you soniusly?


----------



## nathan_madness

soniusly said:


> Hi,
> I have been thinking it would be great to try plant my own hops!
> does anybody have any spare rhizomes or do you know where to get them from?
> 
> Thanks!


I've got some Goldings and Saaz rhizomes for sale. Will post. Check out my ad on the Buy and Sell forum.

http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/88408-saaz-and-goldings-rhizomes-for-sale-post-or-pick-up/

Cheers


----------



## NikZak

Well, I have to thank Steve (user DU99) for the 3 year old Victoria he gave me last night on my way home from Mildura...

It's currently sitting on top of my trampoline because it's the only place in the sun that I can keep it away from the 3,000-odd rabbits that occupy my property until I can get my hands on some chicken wire.

Project for tonight or tomorrow night is to build some strings and get this girl climbing, I'll post a couple of pictures of her when I get home from work


----------



## nathan_madness

Upgrade complete!!!!





As a HSE adviser I do not condone these activities.


----------



## mofox1

Some little bugger has been eating the stems on my cascades! Anyone know what would cause this?

There was also one spot where it looked like an incision had been made across the bine, and a drop of sap was coming out.


----------



## Pogierob

nathan_madness said:


> Upgrade complete!!!!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> As a HSE adviser I do not condone these activities.


looks like you have your Aussie work boots on too?


----------



## Spohaw

nathan_madness said:


> Upgrade complete!!!!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> As a HSE adviser I do not condone these activities.


Hahahahahahahaha bloody hell mate

That looks deadly as ....... wouldn't catch me doing anything like that

For the love of hops hey Nathan ?

Great looking trellis though


----------



## goatus

mofox1 said:


> Some little bugger has been eating the stems on my cascades! Anyone know what would cause this?
> 
> There was also one spot where it looked like an incision had been made across the bine, and a drop of sap was coming out.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 1445215381212.jpg
> 
> 
> 
> 1445215393975.jpg


I had slaters chewing on mine when they first emerged. Genocide ensued with some generic slater killing powder from bunnings. Nobody messes with my hops.


----------



## Mardoo

Aussie work boots and the ladder in the bucket. Perfick! Gotta love gettin' it done.


----------



## soniusly

Curly79 said:


> Where are you soniusly?


I am in Wollongong, NSW


----------



## Curly79

As Nathan says he has Saaz and Goldings. You can also try gumtree. The bloke from Bendigo looks like he still has a few left.


----------



## NikZak

NikZak said:


> Well, I have to thank Steve (user DU99) for the 3 year old Victoria he gave me last night on my way home from Mildura...
> 
> It's currently sitting on top of my trampoline because it's the only place in the sun that I can keep it away from the 3,000-odd rabbits that occupy my property until I can get my hands on some chicken wire.
> 
> Project for tonight or tomorrow night is to build some strings and get this girl climbing, I'll post a couple of pictures of her when I get home from work


We'll I'm close to set up. Took a little trial and error (this being my first time stringing hops) but I found a nice structure on my property that faces roughly north to northwest so should get a decent amount of sun and set up a makeshift rabbit proof fence around it to keep the hungry buggers at bay


----------



## Yob

Mate, they'll get a lot of reflected heat off that tin


----------



## NikZak

Damn, I didn't think of that... OK, looks like this weekend I'll be moving them to the other location I had planned which was in front of the kitchen window


----------



## Bridges

Bridges said:


> Finally got around to moving mine today, into a 900 x 900 raised garden arrangement. They should love it after the little pot they were stuck in. I hope it's not too late as they were just about to poke through the mulch when I turned it over. Time will tell. 2nd year cascade got all of about 45gram dry last year so I'm keen for a bigger return this year.


Seem to be going OK so set up some ropes to a tree with some bungy cord up top to allow some give. Looking forward to seeing how it all goes.


----------



## MartinOC

Bridges said:


> Seem to be going OK so set up some ropes to a tree with some bungy cord up top to allow some give. Looking forward to seeing how it all goes.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> hops.jpg


OK, Bridges, 'fess-up....How the hell did you get the bungee cord & stuff so far up the tree???


----------



## Rocker1986

Would there be any varieties that would grow alright in Brisbane? Probably too late to bother planting anything this year and I don't have anything to plant... but if there are any that would do well up here I wouldn't mind having a crack next year maybe. I have plenty of mesh type shit that could be used for them to climb up.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

I bet once they hit that branch where you have tied the cord they will just keep on going, unless you take the growing tip out.


----------



## Bridges

MartinOC said:


> OK, Bridges, 'fess-up....How the hell did you get the bungee cord & stuff so far up the tree???


Knotted a tennis ball into a lighter rope. Chucked it over the branch then dragged up the bungee and ropes I'd pre fabbed on the ground. Simple.





It took me all afternoon and some swearing...


----------



## goatus

Yob said:


> Mate, they'll get a lot of reflected heat off that tin





NikZak said:


> Damn, I didn't think of that...


Me neither. I have a heap up against my tin shed (was hoping it would grow over it) - will see how it goes, otherwise, moving them next year =)


----------



## BottloBill

goatus said:


> Me neither. I have a heap up against my tin shed (was hoping it would grow over it) - will see how it goes, otherwise, moving them next year =)


 didn't affect my fast growing varieties last year because they grew so fast and shaded the fence before the hotter temps kicked in


----------



## NikZak

BottloBill said:


> didn't affect my fast growing varieties last year because they grew so fast and shaded the fence before the hotter temps kicked in


So should I move it or leave it? Leaving it appeals to the lazy in me but moving it appeals to the green thumb in me


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Had to replace 1 Cascade crown with a 2 year old Cascade, and, 1 Chinook rhizome and 2 Victoria rhizomes that did not survive transplant. The Cascade crown was still alive but had no nodes...not sure if it will grow nodes again or not but stuck it in a pot for the time being. Started cleaning up the field so I can slash, weed and mulch. Irrigation is in place and water capturing roof/shed and water tank are in place just in time for this rain. I pumped water up from the dam in the meantime. I'll start cladding the shed on the weekend. Need to start working on the work platform for harvest and to add the aisle wires for next year, sort out the drying room, and turn the cool room into a freezer. It won't be a bumper crop this year, but may have a harvest party and give fresh hops to those who want to come up and help harvest.


----------



## Curly79

How you gunna harvest them BB?


----------



## kunfaced

The training lines for my PORs





Where the lines end, on the electrical mains. If there is a short then at least the hops are earthed 




One of my POR (thanks to princeimperial) training up the twine.






Cascade I'm going to grow onto trellis, and then rope it to the house somehow. I've got two more of these around the garden, all first years broken apart from the mother crown I ripped when I moved house. The area where this is planted has lots of other stuff around it, but I had to prep the shit out of soil. Was only maybe a foot before I hit solid clay, and then it was full of all of this crap too..





My mother in law was wondering why her lavender wouldn't grow in this area. There were a few dozen paving tiles under there too, but they get some use.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Curly79 said:


> How you gunna harvest them BB?


Probably drop them and hand pick. A few varieties, so it may happen over several days. I have a few months to work it out. Have a bit for a fresh harvest ale and dry the rest, vacuum seal and freeze.


----------



## BottloBill

NikZak said:


> So should I move it or leave it? Leaving it appeals to the lazy in me but moving it appeals to the green thumb in me


 I don't have mine growing towards my fence, but they are about a foot and a half away from it and don't cop the sun all day either.


----------



## BottloBill

Chinook going ballistic and throwing up plenty of laterals.


----------



## BottloBill

BottloBill said:


> Chinook going ballistic and throwing up plenty of laterals.


 6 metres just isn't going to cut it this season and it's only starting:huh:


----------



## Weizguy

Bill, maybe your hops will reach max height and flower early, although I find Chinook to finish later in the season. Say, March harvest. They gonna get mighty tall, bro...

My Chinook is only recently popping out of the ground, possibly due to low watering up until now and over Winter. Pics to come...


----------



## BottloBill

Les the Weizguy said:


> Bill, maybe your hops will reach max height and flower early, although I find Chinook to finish later in the season. Say, March harvest. They gonna get mighty tall, bro...
> 
> My Chinook is only recently popping out of the ground, possibly due to low watering up until now and over Winter. Pics to come...


They where quite strong last season and last up out of the ground, they where also the last up this season with the exception of my Hersbrucker. I have an extension for the trellis but won't be able to get it up before they hits the top.


----------



## sponge

Out of curiosity, should I expect much of a harvest from hops which only get ~6hrs (morning) sunlight a day? Being on the eastern side of the house, they don't see any sun past midday unfortunately.


----------



## BottloBill

sponge said:


> Out of curiosity, should I expect much of a harvest from hops which only get ~6hrs (morning) sunlight a day? Being on the eastern side of the house, they don't see any sun past midday unfortunately.


sponge these are my last season/ first season plants on approximately 6 hours a day and harvested several kilo over a 1 month period.


----------



## MartinOC

Holy ****!

What have I let myself in-for?? I'm just a hop-growing virgin...

I've got several varieties growing (at different rates) atm & it looks like they're going to take over the space I have...Erk!!!


----------



## BottloBill

MartinOC said:


> Holy ****!
> 
> What have I let myself in-for?? I'm just a hop-growing virgin...
> 
> I've got several varieties growing (at different rates) atm & it looks like they're going to take over the space I have...Erk!!!


haha! Took me 6 months to realise I still had a garden shed and a house next door


----------



## Matplat

So this is just a curiosity question here, the 6 rhizomes that I got from Hoppy2b have all sprouted a couple of bines, which seem to appear wherever they want around the surface of the pot.

The cascade rhizome that I got from diggers club arrived with 1 bine already poking it's head out and I just noticed yesterday that it looks like there are a load more bines about to shoot from the same place. Does this mean I got lucky and was sent a crown from the diggers club? or is it to do with the orientation when planting?

Cheers, Matt


----------



## Yob

All depends on how advanced the zome was.

Digger's done you good


----------



## Matplat

Yeah it's definitely the strongest plant, all the others have had one or two bines wither and die, but the cascade has always looked nice and dark green and healthy.... I guess I should post a photo really!


----------



## goatus

Matplat said:


> The cascade rhizome that I got from diggers club arrived with 1 bine already poking it's head out and I just noticed yesterday that it looks like there are a load more bines about to shoot from the same place. Does this mean I got lucky and was sent a crown from the diggers club? or is it to do with the orientation when planting?


One of my cascades from diggers is also throwing multiple bines. I never looked at the zome cos i just popped the existing soil out of the tube and whacked it in the ground, but they must be quite generous with them.


----------



## AJ80

Got home from work today to discover a bird has dug up my chinook rhizome entirely. The one bine it had sprouted is now looking quite limp after an afternoon in the sun. Have dug it back in, given it a solid water and crossed all my fingers. This was the variety I was looking forward to the most. Grr.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

AJ80 said:


> Got home from work today to discover a bird has dug up my chinook rhizome entirely. The one bine it had sprouted is now looking quite limp after an afternoon in the sun. Have dug it back in, given it a solid water and crossed all my fingers. This was the variety I was looking forward to the most. Grr.


I have a spare Chinook rhizome in pot ready to plant if you can pick up from Belgrave, VIC if you want it.


----------



## Weizguy

Surprised that my (unintentional) grass beds actually have hops visible among and above the weeds,... and much taller than the beds from which I have cultivated and removed grasses. Photos soon - promise!


----------



## Cass22

Good to see so many plants starting to take off.

I have an EKG and a Cascade that are a first year and taking off both with about 6-7 shoots and looking really healthy. Ive read that some ppl prune and leave only 3-4 to climb, being first year rhizomes what are your thoughts on this?


----------



## Spohaw

What part of aus are you in bottleo ? 

That chinook looks great , be happy to get a few like that this year 

Was that one in a pot or in the ground ?


----------



## BottloBill

Spohaw said:


> What part of aus are you in bottleo ?
> 
> That chinook looks great , be happy to get a few like that this year
> 
> Was that one in a pot or in the ground ?


 In the ground mate


----------



## Yob

AJ80 said:


> Got home from work today to discover a bird has dug up my chinook rhizome entirely. The one bine it had sprouted is now looking quite limp after an afternoon in the sun. Have dug it back in, given it a solid water and crossed all my fingers. This was the variety I was looking forward to the most. Grr.


come round and grab part of mine if you like, it's escaping out of the garden bed.. fookin thing is everywhere h34r:


----------



## AJ80

Belgrave Brewer & Yob: cheers for the very generous offer, really appreciate it. Unfortunately, time commitments and geography will mean I'm probably not going to able to get to either of your places in the coming days. Thanks though! At the risk of sounding sappy, this really is a great community of fellow Brewers. 

In happier news, the one tiny chinook bine is looking a little more perky today, but I'm not confident it'll hold out...at least the other 3 varieties are doing well. In a surprise coincidence, it looks like a cat has ripped apart a starling or mynah bird in the backyard today. Karma wins.


----------



## drsmurto

MartinOC said:


> Holy ****!
> 
> What have I let myself in-for?? I'm just a hop-growing virgin...
> 
> I've got several varieties growing (at different rates) atm & it looks like they're going to take over the space I have...Erk!!!



They will take over your garden mate. This was from a few seasons ago and they only get more weed like each year. Currently the first bines are just reaching the top of the trellis (3m in height) and I've only just switched on the irrigation system for the first time this season. Always amazes me how much growth you get each year.


----------



## MartinOC

Now I'm getting just plain scared!!! :blink:


----------



## leighaus

i lost two tips off my bines (of about 6)... maybe a bird?

Overall, the plant isn't shooting up real quick anymore. Sort of looks like its stunted a bit after a promising start. I'll keep the watering up and chuck a bit more coffee grind on there (they loved that).


----------



## Nizmoose

DrSmurto said:


> They will take over your garden mate. This was from a few seasons ago and they only get more weed like each year. Currently the first bines are just reaching the top of the trellis (3m in height) and I've only just switched on the irrigation system for the first time this season. Always amazes me how much growth you get each year.


How many tonnes of dried weight do you get each year Smurto?! :lol:


----------



## Rocker1986

Well this is my "plantation" at the moment :lol:. I only got rhizomes yesterday and stuck them straight into a pot each, Hallertau on left, Fuggle on right. The mesh is there to stop turkeys digging them up. Will move them/set up something for them to climb on when they start showing growth.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

It's all happening now. Some crowns are already above 4 meters, and some rhizomes above 2 meters.


----------



## Sixdemonbag

All hops up and running this year (2nd year). Perle the leader of the pack, then the cascades. Also have a P.O.R, and some chinook. Even if i get a similar yield to last year i'll be stoked. Couldn't believe the 1st year crop these gave me.


----------



## drsmurto

MartinOC said:


> Now I'm getting just plain scared!!! :blink:


Think 'Day of the Triffids'. Start building your bunker now.



Nizmoose said:


> How many tonnes of dried weight do you get each year Smurto?! :lol:


Too much. The last time i kept a record was the 2014 crop which was a tad over 2kg dry. This season I let fellow homebrewers take all they could pick.

Here are the hops as of today.

Victoria - already at the top of the 3m trellis.




Chinook, always gives Victoria a head start but will overtake it before beginning world domination.




Chinook from the reverse angle. I have rhizomes planted on both sides of the fence.




No pruning, tipping, cutting back of bines. No fertilising during the growing season, although they do get covered in 10-15cm of horse manure in winter. They do what they want and reward my lack of care with more hops than i can use. I do water them though, they are on the vegie patch irrigation system so as often as i water the tomatoes, the hops get a drink. The first plant went in 8 years ago so well established now.


----------



## Weizguy

That seems a lot different to my garden, where the bines are all under about 40 cm and some are still just poking out of the ground before elongating toward the sky.
Cascade has not done well in this plot in the last 3 seasons



Mt Hood starting to stretch


not much visible in photos for Hallertau and Herbrucker, but here's the Perle in the grassy plot.


----------



## Benn

Mine are tiny I must be doing something wrong.


----------



## NikZak

Well mine is doing ok I think. Victoria reaching for the strings with a couple of new ones tied to an adjoining tree


----------



## Pogierob

Little update pic. From close to far.
Saaz
Columbus
Victoria
Cascade


----------



## BottloBill

Chinook going nuts and now training it horizontally. I also found my Hersbrucker on a turbo trip and had to knock up another trampoline pole trellis


----------



## blotto

BottloBill said:



> Chinook going nuts and now training it horizontally. I also found my Hersbrucker on a turbo trip and had to knock up another trampoline pole trellis


Great idea BottloBill I have some of those poles laying around since the netting on our trampoline decided to disintegrate  My Red Earth is starting to take off now, I'll have to put up a photo next weekend. I've never seen any of my hops take off like that Hersbrucker that's impressive!


----------



## BottloBill

Wort said:


> Great idea BottloBill I have some of those poles laying around since the netting on our trampoline decided to disintegrate  My Red Earth is starting to take off now, I'll have to put up a photo next weekend. I've never seen any of my hops take off like that Hersbrucker that's impressive!


Cheers Wort! The Hersbrucker was the same last season, sat there doing nothing for nearly half the season then exploded in to life. The pic attached is her last season, not a large bine but is excellent yielding.


----------



## Everest

how many bines are you guys keeping per plant? i thought 4 was the go but everyone seems to be keeping all the bines?


----------



## Pogierob

Everest said:


> how many bines are you guys keeping per plant? i thought 4 was the go but everyone seems to be keeping all the bines?


 I've gone for 5 and I have been clipping the new growth and planting it in another pot, had a few of the cuttings take too.


----------



## sponge

I've just powdered the goldings as something seems to have been eating it the last couple of days, but have chinook (around the window), cascade (front door) and goldings (over the fence) growing pretty well at the moment. Goldings are throwing out heaps of laterals but only one bine. All first years.


----------



## blotto

I snipped all but 3 bines on my Red Earth and since I cut it back to 3 it started growing stronger and I've let another bine live that showed some vigour.

I put 12 of the snipped bines in propagation mix in a little mini green house for seedlings after dipping them in purple rooting gel and I think all but 1 or 2 are going strong, I've got little white roots poking out the bottom after 3 - 4 weeks. 

Last season I got a measly 9 grams off the Red Earth I'm hoping for more this season it's looking much better being the second year! I'm a little worried about peoples descriptions of these hops in the hop forum thou, talk of onion smells has me wondering if I'm wasting my time. Hopefully I can add my own comments in there when I get a decent harvest. They smelt pretty good to me last season but I don't have the best nose for smells.


----------



## blotto

Looking good


----------



## SixStar

This is my Victoria hops. A few bines are almost to 4 meters.


----------



## drsmurto

Everest said:


> how many bines are you guys keeping per plant? i thought 4 was the go but everyone seems to be keeping all the bines?


I let them all grow. Cutting early shooting bines seems to be more about commercial single harvest rather than a home garden solution. Happy to harvest in stages, requires less room in the drying racks.


----------



## blotto

DrSmurto said:


> I let them all grow. Cutting early shooting bines seems to be more about commercial single harvest rather than a home garden solution. Happy to harvest in stages, requires less room in the drying racks.


And by the looks of things you know what your doing, those hops are impressive! Maybe I'll take it a bit easier on mine in the future


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Everest said:


> how many bines are you guys keeping per plant? i thought 4 was the go but everyone seems to be keeping all the bines?


I am going for whatever wants to climb. 2nd season Cascades (from diggers) have multiple! vines. 6 to 12, bakers dozen?
These 1st season rysolmes of Chinook and Victoria started of hastily and early in winter that got me excited but now they are stunted at the moment with one vine each. The Cascade is spreading feral!


----------



## Phoney

Mine have come up and going nuts at the moment. (Photos coming soon). Third year in now.

The trouble is, I have 3 Chinook and 2 Cascades planted in a row behind a green house, which is more or less just a caged off vege garden made of cyclone fencing material. Just to keep the birds and the cows out. They grow up the sides and intermingle, so by the time it comes to pickign them I don't know which is which. Never mind. I plucked about 150g last year (dehydrated weight). Brewed with them, intense grapefruit! Obviously the Chinook is the dominant hop.


Question is, how long do the plants live for? As in how many years am I going to keep harvesting? I cant seem to find the answer to that question online...


----------



## Rocker1986

It's a perennial so it can live for however long you want it to I guess... perennial just means a plant that lives for more than two years. So I guess it's open ended really.


----------



## MartinOC

Phoney said:


> Question is, how long do the plants live for? As in how many years am I going to keep harvesting? I cant seem to find the answer to that question online...


Bear in mind that they grow from a rhizome.

Bracken/ferns also grow from rhizomes & some in Europe have been catalogued at over 1000 years old, so they seem to be self-perpetuating.

I don't think you'll have much of a problem as long as they're looked-after....


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Phoney said:


> Question is, how long do the plants live for? As in how many years am I going to keep harvesting? I cant seem to find the answer to that question online...


They will see you out.


----------



## goatus

Hop-mergency! We are under attack!

Caught a tiny green catapillar munching on my hops + little black things on the backs of leaves. Are they both bad guys? Suggestions to make them suffer?


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Dipel. Catapillar killer. Easy to get a yates variety off the shelf. Its only harmfull to catapillars. I have some new hops coming along poorly that look a lot worse than that. Not sure what hit them. I also have some second season Cascade going strong and looking invincible and perfect condition. Its weird this season over all vegies etc. Everything keeps going to flower and seed too early I hope that doesn't happen with the hops too. :unsure:


----------



## goatus

Im more concerned about the little black things - they hold on tight to the leaf, gave the leaves a spray with pest oil (citrus oil i think), and they wouldnt wash off easy.


----------



## Danscraftbeer

You cant fix what's already effected. You can only prevent what ever it is from spreading onto all new growth. Trim off leaves that are really bad, all for the new growth. That's basically how I see it. The black dots I've never had but is it scale? or something, Catapillar shit? Look it up its all out there. Best asset is observation, then asses, Then treat.
I think if it washed off it was probably Caterpillar shit.


----------



## Rocker1986

Danscraftbeer said:


> Best asset is observation, then asses,


Some asses might be considered a best asset. 

Sorry, had to. :lol:


----------



## Charst

Looks like scale, try a white oil


----------



## Pogierob

have you considered it might be Caterpillar poo?


edit..

what dan said


----------



## Nizmoose

goatus said:


> Hop-mergency! We are under attack!
> 
> Caught a tiny green catapillar munching on my hops + little black things on the backs of leaves. Are they both bad guys? Suggestions to make them suffer?


I was going to post similar pictures today! Some of my leaves have been munched and there are those black spots on some leaves, it's like tar, doesn't come off and no idea what it is. I removed a little Web and tiny spider, spider mite? Sprayed the hops with detergent and am praying the hops don't get obliterated


----------



## goatus

I think its catapillar poo. Several articles say you might see it hanging around, and it only appeared on the few leaves that were clearly catapillar munched.

Ill get some catapillar hellfire from the big green shed tomorrow and rain it down on them.

Cheers all.


----------



## Spohaw

28's have chewed the top off my one cascade that was growing well 

I'm going to kill as many as I can now 

Glove gun , ging and poisoned oats

Enough is enough

They did it last year as well

View attachment 84516


Got a blood and bone slurry I'll use to spray onto the growing tips too ......


----------



## Spohaw

Pricks


----------



## Spohaw

Here's one they got a while ago


----------



## Pogierob

Spohaw said:


> 28's have chewed the top off my one cascade that was growing well
> 
> I'm going to kill as many as I can now
> 
> Glove gun , ging and poisoned oats
> 
> Enough is enough
> 
> They did it last year as well
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1446616521.086852.jpg
> 
> Got a blood and bone slurry I'll use to spray onto the growing tips too ......


are you going to put a notch in the pot for each confirmed kill?


----------



## Danscraftbeer

28's? What is that? I lost tip too. What eats the tip?


----------



## Spohaw

Hahha Rob I'll put a notch on my brew spoon maybe 

Ring neck parrots Dan


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Dudes you cant say your gonna kill those cute little animals. Anyway its the same as culling sharks. The maths just doesn't work. Deterrent is the only way, or barriers. So maybe just another 5lt sprayer with stinky manure blood and bone foliar spray. Yes, with some chilli too. I just found that a deterrent for that shitsyou neighbours dog. Spray up into the air and turns that bark into a cough. :lol: Makes me cough a little too though.


----------



## Spohaw

There's millions of them 

Not cute to me ..... Just pretend I said nothing


----------



## BottloBill

Anyone else got burs on their bines?


----------



## goatus

BottloBill said:


> Anyone else got burs on their bines?


Humble-Brag. :lol:

Mine arent anywhere near that stage yet :angry:


----------



## mofox1

I hope you get burrs on your laterals. Burrs on the (main) bine mean a missed opportunity for a lat, and that means less hops! 

*Edit:* (I think)


----------



## Spohaw

That's what I was thinking .... But I didn't know 

Looking at bottleo's bines I dont think he will be missing out on much with a few burrs instead of lats in a few spots


----------



## BottloBill

Not bragging as I feel it's way too early.





Luckily I have a shite load more rhizomes in the early stages too.
The main ones in bur have also got decent size laterals.


----------



## BottloBill

Okay I am bragging a little bit.
My laterals are bigger than some of your main bines boys


----------



## goatus

I am definitely yelling "I Hope you get burrs on your main bine!" out the window at someone next time i am angry in traffic.


----------



## Spohaw

Hahaha


----------



## mofox1

BottloBill said:


> Anyone else got burs on their bines?


They're not on the horizontal trained bit are they?

One of my plants did this last year and I put it down to treating it like sh!te:

I didn't prepare the soil.
I didn't water it enough.
It wasn't in a sunny position (a deciduous tree in front of it somehow grew lots of leaves in spring).
And I trained it near horizontally (despite it's best effort).

It rewarded me with ZERO laterals, and only a couple dozen hop cones along the bines that all matured at different times.


----------



## BottloBill

Whilst on the subject of hops, check out the leaves on my hersbrucker.


----------



## Spohaw

My boss come around last season when the hops were only small 

I had to work hard to convince him they were hops haha


----------



## BottloBill

mofox1 said:


> They're not on the horizontal trained bit are they?
> 
> One of my plants did this last year and I put it down to treating it like sh!te:
> 
> I didn't prepare the soil.
> I didn't water it enough.
> It wasn't in a sunny position (a deciduous tree in front of it somehow grew lots of leaves in spring).
> And I trained it near horizontally (despite it's best effort).
> It rewarded me with ZERO laterals, and only a couple dozen hop cones along the bines that all matured at different times.


 Yeah it's on the horizontal section, yes there is a tree blocking lower growth and no didn't do much soil prep. Did you get much growth out of them compared to what mine are showing?


----------



## drsmurto

mofox1 said:


> They're not on the horizontal trained bit are they?
> 
> One of my plants did this last year and I put it down to treating it like sh!te:
> 
> I didn't prepare the soil.
> I didn't water it enough.
> It wasn't in a sunny position (a deciduous tree in front of it somehow grew lots of leaves in spring).
> And I trained it near horizontally (despite it's best effort).
> It rewarded me with ZERO laterals, and only a couple dozen hop cones along the bines that all matured at different times.


You can train hop bines to grow horizontally and get plenty of flowers. I did this for a few years instead of building a trellis. Trained them up to 4m across a section of the chook yard. Pain in the arse as they had to be trained every day.

I now have a trellis but require the hop bines to find their own way to the trellis resulting in many bines growing along the ground. They still flower which makes picking easy.


----------



## BottloBill

DrSmurto said:


> You can train hop bines to grow horizontally and get plenty of flowers. I did this for a few years instead of building a trellis. Trained them up to 4m across a section of the chook yard. Pain in the arse as they had to be trained every day.
> 
> I now have a trellis but require the hop bines to find their own way to the trellis resulting in many bines growing along the ground. They still flower which makes picking easy.


Drsmurto
Have you experienced anything like what my Chinook are doing at present, Being burs this early in the season?


----------



## BottloBill

BottloBill said:


> Whilst on the subject of hops, check out the leaves on my hersbrucker.


the forking of the middle finger is on every leaf and it didn't show this sort of genetics last season:blink:


----------



## mofox1

BottloBill said:


> Yeah it's on the horizontal section, yes there is a tree blocking lower growth and no didn't do much soil prep. Did you get much growth out of them compared to what mine are showing?


Nah, not much growth at all. The actual bines would have been around 5 to 6m, grown to a vertical height of around 2m, but the lack of laterals just made it look thin.


----------



## drsmurto

BottloBill said:


> Drsmurto
> Have you experienced anything like what my Chinook are doing at present, Being burs this early in the season?


My Victoria has burrs on it. I don't keep a track of when flowering occurs so can't say whether that's normal.


----------



## Bruer

BottloBill said:


> Anyone else got burs on their bines?


Yep mine are starting to form on the POR. Interestingly, they're only coming off the bine above about 5'.


----------



## Rocker1986

I've got my pots set up how I want them now, and got shoots growing in both pots now as well. I was directed to a good article on growing them in pots earlier this morning so I'm confident it will work; in any case it will be a fun little experiment and if I get enough even only for one batch I'll be happy.

Very early stages of growth on the Fuggles, the Hallertau is just poking through the soil now; it also has 3 shoots on it but I didn't take a pic of it.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

A bit of activity this week with all the rain. A couple of sunny days coming up so I'm expecting a burst in growth.


----------



## Sixdemonbag

Second year in a row...putting a squish on hop growth being limited by pots

Plus my defender of the Hops...Mr Mantis


----------



## BottloBill

Sixdemonbag said:


> Second year in a row...putting a squish on hop growth being limited by pots
> 
> Plus my defender of the Hops...Mr Mantis


I take it you will be going bigger pots next season Sixdemonbag! Got to be some decent growth forming below the surface especially after such a healthy season last year and what looks to be a decent bit of growth this year


----------



## Rocker1986

Getting some growth on both now. My "plantation" is very much in its infancy :lol: but nice to see them doing something. We've had a fair amount of rain over the weekend up here too which is good since I wasn't here to water them. They're probably around 3-4cm at the moment so babies but yeah.

Top: Fuggle; bottom: Hallertau


----------



## Nizmoose

Hi guys this is my first year of growing a big bine and therefore I'm new and in the dark about what I'm doing, what is this bine coming off the other one in the first attached photo? Is that what people are referring to as a lateral bine? What do I do with it? Leave it alone? Give it a string? Also my hallertau is getting munched hard (second pic)! Green caterpillars, found two so far and killed them with hatred in my eyes. Best treatment?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

I would be leaving that bine alone, as for the caterpillars just do what you did with the first two, check each morning for any more.


----------



## AJ80

So my goldings has produced what can only be described as a Franken-bine. What started as one bine has now split into four separate bines. While each is on the thin side, all four look quite healthy. I'm not concerned, but curious to know whether others have experienced this before. 

Chinook was dug up again by the stupid birds and I'm really not hopeful of anything given the rhizome spent a good 24 hours out of the soil before I discovered the carnage. I've now put netting over each hop plant which seems to be doing the trick on keeping the pesky birds away.


----------



## Cass22

So my first 2 first years are doing really well. But the second 2 have done nothing for ages because of an attack of some caterpillars. They are starting to show some new growth (light green up top) now after some organic spray that doesn't kill the bugs but stops them from eating the plants.

Lots of shoots at the bottom of the 2 big ones, think ill just string the long ones and leave the rest, if i have enough room that is. Not sure where ill send them once they hit the roof......


----------



## mfeighan

DrSmurto said:


> Think 'Day of the Triffids'. Start building your bunker now.
> 
> 
> Too much. The last time i kept a record was the 2014 crop which was a tad over 2kg dry. This season I let fellow homebrewers take all they could pick.
> 
> Here are the hops as of today.
> 
> Victoria - already at the top of the 3m trellis.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Chinook, always gives Victoria a head start but will overtake it before beginning world domination.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Chinook from the reverse angle. I have rhizomes planted on both sides of the fence.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> No pruning, tipping, cutting back of bines. No fertilising during the growing season, although they do get covered in 10-15cm of horse manure in winter. They do what they want and reward my lack of care with more hops than i can use. I do water them though, they are on the vegie patch irrigation system so as often as i water the tomatoes, the hops get a drink. The first plant went in 8 years ago so well established now.


Love your chicken in the photo there. I think i learnt from my mistake this year to keep the girls away from my hops as they are shooting. Quite a few sprouts lost their heads early on!
BTW how good are chickens at eating spent grain!


----------



## BottloBill

Update date on my late rising Hersbrucker.
Must say very happy for the second year in a row☺ first pic from the 2/11/15 and second pic from today.


----------



## jburke

ADVICE PLEASE!
I'm moving house in a few weeks and i really don't want to leave my babies behind as i only got them this season and I'm a little fond of them now. 
Any tips on how i could transplant them? Cut them down to a few leaves and just move and hope for the best? 
Cheers.


----------



## NikZak

BottloBill said:


> Update date on my late rising Hersbrucker.
> Must say very happy for the second year in a row☺ first pic from the 2/11/15 and second pic from today.


WOW how are your bines so thick? About 4 of mine are like that and the rest are at least half that thick. Should I be worried about the thinner ones or will they thicken as they develop (bearing in mind some are close to 6 foot long now)

I'll post some photos tonight


----------



## barls

mine


----------



## Matplat

jburke said:


> ADVICE PLEASE!
> I'm moving house in a few weeks and i really don't want to leave my babies behind as i only got them this season and I'm a little fond of them now.
> Any tips on how i could transplant them? Cut them down to a few leaves and just move and hope for the best?
> Cheers.


i am going to be moving in 6 weeks time also.... im hoping i can just coil up each bine on top of its pot and transport like that then unravel when they're unloaded....


----------



## Bruer

Matplat said:


> i am going to be moving in 6 weeks time also.... im hoping i can just coil up each bine on top of its pot and transport like that then unravel when they're unloaded....


I just moved recently and that's pretty much what I did. Took the pole out and coiled up each bine. Mine are in pots too. They're going pretty well now, although i think one tip got a bit damaged and withered off. The others have grown plenty though.

I'd think that if they're in the ground they might take a bit of a knock, but I'd say get big pots and try to get as much of the root ball as possible in one go and see how they fare. I'd pick a cooler day if you can and then keep them out of the direct heat for a few weeks until they recover.


----------



## NikZak

Victoria going strong. Looking forward to seeing what comes of this old lady


----------



## jburke

Bruer said:


> I just moved recently and that's pretty much what I did. Took the pole out and coiled up each bine. Mine are in pots too. They're going pretty well now, although i think one tip got a bit damaged and withered off. The others have grown plenty though.
> 
> I'd think that if they're in the ground they might take a bit of a knock, but I'd say get big pots and try to get as much of the root ball as possible in one go and see how they fare. I'd pick a cooler day if you can and then keep them out of the direct heat for a few weeks until they recover.


Unfortunately mine are in the ground as i didn't know we were going to be moving when i got them. Hopefully they go alright with a move. Do you think i should try transplant them into pots now or just do it when i move, then i may as well leave them in pots for the season yeah?


----------



## Drew

I'm also looking at moving. Not sure what to do as mine are in the ground too.

I took one cutting the other week, cutting off the tip of the bine along with 2 sets of leaves. I put it in a jar of water and within a week it had sprouted new roots. I should be able to plant it in a small pot. I was considering doing this to several bines.

Then I could still try to dig up the rhizome, and it might survive a transplant. If not then I'll have the little baby cuttings to start again with.


----------



## Kumamoto_Ken

jburke said:


> Unfortunately mine are in the ground as i didn't know we were going to be moving when i got them. Hopefully they go alright with a move. Do you think i should try transplant them into pots now or just do it when i move, then i may as well leave them in pots for the season yeah?





Drew said:


> I'm also looking at moving. Not sure what to do as mine are in the ground too.
> 
> I took one cutting the other week, cutting off the tip of the bine along with 2 sets of leaves. I put it in a jar of water and within a week it had sprouted new roots. I should be able to plant it in a small pot. I was considering doing this to several bines.
> 
> Then I could still try to dig up the rhizome, and it might survive a transplant. If not then I'll have the little baby cuttings to start again with.


How long have they been in the ground? Earlier this year I dug up one that had been in the ground for 4-5 years and the main tap root was about a metre long, maybe a bit longer. Something to keep in mind.


----------



## jburke

Drew said:


> I'm also looking at moving. Not sure what to do as mine are in the ground too.
> 
> I took one cutting the other week, cutting off the tip of the bine along with 2 sets of leaves. I put it in a jar of water and within a week it had sprouted new roots. I should be able to plant it in a small pot. I was considering doing this to several bines.
> 
> Then I could still try to dig up the rhizome, and it might survive a transplant. If not then I'll have the little baby cuttings to start again with.


Now that's an idea. Didn't know they were that easy to propagate from cuttings.


----------



## jburke

Kumamoto_Ken said:


> How long have they been in the ground? Earlier this year I dug up one that had been in the ground for 4-5 years and the main tap root was about a metre long, maybe a bit longer. Something to keep in mind.


They have only been in the ground since late winter but they have grown a heap already. I know this year week be a write off but hopefully i can just keep them alive atleast


----------



## Mardoo

The idea of putting them into pots now sounds like a good idea. I've moved very mature ones I started in pots and just did the wrap the bines around thing. But no experience moving from ground to ground.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

You could always ask if you could pop back in winter so you can dig them up while they are dormant.


----------



## jburke

Mardoo said:


> The idea of putting them into pots now sounds like a good idea. I've moved very mature ones I started in pots and just did the wrap the bines around thing. But no experience moving from ground to ground.


Some of mine are already 3-4m high though and pretty well wrapped around the string. 
So you reckon move them into pots soon and leave them there until next season?


----------



## jburke

wide eyed and legless said:


> You could always ask if you could pop back in winter so you can dig them up while they are dormant.


Hadn't even thought about that though i would think that by the time winter comes the whole house might have been taken over by hop bines.


----------



## MartinOC

jburke said:


> Hadn't even thought about that though i would think that by the time winter comes the whole house might have been taken over by hop bines.


How about you offer the new occupant some of your finest made from the hops they've allowed to grow during summer & shade the house (reduced cooling bills etc..etc...) & then you come back in winter & take the 'zomes out (make sure you get every last skerrick of zome, or else..........)?


----------



## Spohaw

Seems like the time of year to be moving house 

I've got to move sooner than I'd planned but luckily I dug them out of the ground and put them into pots before the growing season 

Now they are coiled up in the pots waiting to be moved 

Don't think I'd trust people moving in to look after them 

Don't think I'll be getting any cones off the girls this year , I have decided just to try and work on cuttings ...... First lot died haha at least I've worked out one way that doesn't work 

I'd pot them up ASAP if I were you Burkey 

Good luck with the move


----------



## jburke

Spohaw said:


> Seems like the time of year to be moving house
> 
> I've got to move sooner than I'd planned but luckily I dug them out of the ground and put them into pots before the growing season
> 
> Now they are coiled up in the pots waiting to be moved
> 
> Don't think I'd trust people moving in to look after them
> 
> Don't think I'll be getting any cones off the girls this year , I have decided just to try and work on cuttings ...... First lot died haha at least I've worked out one way that doesn't work
> 
> I'd pot them up ASAP if I were you Burkey
> 
> Good luck with the move


Yeah i was thinking I'll do it soon. Just waiting for the weather to cool a little.


----------



## Yob

I had to beat my chinook with a stick the other day to stop it from escaping into nearby trees. ~4m

(redirected rather than 'beaten')


----------



## peterl1981

Out of control 6 meters high... melboure 1st year rhomes put in the ground in october


----------



## Curly79

lynchman said:


> Out of control 6 meters high... melboure 1st year rhomes put in the ground in october


They are flying for first years!


----------



## mofox1

Damn fine trellis you got there Lynchdude.


----------



## goid

Finally getting a break from rain and my hops are growing strong.


----------



## BottloBill

Came home today to my hersbrucker showing burs which where not showing this morning and laterals about 6 inches longer.


----------



## BottloBill

Chinook cones now forming too after showing burs quite early on.


----------



## Straya

Massive noob question here but once they reach full height do they stop growing upwards and just start putting out laterals?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

While they have something to cling onto they will just keep going.


----------



## eresh666

Guys,

2nd season hops now starting to go crazy however is this mildew? Anyone recommend something from bunnings/mitre10 I can buy to fix this as its starting to effect the growth of the overall plant.

I'm sure something is taking the occasional chomp out of the leaves however never seen any slugs/snails/caterpillar/mites on them.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Snails slugs and caterpillars usually work from the outside in, have you looked under the leaves, how many leaves are affected, is it just the lower leaves?


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

eresh666 said:


> Guys,
> 
> 2nd season hops now starting to go crazy however is this mildew? Anyone recommend something from bunnings/mitre10 I can buy to fix this as its starting to effect the growth of the overall plant.
> 
> I'm sure something is taking the occasional chomp out of the leaves however never seen any slugs/snails/caterpillar/mites on them.


Quite a few of mine are looking similar. I've seen slugs and small green catepillars around. They're getting eaten but not enough to kill the plant as the top part of the bine above 1 meter seems to be fine. You should be ok unless they're getting to the top of your hops.


----------



## timryan

On the left is my second year chinook and one the right is my second year cascade... Happy with this years growth hoping for at least a big late hop addition of both into a few hoppy ales...


----------



## Benn

My Vic & Chinook have finally started die less and grow more, thinking of relocating their pots to a better location after drinking beer and watching shadow vs sunlight move around the yard all arvo.


----------



## BottloBill

Damn this hersbrucker is insane!


----------



## Judanero

BottloBill said:


> Damn this hersbrucker is insane!


 :lol: I warned you! I'll try and get a pick of the Hers remnant that has shot up in the garden.. Must really like the Newcastle climate.


----------



## BottloBill

Judanero said:


> :lol: I warned you! I'll try and get a pick of the Hers remnant that has shot up in the garden.. Must really like the Newcastle climate.


she has such a different growth structure than last season mate. I just can't get over the pace of the laterals growing day by day.


----------



## Weizguy

Judanero said:


> :lol: I warned you! I'll try and get a pick of the Hers remnant that has shot up in the garden.. Must really like the Newcastle climate.


But what are the hops like?
I have a Hersbrucker growing for the last few years and it's always been stunted with no hops at all.
Are they floral, spicy, or otherwise?


----------



## BottloBill

Les the Weizguy said:


> But what are the hops like?
> I have a Hersbrucker growing for the last few years and it's always been stunted with no hops at all.
> Are they floral, spicy, or otherwise?


I harvested about a kilo dry from last season and that was a first year. I have found it to be very aromatic (floral) and characterised by fruit and spice. The cones grow loose pack but extremely resinous.


----------



## Weizguy

Hmmm. Now if can get mine to grow this year. Re-erecting the trellis today.


----------



## sponge

Starting to train the hops along the horizontal runs now (cascade and chinook) with goldings still throwing out plenty of laterals from the single bine along the fence.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Going to be interesting sponge when they get to the other side of the porch, getting them to start going down.


----------



## sponge

Yeah I'm pretty interested to see how difficult it will be. I'm thinking I'll have to let them grow reasonably long on their own when they reach the horizontal end and then wind them down from there, then just repeat once a week or so, letting them get long again and wind them down. Time will tell how difficult it will be, but I'm somewhat optimistic.


----------



## Curly79

BottloBill said:


> Damn this hersbrucker is insane!


More like limbs than bines on that thing bottlo! That thing is thriving. Nice work.


----------



## BottloBill

Curly79 said:


> More like limbs than bines on that thing bottlo! That thing is thriving. Nice work.


Cheers curly, I decided to measure the longest outreaching lateral and measured just shy of 1500. I am pretty fond of this variety due to its high yield, sweet aroma and sticky sticky resin, all that pending how well she sums up this season but I am very confident she will produce the goods again.


----------



## eresh666

eresh666 said:


> Guys,
> 
> 2nd season hops now starting to go crazy however is this mildew? Anyone recommend something from bunnings/mitre10 I can buy to fix this as its starting to effect the growth of the overall plant.
> 
> I'm sure something is taking the occasional chomp out of the leaves however never seen any slugs/snails/caterpillar/mites on them.



I think I found the problem, very hard to see caterpillars. (bought some already made up eco-oil, if that doesnt work perhaps something stronger will have to do).


----------



## Danscraftbeer

B) Something a little different. This is a scrawny cutting from my Cascade just buried in the gravel of an Aquaponics bed. Any cutting of anything I have placed into the gravel propagates. Something to say for organic eco systems. It was limp for a day or two then dormant for another 4 days now grown 2 inches all after umm,,8 or 9 days maybe from planting it. I did this experiment late last season as well and the leaves eventually fell off so I pulled the stems out only to find a whole bunch of new root system. These hops are pretty awesome.




The Cascades at the moment. Not a good pic. There is 3 IBC whicking beds, a bunch in the backround you cant see. The silver sheet on the south fence to barrier an invasive monster Ivy and to reflect light back and deter Aphids in a scrawny backyard. The hops actually serve a double perpose. They will canopy over the bird netting to shade the grow beds over the hottest of summer for a nicer environment for the vegies and stuff. Compact gardening. B)


----------



## Yob

I pulled a little chinook zome that was growing out of place and threw in the planter at the end of the shed, gunna _'allow'_ it to take over and shade the brewery in the next couple of years..

should look pretty good and keep more light away from the tank water drums.


----------



## Benn

I've got a house inspection Thursday, as soon as that's done I'll be screwing timber to the house to optimize hop climbage.


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Benn said:


> I've got a house inspection Thursday, as soon as that's done I'll be screwing timber to the house to optimize hop climbage.


Just strings will do. Self tapping eyehooks etc. All can be easily removed when the season is finished with little to no trace it even happened.


----------



## NikZak

2 weeks ago I took 5 cuttings from my Victoria hop plant and stick them in a glass of water on the windowsill. Four of them have started making rootlets and one was limp so the fifth was tossed and these are going to stay in the water. 

Just want to know at what length roots should I put them into pots?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

http://piedmonthops.com/how-to/root-your-own-cuttings


----------



## NikZak

Awesome. Cheers mate. But I've done it differently. I've just taken cuttings of shoots and put them in water. Just wondering when I should transfer them to soil


----------



## wide eyed and legless

As in those pics in the link, he moved his into a bigger container to allow the roots to grow some more, if you have some 3 inch pots lying around put the into those until it grows more roots the stick them in the ground, use a decent potting mix though, or some rotted down compost if you have any.


----------



## Everest

NikZak said:


> 2 weeks ago I took 5 cuttings from my Victoria hop plant and stick them in a glass of water on the windowsill. Four of them have started making rootlets and one was limp so the fifth was tossed and these are going to stay in the water.
> 
> Just want to know at what length roots should I put them into pots?


i found this is one of the only ways for me to grow my own hops, im not the best at cuttings and propagation etc...
but you just stick these in water and wait... i left mine in for 2-3 weeks at least behind a window inside the house.. so it gets (less harsher) sun and cooler temps than outside (perth summer)

after that i planted them gently into soil with some support for them to grow and a week later they have doubled in size and still going strong.. finally a win
these were the roots when i planted them




and heres my little setup... hops at home in the stein glass... some twine to hold them up.. alfoil to reflect some light and heat...


----------



## GNU

First time growing hops and my cascade is coming along alright


----------



## Sixdemonbag

Just checked the hops growing at my in-laws property. Heatwaves have sparked a serious growth spurt. Well of the ones I have in pots, at home.


----------



## Bruer

My POR have already developed cones. No side shoots yet just a bunch of bines. Should I snip the tip sort of speak?


----------



## LiquidGold

Goldings in the front, Cascade to the back. Some of the bines on the Cascade are heaps thick and its grown so quick it caught up to the Goldings that had a big head start.

Recently added the cheap plastic edging and some mulch. Plan was to take a rhizome cutting from the Cascade next winter but seeing all the success people are having with cuttings I might do a couple myself in the aquaponics.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Growth all over the place for these first year rhizomes, from just reaching the bottom of the coir rope, to up and over the top wire. Still, I'm pretty happy so far.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

If one gets too many hops what does one do with the excess, I had thought of making the oil but Knowing how much oil to use would be a problem.


----------



## NikZak

wide eyed and legless said:


> If one gets too many hops what does one do with the excess, I had thought of making the oil but Knowing how much oil to use would be a problem.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> IMG_0163.jpg


I reckon too many hops would never really be a problem. At worst I'm sure you could give away/sell any excess or make some super hoppy beers


----------



## Matplat

So, at the beginning, everyone said that for first year plants you should keep all the bines rather than selecing the best 2-3.... however it is getting harder and harder to keep them all cos there are so bloody many! Seriously there are multiple bines from multiple locations in each pot... if i had more space i would run at least two lines from each one. Should i start cutting off the excess bines? It seems wrong, but the lines are getting crowded already...

Dr Smurtos comment about them being like weeds is becoming abuntantly clear!


----------



## kunfaced

wide eyed and legless said:


> If one gets too many hops what does one do with the excess, I had thought of making the oil but Knowing how much oil to use would be a problem.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> IMG_0163.jpg


Have you thought of making soaps? What type of oil and how where you thinking of doing it? Do you use any liquid fertilisers on your hop plants? Everyone has been warning me off adding extra phosphorus to the ground, I was thinking of using a little bit of slow release pellets when I dress mine in the next week or so, good or bad idea? Sorry for the questions but your plants gave me a boner.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Depends on how far your hops have grown, if they have taken off Power feed or Dynamic lifter just remember the latter is a slow release fertiliser so not to often with the feed.
The oil can be extracted using alcohol but it could end up an expensive exercise with hops,probably better with its cousin.


----------



## kunfaced

Have you heard of anyone doing a butane extraction on hop cones? I've had pretty good results with other things, and found butane with no byproducts.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

No never heard of that, I believe the commercial manufacturers of hop oil use steam.


----------



## BottloBill

MZ12x is the more advanced way of extraction from ANY flower source, butane extraction almost always contains trace metals any other unwanted impurities


----------



## Rocker1986

Mine aren't going along too badly now, the Hallertau is shooting up nicely although the Fuggle is still slower. It suffered worse attacks by caterpillars, though. Needless to say the caterpillars have been taken care of. Not really expecting much from these plants but still it's fun to do anyway  Only attached the Hallertau pic because it's too big to attach the Fuggle one.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

BottloBill said:


> MZ12x is the more advanced way of extraction from ANY flower source, butane extraction almost always contains trace metals any other unwanted impurities


Very similar to what I did only I used isopropyl from Bunnings I would have thought all methane was organic, but it certainly worked on the you tube video I watched very fast evaporation can we get MZ12x here?


----------



## BottloBill

wide eyed and legless said:


> Very similar to what I did only I used isopropyl from Bunnings I would have thought all methane was organic, but it certainly worked on the you tube video I watched very fast evaporation can we get MZ12x here?


 known as Dymethel ether it was available under the MZ12x banner on Amazon but is out of stock and not known whether a restock is going to happen at this stage. Being an organic degreaser and most certainly a single compound extraction fluid I can't see why it can't be found under a different banner.


----------



## sponge

I said burrrr, it's cold in here.

There must be some hops coming through next year.

(Cascade, no signs from chinook or goldings as of yet).


----------



## kunfaced

Can't find any easy local sources for dimethyl ether. My solvent knowledge isn't that great, could diethyl ether work much the same?


----------



## spog

sponge said:


> I said burrrr, it's cold in here.
> There must be some hops coming through next year.
> (Cascade, no signs from chinook or goldings as of yet).


That hop plant looks great as it slowly covers the entry to the brew room...umm house ,don't tell the better half I said that.


----------



## Rocker1986

One of the bines in my Hallertau pot has got these brown spots/patches on some of the leaves. It's worse on the older (lower) growth but I can see it beginning to appear on the newer growth as well. This doesn't appear to be slowing the plant down in any way, though. What is causing it and how can you get rid of it?


----------



## Gregos

Quote me if I'm wrong but looks like a form of leaf blight to me. see article below. 
Leaf blight refers to any disease afflicting plants in which portions of the leaves become discolored, dried out, or dead. While leaf blight is most often fungal in nature, bacterial blightalso exists. Leaf blight can affect nearly any plant with leaves.
Fungal plant diseases can cause a variety of symptoms, of which blight is only one. Blight is characterized by plant tissues that are dry or dead, but not rotten. Blight can strike different areas of the plant. In addition to leaf blight, fungal infection can cause stem blight and blossom blight, for example.
Bacterial leaf blight can affect beans, rice, cotton, tomato, pepper, soybean, and cassava. Different bacterial strains affect different plants. Bacterial blight on leaves is characterized by waterlogged spots on the plant's leaves that eventually turn brown or black, followed by the leaves falling off prematurely. In rice, the spots on the affected leaves turn white rather than black in their final stages.
Leaf blight, whether fungal or bacterial in nature, can be prevented by proper care of crops. Crops that are too crowded, or planted in soil that lacks nutrients, or is not regularly sanitized are susceptible to blight. To prevent blight, first select plant cultivars that are resistant to fungal and bacterial infection. Plant the seeds according to the guidelines for the plant to ensure that each plant receives adequate air flow and light. Prune foliage if it becomes overcrowded.


Make sure the soil you plant in is well-balanced nutritionally, and maintain it properly. Practice regular fertilization and sanitation, and make sure the soil has adequate drainage, as overly moist soil can lead to bacterial infection of the plants. Also, practice crop rotation, alternating non-related crops each season.
One of the most frequent causes of blight is contamination from other plants. Take care not to plant infected seeds or plants. If you find plants with blight, remove them and dispose of them properly. Also, practice weed control and insect control. Insects can be carriers of bacterial infection.
To keep your plants healthy and free of blight, there are a number of preventative solutions you can spray on your plants that are both natural and inexpensive. Lemongrass and mint extract help prevent both fungal and bacterial infection. Fungal blight on leaves can also be prevented with applications of aloe, animal urine, baking soda, basil, compost tea, copper, coriander, garlic, ginger, horsetail, horticultural oil, malabar nut, milk, neem, onion, papaya, pongam, soap, sulfur, or turmeric.


----------



## kunfaced

It looks like a lack of nutes. I doubt your plant is going well in that pot. Is it ceramic? Black absorbs heat and will be frying the crapper out of the sides of your pot. It will be dry a few inches in around the edges and preventing proper uptake of nutes. If you can mate you should just plant it in the ground. It will go off. Or you could just wrap the pot in foil to deflect the heat. Works a treat for meat on a webber. What kind of feeding do you give it? Both water and nutes. Hops are nitrogen hungry so if you are not already, get yourself some seasol and powerfeed to fertilise. The seasol will help repair the roots and make your rhizome stronger/larger. It will also then improve uptake of other nutes. Powerfeed will give it an all round feed of nitrogen phosphorus and potassium. Brown spots are normally a lack of phosphorus and or potassium. The yellowing is notrogen deficiency. Work out the dosage so you can give them a feed every 3-4 days instead of fortnightly. Having access to more frequently over massive dosing is more efficient. Did you add any organic material into the pot? Horse poo or compost or both? If not you can add a ring of poo around the rim of your pot, and fill in the rest with good soil or compost. Then get some sort of straw mulch on top. You can try and make up a spray bottle with nutrients in it, and apply to the leaves in the evening. They should absorb enough to correct some of the defficency. Hope that helps.


----------



## Rocker1986

It's a plastic pot about 500mm diameter. I wanted bigger pots, but couldn't find any at the big green shed that weren't bloody heavy and expensive ceramic/terracotta things. The rhizomes were planted in these in potting mix, and I put some Osmocote herb fertiliser on them earlier today, first time since planting. I think there is some Seasol or similar around here somewhere so I'll give that a go as well. They get watered every morning before I go to work, and in the afternoons as well. That bine is the only one out of 5 that is showing those symptoms, which seems a bit odd but anyway. The foil idea sounds good though.

Unfortunately the ground soil here is bloody hard clay shit, it's harder than a flat cricket pitch and doesn't even crack up when it is dry for periods of time. Not much use for growing anything really, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna try and dig enough of it out to replace it with good soil. :lol: So pots it is, however I'm on 4 weeks holidays after tomorrow so I might go and do a bit of hunting around for some really big ones and replant them in those next winter.


----------



## kunfaced

The bine could be coming off a part of the rhizome that is close to the edge. What did you put in the pot soil wise? As for your yard, it is all in the preparation. Dig deep and mix in gympsum to break up the clay. Lots of animal poo to introduce organic matter (i use buttloads of horse poo, it's my favourite) that will bring the worms that will help break everything up. If you get to it before winter, you will be set before next season. Potting mox isn't quite enough to promote strong growth of the rhizome. If you can get organic material in there it will help with all of the micronutrients that the other fertilisers lack. Looked like you still had plenty of room at the top of the pot. The roots will grow into this area and will benefit alot.


----------



## spog

From what I have heard on gardening radio ABC, you need to break the soil with a gardening fork then add a hand full of gypsum per square metre which will help loosen the clay,then adding compost etc and working it over will give you good growing ground.
Go on do it,work up a thirst for a home brew .


----------



## kunfaced

First year PoRs


----------



## Rocker1986

If you want to have a go at breaking this concrete with a gardening fork, you're welcome to have at it.  It's ridiculous, I don't know how the grass manages to grow in it at all to be honest, but anyway. 

We do have a whole bin of chook poo pellets so I could use some of that in there? The original rhizome itself was only about 6 inches long and planted basically in the centre of the pot. Since then it's sprouted 5 or 6 bines. The plants are growing quite well and quite quickly now they're getting bigger, it's just that one bine that has this issue on the leaves for some reason, but it's still climbing up the wire and not showing any signs of slowing down. I'll try and find this Seasol stuff tomorrow, and also give the chook pellets a go.


----------



## kunfaced

Chook pellets are good, they just take longer to break down. You can also make a tea out of the pellets to make a liquid fertiliser. You can make heaps cause it needs to be diluted when applying. Adding the pellets on top though will give the roots frequent access to nutrients.


----------



## Rocker1986

Cool, I'll dump some of them on there tomorrow then. 

Any ideas why it's only one bine being affected by it though? None of the others is showing these symptoms.


----------



## kunfaced

That's the reason I'm sure it's not blight or any other disease otherwise the whole plant would be affected. All of the bines are competing for nutrients, so if the bine with the problem is trying to source its food from a dry area it's not going to get much. The rest of the rhizome maybe able to drink up enough water to keep it from drying out, but the lack of access to nutrients will do what is doing with yours. There are lots of little roots hanging off the main rhizomes, but the dry up and die if they get close to the edge of the pot. They are the ones you want to make happy, cause they are the mouth of your plant.


----------



## kunfaced

Foil the pot, chicken pellets and compost the top, then cover with mulch. Mulch is just as important, it keeps the surface from drying out.


----------



## Curly79

Victoria going pretty well. Still haven't had consistent hot weather up here in the hills north of Melbourne. 



First year Cluster. She's gunna have to learn to grow sideways until next season



Second year Cascade. Hopefully will fire up soon


----------



## Rocker1986

Sounds like a plan mate, thanks for that advice. Which type of mulch would be best?


----------



## Weizguy

> No never heard of that, I believe the commercial manufacturers of hop oil use steam.


The latest, greatest extraction method is with liquid CO2. Not really suited to home extraction.


----------



## kunfaced

Rocker1986 said:


> Sounds like a plan mate, thanks for that advice. Which type of mulch would be best?


I like to use sugar cane mulch, normally $10-15 for a massive block of it. It does a great job of keeping everything moist.


----------



## kunfaced

Les the Weizguy said:


> Not really suited to home extraction.


Challenge accepted.


----------



## Curly79

Can't beat Sugar cane mulch. [emoji106]


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Rocker it could also be scorching if you have watered and hit the leaves on a sunny day they can scorch, if its not to many leaves I would be removing them to be on the safe side, mineral deficiency usually cause a yellowing of leaves. Strange it is on one plant and not the other, Kunfaced is right about the black pots, if you can get some sisolation and wrap it around the pot it will help.


----------



## goid

Plenty of growth.




Hopefully going to get enough early harvest this season for a new year brew.


----------



## BottloBill

Me too Goid!B)


----------



## BottloBill

Goid said:


> Plenty of growth.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 20151212_165805_resized.jpg
> 
> Hopefully going to get enough early harvest this season for a new year brew.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 20151212_165839_resized.jpg


Just the one variety there mate?


----------



## goid

Yeah, all POR. Would hate to be picking through all those bines for different varieties.

1x 2nd year, 1x relocated and trimmed 4th year and about 6-8 1st year cuttings.


----------



## Brewhart

First year Victoria at about 5.5m the Cascades only just taking off..


----------



## Sixdemonbag

Not as much foliage this year, but lots more burrs. Going to be a good yield I think. 2nd year. Survived heatwaves &hail


----------



## Matplat

Now im getting excited... cluster burrs a plenty


----------



## Brooa

I'm not growing any hops yet. I didn't realise they would grow in brisbane. If I was to build a large "Pot/Bed" out of old timber pellets, would this be better than plastic or stone/ceramic? Is there any one in brissie growing a good crop that I could come & get pointers off? My thumbs aren't brown, but they aren't green either.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Going off!!!!!


----------



## Rocker1986

Just a quick one, my Hallertau has developed a few of these things on a couple of the larger bines in the last few days. Are these burrs, that eventually turn into flowers?


----------



## sponge

Rock on, rocker.


----------



## Mardoo

Yep. Strikingly similar to the burrs on The Cousin.


----------



## NikZak

Cuttings starting to take off. Victoria growing strongly but not sure if she's going to make many cones as the close ups show there's no real burrs happening or is this the beginning?


----------



## LiquidGold

Be patient, they usually grow to a good height before throwing out laterals and burs. You'll know when it happens but yes that last photo shows the nodes where the laterals will grow from.


----------



## mofox1

Multiple repairs, and some good recovery from damaged bines...




Chinook left, cascade right.


----------



## Rocker1986

Brooa said:


> I'm not growing any hops yet. I didn't realise they would grow in brisbane. If I was to build a large "Pot/Bed" out of old timber pellets, would this be better than plastic or stone/ceramic? Is there any one in brissie growing a good crop that I could come & get pointers off? My thumbs aren't brown, but they aren't green either.


From what I've read, the plants themselves don't have much trouble growing anywhere - the difference is in the amount of flowers you get off them. They flower better in areas down south where the daylight hours are longer than up here in Brisbane. That said, I have a couple of pots, one Hallertau and one Fuggle, and they are going pretty well. They're both first year plants. This is a photo of the Hallertau, which was planted at the beginning of November.






That mesh is about 2.5 metres high. I water them twice a day at the moment although this one I've begun watering 3 times a day to keep the soil moist. Good drainage ensures that the soil doesn't flood. They are potted in potting mix to which I added some Osmocote and chook poo. Should get some mulch too and probably cover the pot in foil to reflect heat, although they don't seem to be struggling. Next year I will try to find some larger pots and perhaps build a different style trellis for them.

What will happen with the bines when they get to the point of that tallest one and run out of mesh to keep climbing up? Do they just sort of fall over and attach themselves elsewhere onto the mesh or whatever?


----------



## neal32

Hey guys,

Long time user of hops, first time grower.
I'm at the gold coast and have a first year DrSmurto chinook that is starting to produce burrs. It's in a big rubbish bin of coco that I water with 'grow' nutrients. Should I swap to flowering nutrients now or wait a bit?


----------



## NikZak

Rocker1986 said:


> What will happen with the bines when they get to the point of that tallest one and run out of mesh to keep climbing up? Do they just sort of fall over and attach themselves elsewhere onto the mesh or whatever?


I'd like to know the answer to this as I have a couple about to reach the end of their respective strings and wanted to know if I should extend the strings (which is possible) or leave them be


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Rocker1986 said:


> From what I've read, the plants themselves don't have much trouble growing anywhere - the difference is in the amount of flowers you get off them. They flower better in areas down south where the daylight hours are longer than up here in Brisbane. That said, I have a couple of pots, one Hallertau and one Fuggle, and they are going pretty well. They're both first year plants. This is a photo of the Hallertau, which was planted at the beginning of November.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> What will happen with the bines when they get to the point of that tallest one and run out of mesh to keep climbing up? Do they just sort of fall over and attach themselves elsewhere onto the mesh or whatever?


You can cut off the growing tips that will stop them wanting to climb and throw out some more side shoots.


----------



## Benn

This leaf is typical of both my Vic & my Chinook plants, could the White spots be mildew? 
Both plants are in large pots and receive regular watering (not directly onto leaves during daylight hours unless from rain) I feed them Seasol and power feed. Both plants are in close proximity to roses if that's relevant (aphids etc.) location is sth Vic


----------



## wide eyed and legless

What is that insect which seems to be having a go at it?


----------



## Benn

Hopefully just some sort of sand fly, looks the same as the ones that sting the shit out of me over summer.


----------



## Rocker1986

wide eyed and legless said:


> You can cut off the growing tips that will stop them wanting to climb and throw out some more side shoots.


Cool, I'll keep that in mind. Half tempted to just leave it alone out of curiosity to see what it does.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Looks like a predatory insect you may have a few aphids I wouldn't be worrying about those leaves.



wide eyed and legless said:


> What is that insect which seems to be having a go at it?





Rocker1986 said:


> Cool, I'll keep that in mind. Half tempted to just leave it alone out of curiosity to see what it does.


That structure yo have behind your hops looks pretty solid I would be building a higher frame using that fence and kick board at the bottom, pull your hops away from it and growing them at an angle. Something to think about for next year. (I have tomatoes higher than your hops  )


----------



## Wolfman86

Came home to this yesterday. 2nd year cascades with plenty of hops coming through after nothing last year, and the dog has ripped the vines from the base... ******* ropeable


----------



## Yob

ouch..


----------



## Topher

So i was trying to train a bine up my frame and the tip broke off. This strand is at least 8ft off the ground. 

Will this strand die back now or keep going?


----------



## sponge

It'll just concentrate on laterals and won't get any longer. I've had a few tips break off now due to pests and being heavy handed during training..


----------



## mofox1

Err what?



Think the early melb heat wave confused my poor girls. Top of the bines are sporting fully formed cones, a bit further down some of the older bines too.

Only burrs on the rest of them.


----------



## BottloBill

mofox1 said:


> Err what?
> 
> 
> 
> 1450938072375.jpg
> 
> Think the early melb heat wave confused my poor girls. Top of the bines are sporting fully formed cones, a bit further down some of the older bines too.
> 
> Only burrs on the rest of them.


 same here in Newcastle mate. My hersbrucker is in three stages of burs, forming, fully formed/browning off :blink:


----------



## mofox1

Too farken high to get them before they start browning off... Unless you have a cherry picker.


----------



## BottloBill

mofox1 said:


> Too farken high to get them before they start browning off... Unless you have a cherry picker.


I found the sacrifice had to be made last season in order to secure my bumper crop


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

The majority of these are first year rhizomes...obviously loved by the previous grower(s) and pretty happy in their new home. Some early hop flowers already browning off from the extreme heat, but plenty of new ones forming. I've also had some damage by something eating the leaves. Cascade, Chinook, and Victoria all seem to be doing very well. (Dwarf) Cluster...not so much.


----------



## troopa

Has anyone got Goldings in Melbourne forming burrs yet?
First year so I'm not expecting much and I am aware they can be late to the party but I'm starting to get concerned


----------



## deltawhiskey

Cascade and POR first year.

Hi lads, first time grower with planting in August. Unusual heat gave me a small crop of POR in October which I left in the garage to dry but then got contaminated with tile cutting dust from my friendly tiler. 

But just picked another crop off each yesterday, so excited! Love how fat and fluffy the Cascade cones are.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Troopa said:


> Has anyone got Goldings in Melbourne forming burrs yet?
> First year so I'm not expecting much and I am aware they can be late to the party but I'm starting to get concerned


I don't have Goldings, but can tell you mine are all over the place. Some have flowers browning off, some have not started growing burs. It's been a strange growing season. Fear not, they'll come if the plant is healthy.


----------



## goatus

First few burs formed overnight in Perth (I'm sure they weren't there yesterday!).

I remember hearing something about not continuing to fertilize while flowers are forming (something to do with it will just encourage more leaf growth and less of a crop?) - or maybe it was just a change in the fertilizer used, can a hop-guru advise?


----------



## goatus

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Some have flowers browning off


Does this mean the flowers have fully matured and past their harvest stage already, or immature flowers just copping it from the sun?


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

goatus said:


> Does this mean the flowers have fully matured and past their harvest stage already, or immature flowers just copping it from the sun?


They came out far too early and copped the heat. They were on the lower laterals and the upper laterals have heaps of burs. It's all good, just all over the place due to such an uncommon growing season this year.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

goatus said:


> hopbur.jpg
> 
> First few burs formed overnight in Perth (I'm sure they weren't there yesterday!).
> 
> I remember hearing something about not continuing to fertilize while flowers are forming (something to do with it will just encourage more leaf growth and less of a crop?) - or maybe it was just a change in the fertilizer used, can a hop-guru advise?


I'm no expert, just getting started. From what I've read, a Nitrogen only feed is what they need at this stage. I'm concentrating on root growth as most of my rhizomes were planted this year. I gave them a Seasol feed over the weekend.


----------



## Topher

I friggin hate those green cabbage moth caterpillar bastard fuggin bunghole crawly pricks.

Massive infestation. The soap trick diddnt work. Had to buy some proper spray. Hopefully it will get the buggers.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Higher nitrogen feed is for the growing stages, potassium is for the flowering stage so a fertilizer with a higher potassium level would be beneficial.( remember not to feed on hot days)


----------



## Benn

Could you recommend a good fertiliser with the high potassium requirements?
At the moment I'm giving mine weekly dilute feedings of Seasol and power feed and they seem to like it.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

The Debco Tomato plant food has a high potassium content.


----------



## goatus

Yeah that's what i remember hearing - if you give it heaps of nitrogen in the flowering stage, it will give you kickass leaf and root growth, but will expend most of its energy on that and your flower crop will suffer. Probably best to keep giving them nitrogen on first years to maximise the root system for year 2, but otherwise, I think potash was suggested. Maybe something like this? No idea on the usage rates for hops though. 

Must Note: I'm in no way a gardening expert, much closer to gardening incompetent. Can anybody that isn't as incompetent tell me if the potassium is better in the soil or sprayed onto the leaves for this purpose? Will it get to the flowers either way?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Potash would be fine once you see the buds forming, just a small hand full every fortnight around the base and water in.
Get some seaweed extract to add the minerals all sweet.


----------



## Matplat

Once cones start forming, will the plant generally stop growing in height/vegetation? My cluster has formed cones and it looks like the growing tips have gone a bit woody like they ain't go in no further... But it's January and I was expecting a lot more height!


----------



## Mardoo

Maybe they're Dwarf Cluster h34r:


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

An interesting read on best times to nitrogen/potash feed.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/j.2050-0416.1936.tb05683.x/pdf


----------



## perko8

First year super alpha has started going nuts! Went away for a week and put the top bit of bamboo on "just in case". Good thing I did! Was only about 4' tall or so and now about 11'. 

First year cascade in the background has some catching up to do. 

Pretty happy with this growth given the climate up here in Dalby certainly isn't ideal. Will have to see if they end up producing anything. Good fun growing the bines anyway


----------



## osprey brewday

Noticed these on my cascade today do these turn into the hops. First time grower unsure of the cycle can some one explain 
Thanks


----------



## Camo6

osprey brewday said:


> Noticed these on my cascade today do these turn into the hops. First time grower unsure of the cycle can some one explain
> Thanks ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1451643182.288324.jpg


Not now! But yeah, they're burrs and will turn into hop cones after a few weeks.


----------



## BottloBill

Getting pretty close for harvest #1 off the HersbruckerB)


----------



## Rocker1986

osprey brewday said:


> Noticed these on my cascade today do these turn into the hops. First time grower unsure of the cycle can some one explain
> Thanks
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1451643182.288324.jpg


Yep they're burrs. My Hallertau has quite a number of them on it in various stages of development.

This is one that was a burr like those probably about 1.5 - 2 weeks ago.


----------



## scooterism

Belgrave Brewer said:


> An interesting read on best times to nitrogen/potash feed.
> http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/j.2050-0416.1936.tb05683.x/pdf


That is a very interesting read indeed..

Just to think a few years later shit went pear shaped in that part of the world..


----------



## scooterism

*Edit, wrong thread..


----------



## malt and barley blues

wide eyed and legless said:


> The Debco Tomato plant food has a high potassium content.


Another good one is Searles Flourish *Fruit Booster.*


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Time to stop fertilising and increase watering?
https://onspecialtycrops.wordpress.com/2014/06/23/hop-update-fertility-and-irrigation-june-23-2014/


----------



## HBHB

*HOP GROWERS IN SYDNEY:*

Had a call from a young lady in Sydney today trying to get access to some hop flowers to do a photo shoot.

If you can let her have access to some of your hops, please give Steph from Momentum Worldwide a quick text / call with details on 0424160617.

Thanks,
Martin


----------



## BottloBill

The start of a very long processB)


----------



## perko8

[attachment=85960:ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1452290085.629179.jpg 

First year super alpha beginning to get some burrs forming I think


----------



## perko8

Some of my first-year bines are today reaching the top of the trellis/ropes I have set up - about 12 foot tall.
Should I be looking to make something taller, or is it reasonable to just leave it at this point in time, as they are starting to make burrs as per pic in post above?
From what I have read height growth and cone production are competing for nutrients etc anyway.


----------



## kunfaced

Those are my POR and this last one is a Cascade cutting I started in a beer bottle of water. I didn't expect it to grow the way it has, but it ties the tomato plant to the fence so I'll just let it do its thing.


----------



## rodj6

Almost 4m tall now


----------



## BottloBill

BottloBill said:


> The start of a very long processB)


Stage 2 of the Hersbrucker harvest and about half way now. The first lot gave me 320 grams dry.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Beer Gold!

A few early ones are ready. I might just chuck these straight into a beer tonight. These are Victoria, but I also have some Cascade and Chinook ready to be picked.


----------



## Curly79

I can't believe some people are harvesting already. Especially in Belgrave! ? Very impressive. This is my Victoria. Only at burr stage at the mo.


----------



## The Judge

I know... My 2nd year cascade has a total of 7 flowers. It's a dud year for me over here....


----------



## spog

The Judge said:


> I know... My 2nd year cascade has a total of 7 flowers. It's a dud year for me over here....


What's your location ?


----------



## Rocker1986

My Hallertau plant has a number of flowers and burrs on it, also throwing out lateral shoots which are also getting burrs on them. It'd be nice to be able to harvest them all at the same time but I daresay I won't be doing that. :lol:

How long do they take to go from the burr stage to being ready for harvest, or does it vary between varieties/climate conditions?


----------



## Danscraftbeer

My first year Cascade produced well last season and I harvested early March. Patience peoples and maybe some carefully diluted liquid fertilizer for blooming etc. Get em to fatten up over the next month or two with flowers. :icon_drool2:

edit: checked my photo's it was mid March they were ripe for the harvest here in Frankenstien south east Victoria.


----------



## The Judge

spog said:


> What's your location ?


Carine, Perth.


----------



## cspencer

I've been away a couple of weeks and the Cascade and Chinook have been growing nicely but I've got these fellas hanging around, anyone able to identify them?
Do I need to to anything?

The infant version (I assume) seem like a small bug that has tiny feather out it's back. Couldn't get a photo they were hanging around the vine and the camera wouldn't focus so late at night on them.


----------



## Benn

I've got them moths too, I'm hoping they've been warding off any would be attackers.


----------



## Benn

Too many beers for this chap, he's all shrivelled up. The rest of the plant is powering,


----------



## Matplat

Anyone got a theory as to why my plants would have stopped growing vertically, but throwing heaps of new bines and side shoots down at the bottom?

I recently tried cutting off all the growth and leaves down the bottom, as I read that is what you are supposed to do to prevent disease. Could be part of it?


----------



## Mardoo

Yep, that'd be it.


----------



## Curly79

Matplat said:


> Anyone got a theory as to why my plants would have stopped growing vertically, but throwing heaps of new bines and side shoots down at the bottom?
> 
> I recently tried cutting off all the growth and leaves down the bottom, as I read that is what you are supposed to do to prevent disease. Could be part of it?


How tall did they get before they stopped?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

If you have had a scorcher of a day where you are, (we had a 40 degree + in Melbourne last week) then the growing tip has the possibility of getting burned and takes a week or so to recover.


----------



## Matplat

Nah, the growing tips are still good and light green, not woody (except for the cluster which has 20 or so cones mostly developed)... they have probably only got to about 1.5m tall, except EKG which are about 2.5m but they a side shooting most of the way up. Il go and take a photo after i finish my beer (currently being underwhelmed by coopers sparkling)


----------



## BottloBill

Matplat said:


> Anyone got a theory as to why my plants would have stopped growing vertically, but throwing heaps of new bines and side shoots down at the bottom?
> 
> I recently tried cutting off all the growth and leaves down the bottom, as I read that is what you are supposed to do to prevent disease. Could be part of it?


After harvesting my hersbrucker it also decided to morph and starting shooting from everywhere. Piccy of it after I took most of the cones off, note all the new growth. I put it down to the bizarre whether here in Newcastle.


----------



## Matplat

Victoria


----------



## Matplat

Cluster


----------



## BottloBill

Matplat said:


> Victoria


I'd probably get some more lines up, I'd say those young shoots will leave the older one's behind in growth rate.


----------



## Matplat

Cascade


----------



## Matplat

EKG


----------



## Curly79

So they are first year plants im guessing Matplat? If so don't expect too much from them this year. Next year they should shoot up to 3 Mtrs or more. By the 3 rd season they will go bananas.


----------



## Matplat

Yeah all first years, so as you say im not expecting heaps, its just odd that they seem to be going great guns at the bottom and nowhere at the top! I sqeezed one of the cluster cones yesterday and it smelt freaking awsome though so im still happy!


----------



## Benn

Question; My Victoria hop plant has a mix of variegated (3 prong) and non variegated (heart shaped leaf with only one point) leaves-hopefully I'm using the correct wording, whereas my Chinook has only got variegated leaves i.e 3 prong.
Is the differing foliage on the Victoria a result of cross/selective breeding or something?
Cheers,


----------



## BottloBill

Benn said:


> Question; My Victoria hop plant has a mix of variegated (3 prong) and non variegated (heart shaped leaf with only one point) leaves-hopefully I'm using the correct wording, whereas my Chinook has only the non variegated leaves.
> Is the differing foliage on the Victoria a result of cross/selective breeding or something?
> Cheers,


Can you get a picture of them mate?


----------



## BottloBill

Matplat said:


> Yeah all first years, so as you say im not expecting heaps, its just odd that they seem to be going great guns at the bottom and nowhere at the top! I sqeezed one of the cluster cones yesterday and it smelt freaking awsome though so im still happy![/quote
> 
> +1 to curry's comment. That being said look after them above the ground and establish a sold rhizome below the ground


----------



## Benn

Note: I got my wires crossed in my initial post and have edited it accordingly.
The pic below is of my Victoria showing dual foliage styles.



The pic below is of my Chinook 


•The Chinook has just reached the top of the 3.1m tall pole today and only started shooting laterals last week so maybe it'll come out with the other leaves too?
•The Victoria is about half as tall as the Chinook but went mental with laterals weeks ago.


----------



## Mardoo

I had that on my Victorias. Didn't seem to be any issue. No idea why though.


----------



## Rocker1986

My Hallertau plant has taken over its mesh support a fair bit now and also has a number of burrs and flowers on it. It is throwing out quite a few laterals, the majority of which have burrs on them too. Some of these have attached themselves to the mesh and are growing up it as well. Will be interesting to see how much I end up getting off it, but I'm not expecting huge things given it's only a first year plant. The Fuggle plant is getting there now as well although it isn't as aggressive as the Hallertau. It has a few flowers and burrs on it but I could probably count them on my fingers at this point.  It is throwing out a few laterals as well.

Hallertau top, Fuggle bottom. Can kind of make out some of the cones on the Hallertau.


----------



## Bruer

Well, I have four first year potted ones going - two POR and two cascade. All but 1 are over 2 m. I went to move the pots today (just rigging in a drip irrigation - finally!) and the damn roots have grown out the bottom. Crazy! I was thinking of plating them out in the garden bed next year. Any ideas on how to contain them to a certain area? I was thinking fly wire or that shade cloth. Any solutions?


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Benn said:


> Note: I got my wires crossed in my initial post and have edited it accordingly.
> The pic below is of my Victoria showing dual foliage styles.
> 
> 
> 
> image.jpeg
> 
> The pic below is of my Chinook
> 
> 
> 
> image.jpeg
> •The Chinook has just reached the top of the 3.1m tall pole today and only started shooting laterals last week so maybe it'll come out with the other leaves too?
> •The Victoria is about half as tall as the Chinook but went mental with laterals weeks ago.


Nothing to do with cross pollination being the reason for the difference in leaves, it is the stage the plant is at when the leaves develop.All quite normal and nothing to worry about.

Bruer the roots are difficult to contain and if you plant the varieties to close to each other the chances are you will have POR mixed in with the cascade and visa versa, I would say all you can do is chop off the new growth as it comes up, the rhizomes are lateral runners, I was reading with horseradish if you want to contain its lateral movement a barrier should be 1 meter deep.


----------



## Rocker1986

I've been doing a bit of Googling on this and I think some of my cones might be ready to harvest this week.. they feel dry and papery, there is obvious yellow powder in them. I pulled one off earlier and crushed it up and smelled it and it smelled pretty much like how the pellets do. All the signs they say to look for. I don't want to make the mistake of harvesting too early though, and the one that I picked off wasn't very big either so I dunno if they're meant to be all different sizes, but at the moment some are larger than others. The largest ones feel the driest but the smaller ones feel similar too, just not as dry yet. What's the consensus on this? :unsure:


----------



## Mardoo

Regarding size, my Chinooks at harvest last year ranged in size from 2cm to around 12cm long.


----------



## goatus

Mardoo said:


> 12cm long.


Its a boy!


----------



## Mardoo

Dry and papery is good. Try snapping the middle stalk. If it snaps crisply inside the hop that's said to be a sign of readiness. If the cones are still dense and tight, or dense in the middle they're usually not ready. 

I read an interesting article for which the author interviewed 5 commercial growers from multi-generation family farms. He noticed that, when all the growers were talking about the great growers in their families, they made a gesture wherein it looked like they were rolling a cone between their thumb and index finger. Asking one of them the grower said the best yard bosses could tell when the cones were ripe by doing that. It seemed to me to be the best way, together with the "snap" of the centre stem.

It's a combination of moistness, density, smell and lupulin/yellow powder that will tell you when to harvest. Do the finger roll. It'll all start to come together.

Once they're ready though, it's time to harvest. They'll go too far in a matter of days. The subtleties will quickly fade and they'll take on the smell of grass clippings, and I don't mean The Cousin.


----------



## Rocker1986

Thanks mate. I'm pretty sure they're ready, and I'm gonna go get some stuff tomorrow to make a drying screen. I did roll a few through my fingers, they made a crackly kind of sound, which suggested to me that they're close to, if not ready to be harvested, along with the dry/papery feel and the smell of them. Will try the snapping of the centre stem too.


----------



## Mardoo

Better a bit early than late if it comes down to that.


----------



## Matplat

Dont the tips start to brown when they're ready too?


----------



## Mardoo

Not necessarily. Often, but as far as my opinion is worth anything, I've always taken it as a minor sign.


----------



## AJ80

Climbed the ladder for a closer look this evening and was happy to discover burrs forming on my Mt Hood (heaps, thanks Mardoo!), goldings and cascade. Laterals are sprouting from the chinook so I may have burrs there too in the near future.

Given these are all first year plants I'm quite chuffed to be getting anything at all.


----------



## Rocker1986

AJ80 said:


> Climbed the ladder for a closer look this evening and was happy to discover burrs forming on my Mt Hood (heaps, thanks Mardoo!), goldings and cascade. Laterals are sprouting from the chinook so I may have burrs there too in the near future.
> 
> Given these are all first year plants I'm quite chuffed to be getting anything at all.


Same thing's been happening with my Hallertau. Surprised at the amount of burrs on it for a first year plant but then again I don't really know what I'm meant to be expecting either. :lol:

I bought a couple of 2mx1m raised garden beds the other day, and during the winter I'm going to transfer my Hallertau and Fuggle plants (or root systems) from their current pots into these garden beds, and also construct a different type trellis with 5 or 6 wires running from the soil to the top. Might build it a bit bigger as well perhaps 3.5/4m high.

i'll keep the pots because I'd like to get a Cascade rhizome and I'll use one of them to grow it up in before moving it to a garden bed somewhere as well if I can find room.


----------



## sponge

I should be harvesting my first lot of cascade over the weekend. Quite surprised by how many flowers have been produced from first years, especially not getting any sunlight in the afternoon.. a few burrs coming through on the chinooks but still nothing but laterals from goldings.

Question - I know a lot of folk put their hops on fly screens etc in the garage for a couple of days to dry, but how about a mesh oven tray with the hops on the tray on the lowest shelf in the oven with just the fan (and light) on and the door ajar? I'd be thinking it'd be a fairly gentle drying process but faster than just drying at ambient? Obviously not suitable for large harvests but just until I sort out something more permanent.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Similar product if you want to fast dry.

So, after trying several ways to quick dry hops I came across one that in my opinion works the best. We have all tried the standard oven treatment, and of course your left with hop that has lost some of it's kick not to mention that it comes out tasting like crap. So if your looking to maintain bitterness when quick drying hops try this:
You will need: 

One four sided microwave safe dish with lid (something like small casserole dish)

Paper towels 

A Microwave 

And of course your fresh hops

First you line the bottom of the pan with DRY paper towels. Then you put your hops on top of that. Now wet enough paper towels to form a double layer to lay across the top of your pan (make sure that the wet paper towel is not touching your hops), wring the paper towels out so that they are damp but not wet. Now cover the paper towels and pan with the lid, sealing three of the four sides (or some space for steam to escape). Microwave for one minute on 40% power, take the pan out of the microwave and uncover for 20-30 seconds. Repeat these steps 3-5 times or until your hop is dry enough to use. Re-wet top paper towels as needed. 

I'm sure many of you have tried this but it was a new method for me, and the hops turn out soooo much better.
Grow safe....


----------



## NikZak

wide eyed and legless said:


> Similar product if you want to fast dry.
> 
> So, after trying several ways to quick dry bud I came across one that in my opinion works the best. We have all tried the standard oven treatment, and of course your left with bud that has lost some of it's kick not to mention that it comes out tasting like crap. So if your looking to maintain potency when quick drying buds try this:
> You will need:
> 
> One four sided microwave safe dish with lid (something like small casserole dish)
> 
> Paper towels
> 
> A Microwave
> 
> And of course your fresh bud
> 
> First you line the bottom of the pan with DRY paper towels. Then you put your bud on top of that. Now wet enough paper towels to form a double layer to lay across the top of your pan (make sure that the wet paper towel is not touching your bud), wring the paper towels out so that they are damp but not wet. Now cover the paper towels and pan with the lid, sealing three of the four sides (or some space for steam to escape). Microwave for one minute on 40% power, take the pan out of the microwave and uncover for 20-30 seconds. Repeat these steps 3-5 times or until your bud is dry enough to use. Re-wet top paper towels as needed.
> 
> I'm sure many of you have tried this but it was a new method for me, and the buds turn out soooo much better.
> Grow safe....


This all sounds a little like something we probably shouldn't talk about


----------



## sponge

Find and replace: bud / hop 


But agreed.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

I've no idea what we are talking about here, its not as if we are distilling liquor.


----------



## Fents

did someone mention OG KUSH!


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Fents said:


> did someone mention OG KUSH!


No I think it was Lupus Indica.


----------



## Fents

wonder if those hop shots would be any good in the vape


----------



## Mardoo

Now THERE'S a new market!


----------



## goid

sponge said:


> I should be harvesting my first lot of cascade over the weekend. Quite surprised by how many flowers have been produced from first years, especially not getting any sunlight in the afternoon.. a few burrs coming through on the chinooks but still nothing but laterals from goldings.
> 
> Question - I know a lot of folk put their hops on fly screens etc in the garage for a couple of days to dry, but how about a mesh oven tray with the hops on the tray on the lowest shelf in the oven with just the fan (and light) on and the door ajar? I'd be thinking it'd be a fairly gentle drying process but faster than just drying at ambient? Obviously not suitable for large harvests but just until I sort out something more permanent.


If i remember correctly I read that drying the hops should not exceed 40c. Above this you will degrade some of the volatile oils in the hops. And when drying I work on a loss of 75% of original weight, which will give you approx. 8-10% residual moisture. Any drier and you also risk again, loss of oils.

Edit: Just re read your post. You are only using the fan with no heat, which will be fine. I use a fan under my mesh table when drying. It still take about 1-2 days to dry depending on ambient.


----------



## Yob

Fents said:


> wonder if those hop shots would be any good in the vape


I almost got a bloke at the office to try it, he couldn't find an empty tube thingy to put it in h34r:


----------



## sponge

Goid said:


> If i remember correctly I read that drying the hops should not exceed 40c. Above this you will degrade some of the volatile oils in the hops. And when drying I work on a loss of 75% of original weight, which will give you approx. 8-10% residual moisture. Any drier and you also risk again, loss of oils.
> 
> Edit: Just re read your post. You are only using the fan with no heat, which will be fine. I use a fan under my mesh table when drying. It still take about 1-2 days to dry depending on ambient.


Yea no heat, just the fan (pretty sure the light comes on as soon as the fan is on). I also read somewhere about keeping them <40'C which is why I thought that may be on option.



Yob said:


> I almost got a bloke at the office to try it, he couldn't find an empty tube thingy to put it in h34r:


Gatorade bottle?


----------



## Yob

knife on the hotplate?

wait.. what are we talking about again?


----------



## Mardoo

Hmmmm, shisha with hop shots?


----------



## Rocker1986

I picked some of the flowers off my Hallertau plant earlier. They felt quite dry and papery to me and the aroma from crushing one was the familiar smell I am greeted with by the pellets I usually use. It's only a first year plant of course and this micro harvest gave me 8g, which I expect will dry out to be about 2g or so... I don't know if you can tell by looking at them if I picked them too soon or not? :unsure: There are more burrs on the plant so I can always leave those ones longer and see if they change more.


----------



## Yob

They'll usually lighten a bit as they ripen, these look a touch young still


----------



## Rocker1986

Cool, thanks mate. I'll leave the next lot of burrs a bit longer once they turn into flowers and see how they go.


----------



## perko8

My first year super alpha is yellowing a bit on lower leaves. Seems happy enough up top, plenty of burrs growing into flowers.


----------



## neal32

Variety : Smurto Chinook
Medium : Coco
Container : 60L black bin
Nutrients : Maxibloom, Maxigrow
Location : Gold Coast

These are my first year Chinooks from DrSmurto. Is anyone else growing them and could give me their opinion on the aroma/bitterness? They don't seem to be ready to harvest yet (any guesses as to when they will be ready?).

The aroma is atypical of Chinook, which is a good thing for me because Chinook is not one of my favourite hop varieties. For me they smell like passionfruit and tropical fruits.

There is probably over a hundred flowers atm so the yield should be decent.

Also I'm thinking of drying them and then dumping them into a double batch 1.055ish ale, at 5 min with a 30 minute hop stand. I'll aim for around 25-30ibus and dry hopped as well. Something like 80 pils/20 wheat with a split of wlp644 and maybe 1272. I was planning on a wet hop ale but due to the pleasant aroma, I'm going to give them a chance to shine without the flavour notes that wet hopping adds.

Cheers.


----------



## Mardoo

Those are some nice looking Chinook cones. Definitely one of the best you can grow at home in my opinion.


----------



## Curly79

perko8 said:


> My first year super alpha is yellowing a bit on lower leaves. Seems happy enough up top, plenty of burrs growing into flowers.
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1453504185.206511.jpg
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1453504263.385405.jpg


My victoria does that too. I guess it's the plants way of saying "I don't need these any more, I'll put all my energy into flowering".


----------



## Matplat

neal32 said:


> Variety : Smurto Chinook
> Medium : Coco
> Container : 60L black bin
> Nutrients : Maxibloom, Maxigrow
> Location : Gold Coast
> 
> These are my first year Chinooks from DrSmurto. Is anyone else growing them and could give me their opinion on the aroma/bitterness? They don't seem to be ready to harvest yet (any guesses as to when they will be ready?).
> 
> The aroma is atypical of Chinook, which is a good thing for me because Chinook is not one of my favourite hop varieties. For me they smell like passionfruit and tropical fruits.
> 
> There is probably over a hundred flowers atm so the yield should be decent.
> 
> Also I'm thinking of drying them and then dumping them into a double batch 1.055ish ale, at 5 min with a 30 minute hop stand. I'll aim for around 25-30ibus and dry hopped as well. Something like 80 pils/20 wheat with a split of wlp644 and maybe 1272. I was planning on a wet hop ale but due to the pleasant aroma, I'm going to give them a chance to shine without the flavour notes that wet hopping adds.
> 
> Cheers.


That is a shitload of cones on a first year plant.... Blows me out of the water! Il take note of your fertilisers and use them next year...

Hang on, what is coco growing medium?


----------



## BottloBill

Matplat said:


> That is a shitload of cones on a first year plant.... Blows me out of the water! Il take note of your fertilisers and use them next year...
> 
> Hang on, what is coco growing medium?


My guess is that it is like the coco coir bricks that you can get from the big green shed. If my memory serves me correctly, place it in a bucket of water and watch it expand to ten times its original size. I used it many moons ago mixed through soil to aid in water retention.


----------



## neal32

Matplat said:


> That is a shitload of cones on a first year plant.... Blows me out of the water! Il take note of your fertilisers and use them next year...
> 
> Hang on, what is coco growing medium?


Yeah, google growing in coco. I buy the $2 bricks from Masters. The advantage over soil is that you can adjust the feed and ph exactly how the plant likes it as the coco has no nutrients and is pH neutral. I could've been more on top of it but hops seem pretty forgiving.

When I move into my own house however I'll be putting in soil and prepping the soil organically just to save money on nutrients.


----------



## blotto

Here are my hops, 2nd year Red Earth on the left 1st year Victoria on the right. They are a bit close together so I'll be separating them next season, I never expected the Victoria to get that big in it's first year. Fortunately they are so different so if one makes it over to the other next year I'll be able to tell them apart easy.





These are cones on the Victoria





And the last cutting I took, it struggled at first but is starting to take off now.


----------



## Nizmoose

After a bit of help here guys, this is my first real year growing hops and for some reason my cascade and hallertau are going much better than I had expected given a poor attempt on my part at a hop growing season last year however my Columbus seems to be struggling a lot. Any ideas why? I've attached a picture of the hops and then the Columbus in question (don't even mention the string design it was not made with any forward thinking at all and I genuinely expected a pretty dismal amount of growth). The ones on the left and middle are cascade and hallertau and they're going well as you can see, the Columbus however has one okay ish bine up and the other two are regrowing from ones that already threw in the towel. Oh same pots, same potting mix and same watering regime btw


----------



## wide eyed and legless

The basics of producing healthy plants you need 4 things, sunlight, air, water and nutrients, the roots of a plant need to breathe, so a good potting mix is essential to allow the roots to breathe, the right dosage of nutrients and the right pH to allow the plant to take up the nutrients,not to much water or the growing medium can compact not allowing the roots to breathe.
That potting mix you have there Nizmoose is it sandy? In the pic it looks like it is and the leaves aren't a lush green, could be nitrogen deficient also with the growth as part of the factor could also point to that. 
I doubt if you will be getting any bud on that plant this year, I would be trying to source the problem and getting it right for next year, get a cheapish pH meter and some distilled water and check the pH of the medium that is as good a place to start to find the problem with that plant.


----------



## Nizmoose

wide eyed and legless said:


> The basics of producing healthy plants you need 4 things, sunlight, air, water and nutrients, the roots of a plant need to breathe, so a good potting mix is essential to allow the roots to breathe, the right dosage of nutrients and the right pH to allow the plant to take up the nutrients,not to much water or the growing medium can compact not allowing the roots to breathe.
> That potting mix you have there Nizmoose is it sandy? In the pic it looks like it is and the leaves aren't a lush green, could be nitrogen deficient also with the growth as part of the factor could also point to that.
> I doubt if you will be getting any bud on that plant this year, I would be trying to source the problem and getting it right for next year, get a cheapish pH meter and some distilled water and check the pH of the medium that is as good a place to start to find the problem with that plant.


Thanks for this,the mix is somewhat sandy but not overly so, the lower leaves on pretty much all the older bines are sort of yellowing and falling off but I attributed this to a shift in resources to the newer higher leaves. I suppose my main confusion comes from the fact that the other two plants which are in the exact same potting mix are doing much better, but perhaps this is a function of the variety?


----------



## blotto

Have you changed the soil in the 2nd year plant? Maybe it used up all the good stuff in the first year. I put a half a bag of cow poo and half a bag of chook poo on my plants in the off season to try get the soil ready for the growing season. Mine are in the ground so you might not want that much in each pot.

Mardoo has a really good post around here somewhere with his soil mix for pots and watering schedules and I've used something very similar for my pots that my cuttings go in and also when I'm prepping the ground.

Mardoo's hop potting mix = 2 parts mountain soil, 2 parts mushroom compost, 1 part composted sheep manure, 1 part composted chicken manure, ½ part sand – all from Bunnings. Seems to be working great.


----------



## Rocker1986

Nizmoose said:


> I suppose my main confusion comes from the fact that the other two plants which are in the exact same potting mix are doing much better, but perhaps this is a function of the variety?


Wouldn't have thought it would be that badly off just from being a different variety though. I also have a Hallertau plant, and the other one I have is Fuggle. They are both in exactly the same potting mix with exactly the same nutrients and watering. The Hallertau took off and has had much more growth (and flowering) than the Fuggle, but it's still growing fine and has a few bines up to the top of my 2.5 metre mesh framework setup.


----------



## Nizmoose

Wort said:


> Have you changed the soil in the 2nd year plant? Maybe it used up all the good stuff in the first year. I put a half a bag of cow poo and half a bag of chook poo on my plants in the off season to try get the soil ready for the growing season. Mine are in the ground so you might not want that much in each pot.
> 
> Mardoo has a really good post around here somewhere with his soil mix for pots and watering schedules and I've used something very similar for my pots that my cuttings go in and also when I'm prepping the ground.
> 
> Mardoo's hop potting mix = 2 parts mountain soil, 2 parts mushroom compost, 1 part composted sheep manure, 1 part composted chicken manure, ½ part sand – all from Bunnings. Seems to be working great.



Sorry I should have been clearer! The plants I had last year are not in this bunch, gave them to a friend who really wanted some to grow. All three of these guys are new for me this year and I'm pretty sure they're the same age too. I'll have a hunt for mardoo's watering schedule thanks!



Rocker1986 said:


> Wouldn't have thought it would be that badly off just from being a different variety though. I also have a Hallertau plant, and the other one I have is Fuggle. They are both in exactly the same potting mix with exactly the same nutrients and watering. The Hallertau took off and has had much more growth (and flowering) than the Fuggle, but it's still growing fine and has a few bines up to the top of my 2.5 metre mesh framework setup.


Yeah I wouldnt have thought so either!


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Victoria. Two 1st season rhizomes just starting to flower. Invading into the greenhouse as well.



This tangle mess is one 1st season Chinook rhizolme. The other died or just wimped out this season. 
I wanted it to grow more before flowering but it makes up for it in density. This is going heavy on the flowers.



Trusses? Clusters? Bunches? a fluff ball of hops this is going to be. :icon_drool2: 



2nd Season Cascade. They haven't started flowering yet. I harvested them late march last year. Growing in wicking beds to become a canopy shade for other vegies that I haven't got around to. The hop roots will spread all through these beds actually. They are cut down IBC tanks, etc




Aquaponics here ya go. I took this little cutting of the Cascade 2 months ago. Planted in the gravel of my Aquaponics system just for kicks. It started growing again after a week. I new it would but didn't expect to get a harvest off it this year etc. Now I am. B)


From this



To this from a cutting I took 2 months ago. More Laterals than long I have to train them all outside the cage it goes everywhere. So it will be close to 4 months from cutting to harvest. :huh:






Cascade was all from little pots I bought from Diggers. Victoria and Chinook was supplied by mail from Dr Smurto.

Cheers. :chug:


----------



## BottloBill

Danscraftbeer said:


> Victoria. Two 1st season rhizomes just starting to flower. Invading into the greenhouse as well.
> 
> 
> 
> This tangle mess is one 1st season Chinook rhizolme. The other died or just wimped out this season.
> I wanted it to grow more before flowering but it makes up for it in density. This is going heavy on the flowers.
> 
> 
> 
> Trusses? Clusters? Bunches? a fluff ball of hops this is going to be. :icon_drool2:
> 
> 
> 
> 2nd Season Cascade. They haven't started flowering yet. I harvested them late march last year. Growing in wicking beds to become a canopy shade for other vegies that I haven't got around to. The hop roots will spread all through these beds actually. They are cut down IBC tanks, etc
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Aquaponics here ya go. I took this little cutting of the Cascade 2 months ago. Planted in the gravel of my Aquaponics system just for kicks. It started growing again after a week. I new it would but didn't expect to get a harvest off it this year etc. Now I am. B)
> 
> 
> From this
> 
> 
> 
> To this from a cutting I took 2 months ago. More Laterals than long I have to train them all outside the cage it goes everywhere. So it will be close to 4 months from cutting to harvest. :huh:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Cascade was all from little pots I bought from Diggers. Victoria and Chinook was supplied by mail from Dr Smurto.
> 
> Cheers. :chug:


Those burs are epic mate


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Burs! that's what I meant. :chug:


----------



## Benn

Chinook unhappily making it's way down the other side.
Hopefully I'll be in a different house next season and can give it more than 3m of climbing height.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

A really informative lecture delivered by a hop farmer from the Yakima Valley, a few things in there I have wondered about and now I know the answer. (especially the liming issue)
http://www.uvm.edu/extension/cropsoil/wp-content/uploads/jason-perrault-transcript.pdf


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

1st year Chinook and Victoria performing beyond my expectations. It would have been even better but had some wind damage from a storm in December that probably knocked off 20% of the growth. I'm going to have to get a windbreak on the Southern side.


----------



## Lumber09

Hi all, 
Any thoughts on this Cascade Hop Cone? It's roughly 55-60mm in length but has several leaves protruding from the cone itself. Theres a few on the plant but generally was from the first few to appear.


----------



## Matplat

Belgrave Brewer said:


> 1st year Chinook and Victoria performing beyond my expectations. It would have been even better but had some wind damage from a storm in December that probably knocked off 20% of the growth. I'm going to have to get a windbreak on the Southern side.


I've clearly done something wrong..... Perhaps because I live in the wrong state....


----------



## Rocker1986

Matplat said:


> I've clearly done something wrong..... Perhaps because I live in the wrong state....


I'm led to believe they do flower less up here than down south. Mine certainly don't look anything like that either, although they are flowering. I just had some Maxibloom arrive yesterday, will be interesting to see what that does to them.


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Lumber09 said:


> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1453935999.803459.jpg
> Hi all,
> Any thoughts on this Cascade Hop Cone? It's roughly 55-60mm in length but has several leaves protruding from the cone itself. Theres a few on the plant but generally was from the first few to appear.


Mutation! Climate change? Nice photo it looks like some exotic tropical something.


----------



## Mardoo

Lumber09 said:


> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1453935999.803459.jpg
> Hi all,
> Any thoughts on this Cascade Hop Cone? It's roughly 55-60mm in length but has several leaves protruding from the cone itself. Theres a few on the plant but generally was from the first few to appear.


Just hops being hops. A few of my varieties have thrown those from time to time. Just pick off the leafy bit before you dry them, and if you can't be arsed it will make little difference.


----------



## Lumber09

Mardoo said:


> Just hops being hops. A few of my varieties have thrown those from time to time. Just pick off the leafy bit before you dry them, and if you can't be arsed it will make little difference.


Yeah, figured as much. Just making sure it wasn't caused by the fertilizer schedule or something. They have been getting Seasol about every 2 weeks and then pot ash once the burrs emerged. Got some monster cones on it, up to 7cm in length, not that I'm complaining!! Only a 2nd year plant too.


----------



## sponge

Time to harvest the 1st year cascades! Really happy with how they came along for 1st years.. always a talking point for guests when they see them at the front door as well.

A few burrs forming on the chinook (around window) with no signs of burrs yet from the goldings.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Never thought you would get them to grow downwards, must have taken a lot of tying up.


----------



## sponge

I'd let the bines get a couple of feet long and tie them down along the finishing line. Continued to do that every few days. I'm also quite surprised how well it they went. Granted, the growing tip on the left bine broke when I was winding it down one day which is why it's a bit shorter than the other. Hopefully I'll get them all the way to the bottom next year..


----------



## sponge

When I say tie them down, I mean just trained them around the fishing line in a clockwise direction going down. They'd try to grow back up and may lose a couple of rotations around the string but for the most part they played nicely.


----------



## Rocker1986

I did something similar with one of mine, not vertically but growing in a downward direction. I probably didn't leave it grow long enough each time before wrapping it around the string, because in the end it just stopped growing any further and formed a cone on its end.


----------



## mofox1

The early flowers (would have reached full size by early /mid December) are now browning and falling off.

Bit sad, but the plants are now recovered from storms and odd early hot spells and have a heap of new laterals with hundreds of new burrs.


----------



## BottloBill

All mine are going through a second and third growth stage.


----------



## DU99

This plant was grown from unwanted runner(vine)..put in a pot last year and it took..its only about 2metres tall..But it has flowers


----------



## Benn

My Victoria is starting to Burr up 



Exiting times!


----------



## Hpal

1st year Goldings from a cutting the size of a worm and it's also in a small pot. Heavy with burrs and cones


----------



## Hpal

Lumber09 said:


> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1453935999.803459.jpg
> Hi all,
> Any thoughts on this Cascade Hop Cone? It's roughly 55-60mm in length but has several leaves protruding from the cone itself. Theres a few on the plant but generally was from the first few to appear.


My Goldings is doing this too but only on the cones that are on the end of a bine


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Hpal said:


> 1st year Goldings from a cutting the size of a worm and it's also in a small pot. Heavy with burrs and cones


Don't be surprised if a bid for freedom has been initiated by the rhizome through the 'small pot's drainage holes'.


----------



## Benn

Benn said:


> My Victoria is starting to Burr up
> 
> 
> 
> image.jpeg
> Exiting times!


Chinook has just started popping out little burrs as well, ....they came at the same time
I got some "Sulphate of potash" fertiliser from bunnings last night, hope they like it.


----------



## neal32

Some cones are starting to fall off brown so i went around and picked the browning/ papery ones today. There is maybe 4 times that left! I should be right for hops in the near future.


----------



## ken_gilchrist

I have just moved to Canberra from Darwin and I am keen to try and grow some of my own hopps. Is now the ideal time to pot in Canberra?


----------



## Drew

A bit early. Ideal time is after the last frost of winter.

If you are looking at scoring/buying hop rhizomes, you'll be waiting until mid year or so. The Canberra Brewers club usually has plenty of people growing hops with rhizomes to sell or share. (Come along tonight and say g'day!).


----------



## Camo6

The last frost in Canberra? So around late December then?


----------



## ken_gilchrist

Drew said:


> A bit early. Ideal time is after the last frost of winter.
> 
> If you are looking at scoring/buying hop rhizomes, you'll be waiting until mid year or so. The Canberra Brewers club usually has plenty of people growing hops with rhizomes to sell or share. (Come along tonight and say g'day!).


Whats on tonight Drew? keen to get into some homebrew clubs down here


----------



## Hpal

wide eyed and legless said:


> Don't be surprised if a bid for freedom has been initiated by the rhizome through the 'small pot's drainage holes'.


You're spot on mate! Tried to move the pot, hmmmm, it's stuck  Will have to try and get all the roots out before I plant the garden with cascade


----------



## Hpal

neal32 said:


> Some cones are starting to fall off brown so i went around and picked the browning/ papery ones today. There is maybe 4 times that left! I should be right for hops in the near future.


where did you find your custom made hop dryer Neal?


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

I still can't believe these were rhizomes 6 months ago. Blows my mind.


----------



## Yob

Dude!!

For real...


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Yob said:


> Dude!!
> 
> For real...


Yeah YOB, for real. Not sure if these were the ones I bought off you or Mardoo. Let me know if you want to come have a look. And...that's with wind damage.


----------



## Mardoo

Awesome! Having a harvest party? Love to come help.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Mardoo said:


> Awesome! Having a harvest party? Love to come help.


I am Mardoo...not sure when yet. I'll be doing some top picking on Tuesday if they are ready. I'd say the harvest party is 4 weeks away for the core picking. I'll make sure to invite you...most of these are your babies. I'm all new at this and am learning as I go.


----------



## Yob

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Yeah YOB, for real. Not sure if these were the ones I bought off you or Mardoo. Let me know if you want to come have a look. And...that's with wind damage.


Sure do.. However, I didn't let you buy them off me, but I will accept a beer one day


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Yob said:


> Sure do.. However, I didn't let you buy them off me, but I will accept a beer one day


That's true...I remember your fine donation.


----------



## Stu Brew

Better show off what happened in SA......Here is my epic Columbus hedge....very much a success!!! 

So much for me just knowing how to mow lawns ey......

I did try to point out Im a horticulturalist so I kinda know what im doing with plants.....but hey.....not many people around as crazy as me so....not hard feelings!!! 

The colours are a bit out because im on a 2mp camera atm.....long boring story....


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Looking good Stu!


----------



## BottloBill

Yeah that's right....Dwarf cluster saga wasn't it 

I must say you've done well.


----------



## Stu Brew

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Looking good Stu!


Did you see our article in Craftypint on Monday? Lets just say I wasnt expecting this to happen in my first year. Massive plans for next year now....got my dwarf setup all ready to go and then going to put in extra big infrastructure to do at least 200 columbus rhizomes next year!! 

http://craftypint.com/news/1168/A_Glimmer_Of_Hops


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

BottloBill said:


> Yeah that's right....Dwarf cluster saga wasn't it
> 
> I must say you've done well.


I've had some of that 'dwarf' Cluster come good...well over 4 meters high this year.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Stu Brew said:


> Did you see our article in Craftypint on Monday? Lets just say I wasnt expecting this to happen in my first year. Massive plans for next year now....got my dwarf setup all ready to go and then going to put in extra big infrastructure to do at least 200 columbus rhizomes next year!!
> 
> http://craftypint.com/news/1168/A_Glimmer_Of_Hops


Yep...good read. Congrats!!!


----------



## Stu Brew

Belgrave Brewer said:


> I've had some of that 'dwarf' Cluster come good...well over 4 meters high this year.


I got mostly crowns and its 95% failed. I dont really mind as Ill move the golding into that 200 plot 3.5m system later this year. I suspect they dwarfed due to sandstone not to deep under them. If plants roots hit rock they'll stunt if htey cant get the water and nutrients they are looking for. I suspect that the dwarf will revert into normal cluster again for anyone thats having luck with it. Could be different due to it stunting....just watch your crop numbers Id pull it if you're getting low numbers of flowers.


----------



## BottloBill

It was mostly to do with the failure at HPA and that it allows the smaller guys an opportunity to shine through and help out the industry where needed. I however feel it is unfortunate it's blokes like yourself that don't have access to the types of varieties that are needed to pick up the pieces when the big boys are down


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Stu Brew said:


> I got mostly crowns and its 95% failed. I dont really mind as Ill move the golding into that 200 plot 3.5m system later this year. I suspect they dwarfed due to sandstone not to deep under them. If plants roots hit rock they'll stunt if htey cant get the water and nutrients they are looking for. I suspect that the dwarf will revert into normal cluster again for anyone thats having luck with it. Could be different due to it stunting....just watch your crop numbers Id pull it if you're getting low numbers of flowers.


Bummer. 5 out of 30 cluster rhizomes did not survive. Only lost 4 out of 150 in other varieties, but luckily had extra and replaced them.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

BottloBill said:


> It was mostly to do with the failure at HPA and that it allows the smaller guys an opportunity to shine through and help out the industry where needed. I however feel it is unfortunate it's blokes like yourself that don't have access to the types of varieties that are needed to pick up the pieces when the big boys are down


Agreed...would love to be growing other varieties.


----------



## BottloBill

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Agreed...would love to be growing other varieties.


It will happen one dayB)


----------



## Stu Brew

Well its is about offering different things. Im in talks with some viticulturalists because rhizomes and they've been studied a great deal. There is a whole bunch of rhizomes here that all started out the same 30-40 years ago and have all completely changed genetics now just due to soil water and micro climates. Rhizomes technically should do the same. So anything we put in as independent growers will eventually hybradise into something similar but not the same as the parent plants. 

I couldnt believe that they posted our article followed by the HPA article. Stuff has gone off the charts here....kind of strange that Coopers has been the only brewery to contact me so far. Still were a couple of weeks off....Im doing a test today but we're still up around the 90% wet mark so its at least a week before anything gets picked. The columbus smells so amazingly good very Honey Dew mellon with a hint of passion fruit atm. I bet anything that they're completely different to a US Columbus already. Then you hear things like Cascade dont aroma up very well here....all sort of misinformation I have and will need to disprove as we get more experienced. 

Very keen its a very very interesting plant thats for sure! Happy to be able to specialise in something as a horty....instead of being good at all of it but not a master of anything!


----------



## Stu Brew

For a start. Ive had two rhizomes growing in a bucket of water for 5 months now, no air sitting in part sun.....So they defineatly like water  plus I got to see how the bines work the rhizomes will throw out shoots anything that goes down will pick up water for the rhizomes to bulk up. Each bine will put out its own roots in the top 6 inches under the soil. So this is where mulching really really comes in. You want to be able to feed your rhizomes by the bines...forget about the rhizomes and just concentrate on getting the individual bines what they need through the year as they have their own seperate fine roots for picking up water and nutrients. Where as the rhizome will throw down really fat deep roots to crack into the water table! IVe learnt a ton about these things in 1 year....3-5 years....well should be supplying hopefully a good few micros in SA. Its still farming though....high risk crops. Just lucky we have a great clean water supply here that has helped probably more than anything else. 

Edited due to mixing things up.....fixed now.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Really interesting subject, hop rhizomes actually travel laterally, the reason they do this is they are looking for a host plant (tree) something for the bines to climb up. The root is split into sections the root cap is the tip of the root which senses the environment and protects the root, next is the Meristem this is region where the cells rapidly divide elongate and bend next is the transition zone which is electrically active and is thought to be the nerve centre of the plant and where the oxygen is used and what some believe is the brain of the plant.
Darwin was the first to suggest plant had a brain in the root, and they know the difference between movement from the wind or something touching it, the hops first cousin is notorious for this, touch one plant and they all start to give off a scent I suppose its something like a pheromone that's why they have extractor fans in a grow room. 
And I wish I could stop referring to cones as buds.


----------



## Stu Brew

wide eyed and legless said:


> Really interesting subject, hop rhizomes actually travel laterally, the reason they do this is they are looking for a host plant (tree) something for the bines to climb up. The root is split into sections the root cap is the tip of the root which senses the environment and protects the root, next is the Meristem this is region where the cells rapidly divide elongate and bend next is the transition zone which is electrically active and is thought to be the nerve centre of the plant and where the oxygen is used and what some believe is the brain of the plant.
> Darwin was the first to suggest plant had a brain in the root, and they know the difference between movement from the wind or something touching it, the hops first cousin is notorious for this, touch one plant and they all start to give off a scent I suppose its something like a pheromone that's why they have extractor fans in a grow room.
> And I wish I could stop referring to cones as buds.


Yay I like plant nerds....have you looked into Silica? we'll be testing next year  although it raises PH so not much good unless you have scope for liming and were at about 5.5Ph so should be fine to have a play with!!!


----------



## wide eyed and legless

I read an article or saw some old footage of the hop farmers in Kent liming the fields each autumn and I didn't know why, I know it replaces calcium and magnesium back into the soil but it is really slow release and it is advisable to only lime every 3 years, all I can think of is it could have been old film footage and it was the year they limed the fields.
If you use Seasol there is no need to use any other silica product.


----------



## Stu Brew

wide eyed and legless said:


> I read an article or saw some old footage of the hop farmers in Kent liming the fields each autumn and I didn't know why, I know it replaces calcium and magnesium back into the soil but it is really slow release and it is advisable to only lime every 3 years, all I can think of is it could have been old film footage and it was the year they limed the fields.
> If you use Seasol there is no need to use any other silica product.


Nah I dont touch seasol. Our water is at 40-100ppm coming out of our springs that the yabbies live in....that gets used to water the hops with. The only thing that is depleted in the soil is nitrogen. That keeps dropping as the yabbies grow but the phosphorus climbs due to them processing the waste matter in the springs. We feed them fruit. Liming has always been used as a way to increase and stabalise the soil Ph in agricultural  the more run off from cattle/sheep you have will raise nitrogen but drop Ph......thats why the old kent guys wouldve been liming their soil every few years. All that waste would've been coming down the rivers and streams in their water back then!!!


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Are you using aquaculture to farm yabbies and raise plants?


----------



## Stu Brew

wide eyed and legless said:


> Are you using aquaculture to farm yabbies and raise plants?


I didnt really know when we bought this place that the old owner had started to breed yabbies. They were endemic to the water course we live on. I built a solar solar air pump to help circulate the water and stop it settling to much in the ponds they live in. We're going for a land based aquaculture licence so we can sell the yabbies. We're not raising plants we're actually using that same water for the orchard and hops. Not sure if we're a first but probably close to it!! 

Golding started to crank now.


----------



## Stu Brew

Golding is just moving now. They're coming on very strong!!

Better throw in a large Cherax destructor we pulled up the other day. Just so ppl know im not just one of the full of BS internet guys.....again....


----------



## wide eyed and legless

I would rather yabbies than crays, defuckinlicious.


----------



## shaunous

Well my Cascade are on their 4th year, and this year I have 2 lonesome hops between the 2 plants. 2 bloody hop flowers. Jesus!!!! (That's up 2 on previous years, never had a single hop flower before)



On other news, im a Blue Claw/Cray Bob/Cray Fish/Yabbie lover myself Stu Brew. Slayed them at New Years up at the farm. Fed the lads on our annual boys weekend a treat.


----------



## Brewhart

Hey guys just wondering if this browning of the hops is normal?


----------



## Rocker1986

I think it is, and I stand corrected but I am led to believe it means they're over ripe, i.e. been left too long before picking? :unsure:


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Brewhart said:


> Hey guys just wondering if this browning of the hops is normal?
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1454970025.606857.jpg


I'd say they are ready to be picked. This might help you determine Brewhard.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlsT-x19III


----------



## Matplat

shaunous said:


> Well my Cascade are on their 4th year, and this year I have 2 lonesome hops between the 2 plants. 2 bloody hop flowers. Jesus!!!! (That's up 2 on previous years, never had a single hop flower before)


I would have given up well before now....


----------



## shaunous

Matplat said:


> I would have given up well before now....



Lucky they're not a labour intensive plant. And I have them in decent sized pots.


----------



## Camo6

shaunous said:


> Lucky they're not a labour intensive plant. And I have them in decent sized pots.



You're not the only one with a lousy harvest Shaunous.
I took mine out of 100l pots last year and transferred the whole root crown into the ground. Must admit I was a bit neglectful and didn't do much fertilising or soil treatment and it's the first year they haven't made it to the top of the trellis. No great loss as I still haven't used the POR from my first year of growing four years ago.
Gonna try and build some raised garden beds this year for a decent veggie patch. Think I'll grab a few rhizomes from the root ball and just start again. From memory their first and second years were still the best harvest.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Camo6 said:


> You're not the only one with a lousy harvest Shaunous.
> I took mine out of 100l pots last year and transferred the whole root crown into the ground. Must admit I was a bit neglectful and didn't do much fertilising or soil treatment and it's the first year they haven't made it to the top of the trellis. No great loss as I still haven't used the POR from my first year of growing four years ago.
> Gonna try and build some raised garden beds this year for a decent veggie patch. Think I'll grab a few rhizomes from the root ball and just start again. From memory their first and second years were still the best harvest.


Camo6, my rhizomes outperformed the crowns I bought and put into ground this season. I'm convinced transplanting crowns can shock them a bit. They'll still produce, but they might need a full season to recuperate.


----------



## Camo6

I reckon you might be on to something there Belgrave Brewer. Probably a case of supply Vs demand.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Camo6 said:


> Must admit I was a bit neglectful and didn't do much fertilising or soil treatment and it's the first year they haven't made it to the top of the trellis.


There is your problem BB's right there they will get, not so much a shock ,but they do stress, its amazing how much a plant responds to TLC, transplant with some slow release fertiliser and a couple of banana skins, make up a mix to 10 litres of water, 1/2 cup of Charlie Carp, 1 Cup Seasol, 3 teaspoons of Zinc Sulphate, 3 teaspoons Epsom Salts. Mix well. 
Dilute the mixture 1/2 a litre to 5 litres in a sprayer and spray on the leaves, underneath as well, you can use it on your vegies and citrus trees they love it, not on a hot day though.


----------



## Benn

I've noticed some browning of the tentacles, only on the odd cone, most are looking normal. Could it be windburn?


----------



## H0U5ECAT

I planted mine back in August. Centennial.
My vine won't go higher than my head and no flowers yet.

Anyone else having issues or does this sound normal?


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Benn: That looks fine. They can get wind and sunburn but those tentacles shrivel and then the yellow sticky Lupulin develops in the cone/leaves that cover the hairs. Lookin good. 

HOU5CAT: If its not flowering yet it should be still growing in height/ length. My cascade are flowering about 2 weeks earlier than last year. Harvesting was right in late March. Feed them well like mentioned above. Diluted fertilizer instead of just water.


----------



## Brewhart

Thanks Belgrave Brewer that vid was good I'll have a look and feel of hops tonight


----------



## Camo6

wide eyed and legless said:


> There is your problem BB's right there they will get, not so much a shock ,but they do stress, its amazing how much a plant responds to TLC, transplant with some slow release fertiliser and a couple of banana skins, make up a mix to 10 litres of water, 1/2 cup of Charlie Carp, 1 Cup Seasol, 3 teaspoons of Zinc Sulphate, 3 teaspoons Epsom Salts. Mix well.
> Dilute the mixture 1/2 a litre to 5 litres in a sprayer and spray on the leaves, underneath as well, you can use it on your vegies and citrus trees they love it, not on a hot day though.


I'll be sure to give that recipe a go Weal. Wasn't a case of deliberate neglect but the garden had to sit on the backburner last year. New career, working weekends, building the shed and two young uns has taken all my time.
Now things are stabilising, the plan is to build some raised beds to accomodate better soil and put in an automated watering system.


----------



## Rocker1986

Thanks for that video BB, certainly helped me a bit. I picked some of my Hallertau today that exhibited the traits he showed and described for ones that are ready, and I could tell some of the others weren't ready because they felt moist and were still bright green. The ones I picked were browning and felt dry and papery and sounded it as well. I'm reasonably confident now that they haven't been picked too early.


----------



## Lumber09

H0U5ECAT said:


> I planted mine back in August. Centennial.
> My vine won't go higher than my head and no flowers yet.
> 
> Anyone else having issues or does this sound normal?


Centennial?? Where can I get rhizomes for that?


----------



## Yob

2nded


----------



## BottloBill

3rd dibs on the Centennial


----------



## Mardoo

Dayum. I'll go for sloppy, sloppy fourths.


----------



## Danscraftbeer

:lol: Hops whatever! I cant think there is a Holy Grail to be found in unobtainable breeds. Oh shit! Is that Blasphemy?
What about the blendomutations of the obtainables? Not worthy?


----------



## Benn

My mate bought a Centennial zome off eBay, the seller had a few varieties on offer from memory. 
It was very late in the planting season.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Benn said:


> I've noticed some browning of the tentacles, only on the odd cone, most are looking normal. Could it be windburn?
> 
> 
> 
> image.jpeg


Mine did the same during the heat. Don't stress. keep them watered well and if they have enough nutrients, they'll be just fine.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

5th'ed'did on the Centennial.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Rocker1986 said:


> Thanks for that video BB, certainly helped me a bit. I picked some of my Hallertau today that exhibited the traits he showed and described for ones that are ready, and I could tell some of the others weren't ready because they felt moist and were still bright green. The ones I picked were browning and felt dry and papery and sounded it as well. I'm reasonably confident now that they haven't been picked too early.


No worries. My first year growing at largish scale. I've spent so much time researching and in the hop field this year, learning as I go. I don't have much experience but I'm happy to share what I've learned. Watched this today and figure I'll be picking Cascade this weekend, Victory and possibly some Chinook next week. Keep a close eye on your hops...things can change quickly. They won't all be ready at the same time on the same plant, or the same variety of plant next to it.

I'm sure there are people here that can better advise. Mardoo, Yob, and Wide eyed and legless have a lot more experience and have provided great input.


----------



## blotto

I'd go 6thhhhhssss on Centennial but I'm in bloody WA


----------



## The Judge

Unofficial route required Wort! 7ths


----------



## DU99

IS it genuine i would be asking :icon_offtopic:


----------



## Alex.Tas

After some decent wind in hobart earlier in the growing season, i was a little worried for my plants. Luckly they have bounced backand bushed out a bit. 

The chinook, cascade and columbus all are looking good to me.






Also, this last photo is of a cutting i took earlier this year. seems to be going off its nut!

I probably had around a 70% mortality rate on the cuttings as a whole as the automatic watering system malfunctioned and they didn't get enough water while i was away. Still, I'm stoked with the 30% that did survive!


----------



## Rocker1986

Belgrave Brewer said:


> No worries. They won't all be ready at the same time on the same plant, or the same variety of plant next to it.


Yes, I have noticed this. It's a bit annoying since I'm only getting a few grams at a time being a first year plant in a pot and not on a particularly high trellis/frame. I do however have plans to increase the planting medium to large raised garden beds and build taller trellises during the winter, so might get better results next season. I still consider this season a success though, getting them to grow and produce at least some flowers.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

I reckon I'll start picking this weekend on Cascade, and high probability of Victoria and Chinook next week, at least up the top of a few of the plants.

Victoria hop pictured below, description says light colored lupulin but this certainly is not light colored...is it?


----------



## Brewhart

Looks a similar colour to my Victoria, picked about 20% of it today my cascade is maybe a week 10 days behind, but I started it much later.


----------



## BottloBill

Belgrave Brewer said:


> I reckon I'll start picking this weekend on Cascade, and high probability of Victoria and Chinook next week, at least up the top of a few of the plants.
> 
> Victoria hop pictured below, description says light colored lupulin but this certainly is not light colored...is it?


Mmm sticky icky icky!


----------



## MitchD

My Tettnang copped a beating from the wind so only has a few small cones which smell amazing. My chinook however is covered in cones which have no real aroma and only a dusting of lupulin inside the cone. Is this right and they just need time to mature, or are they a dud this year?


----------



## WayneCP86

Does anyone taste the lupulin off the flower? Or is it too entense to be worthwhil?


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

MitchD said:


> My Tettnang copped a beating from the wind so only has a few small cones which smell amazing. My chinook however is covered in cones which have no real aroma and only a dusting of lupulin inside the cone. Is this right and they just need time to mature, or are they a dud this year?


Need more time...check the video a few pages back on when to harvest.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

WayneCP86 said:


> Does anyone taste the lupulin off the flower? Or is it too entense to be worthwhil?


Have a taste! I do. It is bitter but worth it.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Belgrave Brewer said:


> I reckon I'll start picking this weekend on Cascade, and high probability of Victoria and Chinook next week, at least up the top of a few of the plants.
> 
> Victoria hop pictured below, description says light colored lupulin but this certainly is not light colored...is it?


That looks spot on.


----------



## Mardoo

Just chew a cone ya daft young *****! Didja replace your willy with your Mama!


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Considering they use hops for making tranquilizer darts I don't think I would be eating any, or would I.


----------



## WayneCP86

Tranquilizer you say?? Hrrmmm lol


----------



## Alex.Tas

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Have a taste! I do. It is bitter but worth it.


No. It really isn't! 
last time i had a taste of a hop cone (Helga) i struggled to get the taste our of my mouth for around an hour.
I like Helga hops. But i like them in beer.


----------



## Spiesy

Third year Cascade. The cones are massive!

Looking forward to using these.


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Belgrave Brewer said:


> I reckon I'll start picking this weekend on Cascade, and high probability of Victoria and Chinook next week, at least up the top of a few of the plants.
> 
> Victoria hop pictured below, description says light colored lupulin but this certainly is not light colored...is it?


My Victoria are only in burs and small developing stage at the moment. I think a month off harvesting yet. The Cascade are later than that. Just saying out of interest I'm in Frankston Vic. I am in a semi shade situation though. Last year harvest was late March.
When they're ripe they're ripe!


----------



## Matplat

Most of my plants have zero burrs at the moment, at this stage of the game, is it likely that they will produce this season? Or is that question too subjective? They are all first year plants...


----------



## Stu Brew

Matplat said:


> Most of my plants have zero burrs at the moment, at this stage of the game, is it likely that they will produce this season? Or is that question too subjective? They are all first year plants...


You may be surprised. My columbus are almost ready...two weeks. My Golding have just started to flower massively now. So they're at least another month away. Really depends on the sun they're getting. 22+ nodes is the magic number if they get that many nodes you'll get cones!!! 

Thats what the golding look like now...big but still very open and just growing pistils now....so still 6 weeks off!!


----------



## Rocker1986

Probably depends a bit on variety as well. I have a Hallertau and a Fuggle, both in practically the same conditions. The Fuggle has about 4 or 5 cones on it and about the same amount of burrs, whereas the Hallertau has upwards of 100 (combined cones and burrs). These are both first year plants too and I wasn't really sure what to expect in terms of flowering. I didn't expect as much as the Hallertau has produced though. Hard to say if you'll definitely get cones or not, guess it's just a wait and see game.


----------



## Stu Brew

Climbed up the windmill to take a perspective shot....


----------



## Matplat

I'm thinking my sideways trellising has let me down, still loads of growth out of the pot, but very little growth up/along the line. As though it's trying to find new lines to grow vertically up because it doesn't like going along....

I'l have to change that next year.....


----------



## Curly79

Victoria. Going pretty well. 




First year cluster. 




First year cascade. 




P.O.R. Taking over the back porch.


----------



## Curly79

Matplat said:


> I'm thinking my sideways trellising has let me down, still loads of growth out of the pot, but very little growth up/along the line. As though it's trying to find new lines to grow vertically up because it doesn't like going along....
> 
> I'l have to change that next year.....


Get them in the ground and give them something vertical to climb up mate. How old are they?


----------



## sponge

Shouldn't have too much of an issue with sideways trellising. I've got a photo in here somewhere of my first year cascades around the front door which go up, sideways then back down. So far already picked 500g of (wet) flowers.


----------



## Stu Brew

Its all about the 22 node mark!!!! Then the early nodes grow up the main bine and then well....that.....


----------



## Matplat

Curly79 said:


> Get them in the ground and give them something vertical to climb up mate. How old are they?


All first years... i didn't think disturbing the roots at this stage would be a good idea??


----------



## Curly79

Sorry. Next year I mean.


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Stu Brew said:


> Its all about the 22 node mark!!!! Then the early nodes grow up the main bine and then well....that.....
> 
> 
> 
> lovethycolumbus.jpg


Wow they look great. So does that interesting Orb/Jellyfish looking UFO! h34r:


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

First pickings of Chinook this week. The next 2 weeks are going to be very busy. Spot picking this weekend either on the ladder or the platform if it gets finished in time. I've put 13%AA on the packages as a reminder to myself, but have no idea what the actual AA% is. Made a hop tea with 5 dried hops, let it steep for 20 mins and the bitterness was strong.


----------



## pat_00

Make an arrogant bastard clone! That's what I did with my Chinook harvest from last year. Best batch of beer I've made!

My hops are stuffed this year  too many whiteflies and something has been making the leaves yellow a bit. Next season I will be moving the bines to a sunnier spot and building a proper trellis thing.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Made a hop tea with 5 dried hops, let it steep for 20 mins and the bitterness was strong.


Did you drink it all or just taste it?


----------



## Rocker1986

Is it normal for the leaves on bines that have had cones picked off them to start browning off after picking the cones? Because a couple of mine have done this. Not particularly worried about it since they aren't producing any more cones but just curious.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

wide eyed and legless said:


> Did you drink it all or just taste it?


Drank it all


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

pat_00 said:


> Make an arrogant bastard clone! That's what I did with my Chinook harvest from last year. Best batch of beer I've made!
> 
> My hops are stuffed this year  too many whiteflies and something has been making the leaves yellow a bit. Next season I will be moving the bines to a sunnier spot and building a proper trellis thing.


I may just do that. But, I have committed around 100kg all up to 2 collaboration brews first. Then whatever is left will go towards working on a recipe to release commercially later this year.


----------



## Curly79

100kg into 2 Brews! I wanna see the size of your Kettle!


----------



## Matplat

Belgrave Brewer said:


> First pickings of Chinook this week. The next 2 weeks are going to be very busy. Spot picking this weekend either on the ladder or the platform if it gets finished in time. I've put 13%AA on the packages as a reminder to myself, but have no idea what the actual AA% is. Made a hop tea with 5 dried hops, let it steep for 20 mins and the bitterness was strong.


Are you going to have them tested for AA%? I am assuming by the scale of the plantation that you have generated that it is a commercial enterprise?.... or you just reaaaaallllly like brewing?


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Matplat said:


> Are you going to have them tested for AA%? I am assuming by the scale of the plantation that you have generated that it is a commercial enterprise?.... or you just reaaaaallllly like brewing?


I won't have them tested yet. Maybe in year 3 when AA is more stable. I'm only using this crop for late hop additions and wet/dry hopping, so IBU is minimal if any.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Rocker1986 said:


> Is it normal for the leaves on bines that have had cones picked off them to start browning off after picking the cones? Because a couple of mine have done this. Not particularly worried about it since they aren't producing any more cones but just curious.


I'll have a look at the plants I have picked and see if the same thing is happening.


----------



## Yob

impromptu mini pick last night, probably 1/8 of the total and almost equals last years harvest already I think..


----------



## Hpal

My first year Goldings, 1.5kg wet and a couple of kg still to be picked. Now I need recipe suggestions! I'll do an ale of some sort, but what I'm really interested in is using these in a lager. Open to suggestions!


----------



## Curly79

Far out Hpal. Those cones are huge!!


----------



## BottloBill

Curly79 said:


> Far out Hpal. Those cones are huge!!


He just has really small hands


----------



## BottloBill

Hpal said:


> My first year Goldings, 1.5kg wet and a couple of kg still to be picked. Now I need recipe suggestions! I'll do an ale of some sort, but what I'm really interested in is using these in a lager. Open to suggestions!


Any chance you can show us a pic of a cone dissected long ways for colour reference Hpal?


----------



## Hpal

There were a few about 80mm long, probably averaged 50mm though. Quite a good size


----------



## Hpal

I'll pick a fresh one tomorrow and post a pic


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

A lot of the pics I'm seeing of picked hops, here and other places, look a bit young to me to be harvested. I'm basing my timing to pick off of the video I posted a few pages back, and some research I've done about when to get the most out of aroma and flavour from homegrown hops.

I'm picking my hops when they are very ripe and just showing signs of browning, very papery, and bracts fall off when brushed backwards, center twig in the hop snaps when bent, and the lupulin is turning a darker more golden colour.

Just wondering what everyones thoughts are on this.


----------



## Yob

Personally, next week will be very busy and I dont want to miss them, I'll be slow drying and I'd say 50/50 were ready now and the rest will be fine over the drying period.. I'd rather pick a little early than a little late


----------



## mofox1

Got the tree lopper out last night and harvested from the top of the bines. A lot of the hops had browned off, I wasn't even going to pick them.... Impulse salvage. Glad I did though, half kilo wet!


----------



## Mardoo

Yob said:


> Personally, next week will be very busy and I dont want to miss them, I'll be slow drying and I'd say 50/50 were ready now and the rest will be fine over the drying period.. I'd rather pick a little early than a little late


Agreed. You don't want to pick late. I have and you won't like the results.


----------



## Hpal

This is a fresh one just for a dissection photo. I have been waiting till they no longer feel wet before picking when they just start to have a bit of crunch when squeezed and feel a bit drier and papery.


----------



## kunfaced

looks like it was still too early on that one


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Tested out our picking/work platform yesterday and very happy with it. It sill needs a floor and hand rail all around. I'll run center wires down each row next year and string the hops into a V shape and we'll cut the platform width in half once the wire works are complete.


----------



## Hpal

kunfaced said:


> looks like it was still too early on that one


"This is a fresh one just for a dissection photo"


----------



## Phoney

Kinda hard to tell but this is the top of a hessian bag. With Cascade and Chinook. I have two plants of each, and the vines grew and inter-mingled such that it is now almost impossible to tell them apart. Oh well, it's not a bad combo to use in an APA.

Just finished drying, 300g.


----------



## WayneCP86

Im getting excited and I dont even have a crop growing... I think all Im seeing is the potential rhizomes!!


----------



## MFleck

I believe these are Chinook, but if anyone is in the West of Melbourne and wants them - welcome to them as I don't brew anymore. They've gone crazy! Not sure if ready


----------



## BottloBill

MFleck said:


> I believe these are Chinook, but if anyone is in the West of Melbourne and wants them - welcome to them as I don't brew anymore. They've gone crazy! Not sure if ready


Someone who is looking to grow should jump on this offer and return when the rhizomes are dormant and have a dig fest


----------



## LiquidGold

MFleck said:


> I believe these are Chinook, but if anyone is in the West of Melbourne and wants them - welcome to them as I don't brew anymore. They've gone crazy! Not sure if ready


Looking pretty wild there! Is that Mugwort in the middle by any chance? I've got a small plant in a pot which needs potting up and was told if I put it in the ground I'd never get rid of it.

Back on topic - Is it possible for plants that didn't get enough water to simply not bother flowering? My drip system wasn't quite delivering what I thought it was and I fear I may have ruined this season although I got a small early crop from one of my cascades.


----------



## Yob

Yes indeed.. They need the water man, I also had irrigation issues and my Victoria and Cascade didn't flower..


----------



## MFleck

LiquidGold said:


> Looking pretty wild there! Is that Mugwort in the middle by any chance? I've got a small plant in a pot which needs potting up and was told if I put it in the ground I'd never get rid of it.


Yes, its a Artemisia of some description - Read that they were awesome for companion planting/natural pest control. Has indeed grown large. Whole garden is supposed to be herby/edible. Seems the hops like it too.

Also no pesticides/ herbicides etc were used. Chook, horse & sheep poo were tho.


----------



## LiquidGold

Yob said:


> Yes indeed.. They need the water man, I also had irrigation issues and my Victoria and Cascade didn't flower..


Ah nasty. Thanks for the heads up, I've found that gravity fed can lead to inconsistencies pretty easily although I might still uprade my water storage barrel to an IBC to get more pressure and longer lasting volume. Since I've expanded the dirt vege patch there are way too many drippers on the one circuit also doing the hops and I simply wasn't checking the drippers and barrel often enough.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Yob said:


> Yes indeed.. They need the water man, I also had irrigation issues and my Victoria and Cascade didn't flower..


I will have some extra dried YOB once harvest is complete. If you want wet, once my commitment of 40kgs is done, you're welcome to pick.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Brew day yesterday at Kooinda Boutique Brewery with my hops. Hops were dried and packaged the day before. We'll be stuffing 40kgs of wet hops into the secondary once fermentation is complete.

Going into kegs and will be available at Oscar's Alehouse, Kooinda Boutique Brewing, Carwyn Cellars, Bad Shepherd Brewing, and many other fine establishments.


----------



## cspencer

Did a brew Tuesday Night and used some of my first year chinook (wet) late in the boil. 23grams in total in a 23lt batch, so who know if i'll even know they are in there by the end. but hey it was fun having to climb on the roof before the storm rolled in to cut down some hops.

There is a fair amount of Chinook left on the bines so looking forward to using them also


----------



## cspencer

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Going into kegs and will be available at Oscar's Alehouse


Keep us updated when it's ready, very keen to try this one.


----------



## DU99

any going out to the western suburbs (the park/hophead/valley cellars)


----------



## Mardoo

Awesome BB! Sweet victory, eh? Congratulations.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Clayton Spencer said:


> Keep us updated when it's ready, very keen to try this one.


Will do!


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

DU99 said:


> any going out to the western suburbs (the park/hophead/valley cellars)


Not sure...I'll try and get the word out when I have a bit of free time. If you want it at a specific place, ask the venue to contact Kooinda to order a keg.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Mardoo said:


> Awesome BB! Sweet victory, eh? Congratulations.


Cheers Mardoo  Article coming out in Crafty soon as well. My fingernails are lupulin stained and the picking has only begun.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Brewers Gold! Harvest week begins.


----------



## Mardoo

Now THAT'S lupulin! Nice.


----------



## BottloBill

Belgrave Brewer said:


> Brewers Gold! Harvest week begins.


Damn you smellophone


----------



## sponge

Been hugging this girl?


----------



## beercus

Harvested 300g chinook yesterday, drying as I write. Thinking about making a chinook ( single hop) pale ale and was wondering if I go with the 13%alpha and leaf as stated by brew smith or should I adjust... 

First time brewing with my own hops, also first time brewing with chinook.....
Thanks
Beercus


----------



## Rocker1986

That's the problem with home grown hops, you don't really know what the AA% is. I have seen it advised before that they are better used as late/flameout/dry hop additions for this reason, rather than bittering additions.


----------



## beercus

Rocker1986 said:


> That's the problem with home grown hops, you don't really know what the AA% is. I have seen it advised before that they are better used as late/flameout/dry hop additions for this reason, rather than bittering additions.


So maybe use mosaic up to 25IBU from 60 mins, then do chinook at no chill (20min) and dry hop.

Thanks
Beercus


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Have you used Mosaic? its a pretty wild beast. It stands out no matter how you use it I have found. Not to say it doesn't make excellent beer it has a dominating flavour.
So I'm thinking I'd use some kind of neutral bittering hop like magna for at least half of the estimated bitterness. Then use and average calculation of your own grown hops. I've spent tediouse time working out averages of wet and dry hops. Gotta love it. :chug:
The idea to load up the flavour with your own hops. Big doses late boil with wet or dry hops and in a sock in the keg with wet or dry flowers.
Sorry just rambling. If you grow something yourself its important to get that fresh flavour out front for your efforts.
I'm very close to harvest time (rubbing hands together).


----------



## Rocker1986

You can probably get a ballpark figure from averages of commercially available hops of the same variety. I did see a rough way of working it out at home by making a hop tea with some of them, tasting it, then diluting it and repeating. The number of dilutions it takes before it stops tasting bitter is the approx. AA percentage. That's a very simplified explanation of it though... it is on this site, I found it through googling.


----------



## beercus

Danscraftbeer said:


> Have you used Mosaic?).


I'm a dick, I did mean magnum.... I have never used mosaic. Yes magnum is what I meant, just something with little flavour to bitter and then go with my chinook....

Thanks
Beercus


----------



## drsmurto

beercus said:


> Harvested 300g chinook yesterday, drying as I write. Thinking about making a chinook ( single hop) pale ale and was wondering if I go with the 13%alpha and leaf as stated by brew smith or should I adjust...
> 
> First time brewing with my own hops, also first time brewing with chinook.....
> Thanks
> Beercus


I've been using my homegrown hops for bittering, flavour and aroma for years now. It takes some trial and error so starting off with a known bittering hop is a sensible first point. 

Even brewed an all homegrown IIPA which was phenomenal.


----------



## Benn

Does this Victoria hop cone look like it's nearly ready for picking? The leaves have not turned fully "papery" yet so I'm guessing they're still a few days minimum away from being ready for harvest. My question is more to do with the colour of the Lupulin, I've heard it should darken when it's finally ready?
Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.



Cheers,


----------



## Benn

...Btw, it's smells unreal


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Looks about ready.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Benn said:


> Does this Victoria hop cone look like it's nearly ready for picking? The leaves have not turned fully "papery" yet so I'm guessing they're still a few days minimum away from being ready for harvest. My question is more to do with the colour of the Lupulin, I've heard it should darken when it's finally ready?
> Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> 
> 
> image.jpeg
> Cheers,


Definitely not ready.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

http://www.2nobledogsbrewing.com/2012/07/29/when-should-you-harvest-hops/


----------



## AJ80

Picked 67g (wet) of chinook last night - drying on screens and already down to 36g. While small, stoked to get any at all from a first year plant. Cascade not quite ready for picking and Mt hood a week away at least.


----------



## MitchD

I got 492g of wet Chinook on Saturday. Dried it and packaged only 100g today. I'm not sure it was really ready so good thing i left another 2-300g on the bines to ripen a bit more.


----------



## osprey brewday

Pulling out my goldings hops,rhizomes planted at start of this season strong growing but no fruit from the first crop.i dont want them to get mixed up with my cascade so am going to dig them up and just grow one type. Available for free. Pick up medowie or could drop off maitland/pokolbin area.


----------



## Lumber09

Got some serious picking coming up. One small bine picked for 400gm dried Chinook so far. Looks like I'll have the sticky black resin fingers for a couple of weeks!!


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Benn said:


> Does this Victoria hop cone look like it's nearly ready for picking? The leaves have not turned fully "papery" yet so I'm guessing they're still a few days minimum away from being ready for harvest. My question is more to do with the colour of the Lupulin, I've heard it should darken when it's finally ready?
> Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> 
> 
> image.jpeg
> Cheers,


I've just started picking some Victoria, it's lagging a bit behind the other varieties. It should look like this.


----------



## Alex.Tas

Belgrave Brewer said:


> I've just started picking some Victoria, it's lagging a bit behind the other varieties. It should look like this.


Have you been in the blackberry patch too?

Maybe its just the contrast with that gold lupulin that makes your hands look purple!


----------



## Mall

Help, what is causing this? All my runners have had there heads chewed off...Caterpillars? They are 1st year in largish pots and get a reasonable amount of feeding and water..


----------



## yeastybrew

Possums.


----------



## Rocker1986

Either caterpillars or grasshoppers. I've had a few grasshoppers on mine that haven't quite chewed the heads off but they have chewed off the leaves/leaf stems on some bines. I kill the bastards when I find them on there.

I did have one that had its head chewed off by something, probably a caterpillar. After a short while it simply threw out lateral shoots and these kept growing upwards, replacing the original 'stalk'.


----------



## wide eyed and legless

That's definitely possums if you are close to a fence get some of those spikes from Bunnings and put them either side of where they are growing.


----------



## WayneCP86

Ill be after some chinook and mt hood rhizomes when the times right guys! Harvests are looking good


----------



## Curly79

Birds also like to do that. Bastards. I get king parrots landing on the strings and nipping the runners off. Caterpillars and grasshoppers would probably eat the leaves before chewing through the main vine.


----------



## mofox1

Just downed the dozen odd Cascade bines... Let the picking commence!


----------



## mofox1

Got a wee bit over 1.5kg wet out of the above.

Shed now smells awesome, hops are in a 3m long "hop sock" strung up from the roof.


----------



## Yob

mofox1 said:


> Got a wee bit over 1.5kg wet out of the above.
> 
> Shed now smells awesome, hops are in a 3m long "hop sock" strung up from the roof.


get randy


----------



## mofox1

Yob said:


> get randy


If "wet", "sock", and "strung from roof" get you randy... well, I might just go postal for the next order.

:blink: h34r:...


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Damb if that's not a niche. Hop socks in black lace.


----------



## BottloBill

mofox1 said:


> Got a wee bit over 1.5kg wet out of the above.
> 
> Shed now smells awesome, hops are in a 3m long "hop sock" strung up from the roof.


Not to put a dampener on things.
I tried drying a small batch that way last season, rotated them with good airflow and still got mould.


----------



## mofox1

Worked great last year (not a guarantee it will work every time, I know).

I pinned the sides up to get the thing as flat as possible. Gave it a whack each time I went past to re-distribute... hoping the run of warm days here will give me the same result as last year.


----------



## Alex.Tas

Took a couple of photos of my hops for comparison.


This first one is my columbus. the cones haven't opened up much but are starting to dry out. 

The chinook on the other hand has opened out nicely and i think its pretty much ready to go. I'm pretty stoked on how they have turned out this year, compared to my measly 11g dry last year.





The light was starting to go, but here is a shot of the lupulin. look about right? it was darker than it was a week or so ago.




Do all varieties open up like the chinook before they are fully "ripe"?


----------



## AJ80

Snagged 280g wet of Mt hood (thanks again Mardoo!) and 150g wet of cascade - very happy with my results for first year plants.


----------



## spog

mofox1 said:


> If "wet", "sock", and "strung from roof" get you randy... well, I might just go postal for the next order.
> :blink: h34r:...


A wet what strung from the roof ?.......jeez where's a Mod when ya need one .


----------



## Curly79

Just finished picking the Victoria. The flowers are not as big as last year but still a decent crop[emoji106][emoji481].


----------



## Benn

Nice Haul!


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Been harvesting for over 3 weeks...even spent 6 hours today out there in 39C picking the last of the Victoria and packing up stuff picked over the weekend. Now I'm drinking a beer. I'll wrap the harvest up this weekend.

If you are out at the pubs in Melbourne in the next week or so, look out for Call of the Hops Wet hopped Harvest Ale. It's the beer I brewed with Kooinda with my hops, and it's hitting Oscar's Alehouse and Kooinda this weekend, and Carwyn Cellars, Bad Shepherd Brewing Co, Forrester's Beer Hall, and other fine craft beer venues from next week.


----------



## Curly79

Well done BB. That sounds like bloody hard work mate. I'll keep an eye out for the harvest Ale. How long does it take to dry the flowers. I can't remember if it's one week or two? For us at home I mean,not using commercial equipment.


----------



## MartinOC

Curly79 said:


> Just finished picking the Victoria. The flowers are not as big as last year but still a decent crop[emoji106][emoji481].
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1457420782.154162.jpg
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1457420810.050706.jpg


You definitely need a vac-sealer. I can help there...


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Curly79 said:


> Well done BB. That sounds like bloody hard work mate. I'll keep an eye out for the harvest Ale. How long does it take to dry the flowers. I can't remember if it's one week or two? For us at home I mean,not using commercial equipment.


I'm using a drying room with temp control heating, fans coming in the room, extraction fans going out of the room, and internal fans that keep air flowing over the hops. No commercial equipment, just using what I have. It was a propagation room. Takes about 2 days give or take to dry depending on humidity.


----------



## Mardoo

Awesome, awesome, awesome BB. I'll be seeing you this weekend


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

I just posted this to another topic but thought I'd share it here. If you are vacuum sealing and want to easily store your hops...

Build a stage the same height as where the bag roll comes out of the machine so the bag sits on top of it when vacuum sealing. Use something flat with some weight on the top of the bag when vacuum sealing (I'm using a piece of cardboard with a box of screws on top of it) and you'll make a flat pancake of your dried hops. So much easier to pack in the freezer that way.

Those uneven clumps of vacuum sealed hops are difficult to store.


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Mardoo said:


> Awesome, awesome, awesome BB. I'll be seeing you this weekend


First pint is on me Mardoo for all your help this year


----------



## Mardoo

:wub:


----------



## spog

Curly79 said:


> Well done BB. That sounds like bloody hard work mate. I'll keep an eye out for the harvest Ale. How long does it take to dry the flowers. I can't remember if it's one week or two? For us at home I mean,not using commercial equipment.


C79, maybe a build is in order for next years harvest.
I saw some where that BYO had pics of a drying box,it was about 900 mm cube with shelves for the racks inside ,it was on legs to allow for ventilation in through holes in the base with a 12 volt fan in the top to pull air through.
Drying hops in a box like this would help keep dust etc off of them if you do t have a dedicated area.


----------



## Curly79

spog said:


> C79, maybe a build is in order for next years harvest.
> I saw some where that BYO had pics of a drying box,it was about 900 mm cube with shelves for the racks inside ,it was on legs to allow for ventilation in through holes in the base with a 12 volt fan in the top to pull air through.
> Drying hops in a box like this would help keep dust etc off of them if you do t have a dedicated area.


Are you saying that chicken wire draped over two kegs and an esky then weighed down with a vacuum pump is not up to scratch?[emoji6]


But yes. Your right. Definitely next year. I should have a couple more varieties by then.


----------



## Curly79

spog said:


> C79, maybe a build is in order for next years harvest.
> I saw some where that BYO had pics of a drying box,it was about 900 mm cube with shelves for the racks inside ,it was on legs to allow for ventilation in through holes in the base with a 12 volt fan in the top to pull air through.
> Drying hops in a box like this would help keep dust etc off of them if you do t have a dedicated area.


Are you saying that chicken wire draped over two kegs and an esky then weighed down with a vacuum pump is not up to scratch?[emoji6]


But yes. Your right. Definitely next year. I should have a couple more varieties by then.


----------



## Alex.Tas

Harvested my Chinook the other day, managed to get a touch over a kilo wet. Its dried out to 240g, so I'm pretty happy with that, much more than last year. I had a few issues with soil quality and water frequency this year, so i reckon next year will be bigger and better!
as I don't have a vac sealer, put the dried hops into a ziplock and compressed them in a bench vice to make a hop brick. kind of like a plug, but flat. The ziplocks aren't air tight, but should do for storage for a week (in the freezer), by which time they will be vacuum sealed at our HB club meeting.





Also, when picking, next to where a bunch of cones were hanging on a bine, there were some knobbly things, that looked like really small cones. Not thin delicate things like burrs, but just like tiny bobbly bits. Any idea what these are?


----------



## Curly79

Dunno? Seeds?


----------



## Rocker1986

They kinda look like demented cones? :unsure:


----------



## Yob

Dwarf cluster..


----------



## BottloBill

Yob said:


> Dwarf cluster..


That's what Rocker1986 said.

No wait! He said demented cones, not demented zomes:lol:


----------



## Curly79

Dwarf Chinook?


----------



## Belgrave Brewer

Alex.Tas said:


> Harvested my Chinook the other day, managed to get a touch over a kilo wet. Its dried out to 240g, so I'm pretty happy with that, much more than last year. I had a few issues with soil quality and water frequency this year, so i reckon next year will be bigger and better!
> as I don't have a vac sealer, put the dried hops into a ziplock and compressed them in a bench vice to make a hop brick. kind of like a plug, but flat. The ziplocks aren't air tight, but should do for storage for a week (in the freezer), by which time they will be vacuum sealed at our HB club meeting.
> 
> 
> 
> 2016 Chinook.jpg
> 
> 
> Also, when picking, next to where a bunch of cones were hanging on a bine, there were some knobbly things, that looked like really small cones. Not thin delicate things like burrs, but just like tiny bobbly bits. Any idea what these are?
> 
> 
> 
> knobbly bits.jpg


I saw one of those today on my plant...mutation?


----------



## Danscraftbeer

Climate change. (couldn't help myself).

There just duds, I think. I got them less sparetic on the ends of my small vines. Not in a bunch like that though I still call it a dud bunch. Some critter may have nipped the feed vine.
Gotta love gardening.


----------



## Hpal

When winter comes, I'd like to see if anyone who has a saaz rhizome/crown would like to swap for a goldings crown or cluster or mt hood rhizome. Preferably local to Hunter Valley NSW


----------



## Mardoo

Out of that bunch I'd go for the Mt. Hood. Great hop and it grows well here.


----------



## neal32

353g First year chinook. More than i want so that's a win. Going to do a blonde ale to 25 ibus with a single 10 minute addition and dry hop it. Should take care of half the hops.


----------



## neal32

Dried out in a dehydrator with no heat for several days.


----------



## AJ80

neal32 said:


> 353g First year chinook. More than i want so that's a win. Going to do a blonde ale to 25 ibus with a single 10 minute addition and dry hop it. Should take care of half the hops.


I plan on doing something very similar with my Mt hood hops (but swap the dry hop for a cube hop only).


----------



## BottloBill

Sent the kids out to tend to the Chinook


----------



## mofox1

BottloBill said:


> Sent the kids out to tend to the Chinook


Gold. Exactly what happened to my Chinook too


----------



## BottloBill

mofox1 said:


> Gold. Exactly what happened to my Chinook too


I ran out of room on the rack, so it's about 3 layers deepB)


----------



## wide eyed and legless

Alex.Tas said:


> Also, when picking, next to where a bunch of cones were hanging on a bine, there were some knobbly things, that looked like really small cones. Not thin delicate things like burrs, but just like tiny bobbly bits. Any idea what these are?
> 
> 
> 
> knobbly bits.jpg


Could it be its end of season effort to produce a final fruiting?


----------



## Alex.Tas

This is my current hop plantation. It all got recycled into a basket.
Not super pretty, but not too bad for a first attempt. 

AHB.... Aussie Home Basketmaking?


----------



## DU99

Got about 85 grams off my small plant..got them drying...

Dried them Got 34 grams use in next beer


----------



## goatus

Alex.Tas said:


> Any idea what these are?
> 
> 
> 
> knobbly bits.jpg


Not 100% sure, but they look a bit like male flowers. Apparently hop plants can go hermaphrodite. I would chop them off. You don't want them fertilizing your hop cones, they are no good for brewing once they go to seed. You could do that on purpose and get some seeds, but 50% of the seedlings will be male, and again, you don't want them hanging around fertilizing your (and any neighbors) female plants. Be a responsible hop grower and spade and neuter your hop plants. haha.


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## BottloBill

Alex.Tas said:


> This is my current hop plantation. It all got recycled into a basket.
> Not super pretty, but not too bad for a first attempt.
> 
> AHB.... Aussie Home Basketmaking?
> IMG_3495.jpg IMG_3497.jpg


Look good with Easter eggs in them


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## Alex.Tas

goatus said:


> Not 100% sure, but they look a bit like male flowers. Apparently hop plants can go hermaphrodite. I would chop them off. You don't want them fertilizing your hop cones, they are no good for brewing once they go to seed. You could do that on purpose and get some seeds, but 50% of the seedlings will be male, and again, you don't want them hanging around fertilizing your (and any neighbors) female plants. Be a responsible hop grower and spade and neuter your hop plants. haha.


All good, I turned them into baskets!


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## wide eyed and legless

From what I have read only Cascade can change sex, and then it is only temporary, funny really when you consider its closest genetic relative.


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## Belgrave Brewer

goatus said:


> Not 100% sure, but they look a bit like male flowers. Apparently hop plants can go hermaphrodite. I would chop them off. You don't want them fertilizing your hop cones, they are no good for brewing once they go to seed. You could do that on purpose and get some seeds, but 50% of the seedlings will be male, and again, you don't want them hanging around fertilizing your (and any neighbors) female plants. Be a responsible hop grower and spade and neuter your hop plants. haha.


Yep, definitely Hermaphrodite. I have one as well, but have yet to find any seeds. Still looking into it, but apparently the seeds will be sterile. Damn...wanted some seeds to play with.


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## Benn

What's next? I picked my hops the other day, the vines seem to be fading off a bit, do I continue to fertilise them with Seasol/power feed & or potash or is there a better product for this stage of their cycle? They're first year plants in pots but I'm going to plant them in the ground for next season.
Cheers.


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## wide eyed and legless

You would have to check Benn (which lime)but the Kent hop growers throw down lime when the season finishes just to sweeten the soil then later add the compost. I think the liming was in a thread I posted about the American hop growers too.


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## Benn

Will do W.E.A.L, cheers


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## Danscraftbeer

2016 Harvest of hops: Saturday 18th March 2016. Frankston Victoria.

2nd season Cascade Hops. 1st Season Victoria Hops. 1st Season Chinook Hops.


Victoria on the growth, biggest flowers of the three breeds.








Victoria over Chilli's.




Victoria invading the adjacent greenhouse.




Chinook 2 of 1st season Ryzolme. 1 of two ryzolmes failed. It jumped the gun and sprung up eagerly in winter shortly after I planted it. It suffered and died off.
Note to growing hops in Victoria. Early starters are enthusiastic and exciting but can die off. Its later starters that really produce. Better to plant late winter maybe. Its a little confusing now days.









Cascade (added pics in the past) they are harder to photograph they are a canopy over the vegie garden. All picked now. First season I got 1.2kg wet. This season I got 1.56kg wet. They grow in wicking beds shared with subtoranian vegies.







Vacuum sealed packs of either wet Hops or Dried hops.


As for quoting the yield weights: with some gardeners enthusiasm it produced around 3.5kg wet hops in a scrawny backyard mostly shaded other than summer months. The hops are a side project anyhow.

PS.
I never believed I could grow organically for myself in such a small space but you want to see thefood I also grow in this scrawny little backyard.

Press on! its so good for you.


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## Benn

Nice Haul


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## Curly79

Just finished vac sealing my flowers and noticed a few of the Victoria's had a bit of mould. Do you think the fact that they will be boiled should sort out any nasties? Because I had so many i was a bit slack during the drying process. I'll have to get a proper drying frame before next year.


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## neal32

Curly79 said:


> Just finished vac sealing my flowers and noticed a few of the Victoria's had a bit of mould. Do you think the fact that they will be boiled should sort out any nasties? Because I had so many i was a bit slack during the drying process. I'll have to get a proper drying frame before next year.


No way would I use them. Hops are used in a big part for their aromatics. I don't want a moldy smelling beer.

Write off $5 of hops or potentially a batch of beer?


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## reardo

Hi guys.

Is there, or where is the thread to help aspiring home hop growers?

Thanks in advance


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## Mardoo

This is pretty much the one, although there are a couple different hop growing threads. This seems to be the primary one. There's some great advice in here. 

What are your questions?


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## Rocker1986

Got my final harvest off the Hallertau plant the other day, was about 82/83g wet, which dried out to around 22-23g. All up over the season I've ended up with about ~30g dried flowers, which I'm going to use as a late addition in a lager brew that I'll be doing after a stout which I'm brewing on Saturday.

Looking forward to seeing how a brew with my own grown hops turns out since it'll be the first one I've ever done.


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## goatus

Anyone got any advise on what to feed hop root system though winter. My bines are still quite green, but starting to yellow in parts. Is there any benefit in giving them some nutrients that might help out the root system over winter for next year? Or just leave it alone now?


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## Yob

just compost mulch them.. they'll be good to go in spring.

just make sure they don't dry out too much or stay excessively wet over winter or they'll suffer.


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## Danscraftbeer

Its the time of year to add long term fertilizers to soil like blood and bone, manures, Dinamic lifter pellets. It take months for that stuff to break down into something plants can use when spring comes around again. Added with compost as well is best.


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## Rocker1986

How long do they take to properly die off back to the roots? I've got some larger homes for my plants, not that I'm in any rush to transfer them as spring is obviously a while away but just curious as to how long they take to die off. Some of the bines have yellowed or completely browned off but the majority of the plants are still green.


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## wide eyed and legless

As soon as you have finished harvesting you can cut the bines down, move them during winter.


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## goatus

I heard you get better performance next year if you dont cut them early. Ill wait til mine become a total eyesore, then chop em back =)


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## wide eyed and legless

The reason they are cut back when they are finished is to prevent any fungal or other disease getting into the plant during the colder damp months, a bit like stone fruit as they finish fruiting cut em back for the same reason.


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## Rocker1986

Excellent, well that might be a job for the weekend then. Or maybe next weekend since I have four days off.


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## Danscraftbeer

Late pickings of an Aquaponic Cascade cutting planted 4-5 months ago from an unintended breakage.
I planted it in the gravel.




Its stem now I pulled back some gravel. Note the 20 cent coin for size reference. 














This is different as in a progressive harvest of hops from this crazy lateral mess. Its much more lateral growth. Some hops are still new but its gonna get hit with the fall now. 
For a cutting only 4 and something months old to give a yield at all is astonishing in my opinion if I have to say so myself. Everything to 7 inches of the fence got eaten as well. Possums, Parrots etc.
I will get 400g wet hops.


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## Danscraftbeer

This I quote as the easiest lazy way to propagate anything including hops. (After you,ve got an established Aquaponic eco system  )

Just stick in a cutting. That's it. I have this pvc tube in most of the grow beds.


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## blotto

That awesome Dan! Was it hard to set that system up?


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## Danscraftbeer

Wort said:


> That awesome Dan! Was it hard to set that system up?


Not if you really want it. Its like the addiction and fascination of brewing too. Many brewing set ups I see here seem harder work and more complicated to me. Then an established Aquaponic system is mostly automatic and very little maintenance.


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## wide eyed and legless

And don't forget to feed the fish.


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## Danscraftbeer

wide eyed and legless said:


> And don't forget to feed the fish.


Haha!. That's all it is sometimes and picking fresh organic food from your garden every day. Hard job but someone gotta do it.

I'll have to get around to making an updated youtube from some of the 70 gig of photo's and vids stored on hard drive of this amzing stuff. 
Around 80 fish. Silver Pearch and Tandanus Catfish gradually approaching plate size now. B)


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## Yob

dude...

love the way youre running this.


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## mofox1

Dan! Monster hop - Second year zomes didn't get that thick!

Hydroponics you say... hmmm.


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## wide eyed and legless

mofox1 said:


> Hydroponics you say... hmmm.


That's Aquaponics mofox, he feeds his plants fish shit, not to be confused with Hydroponics and Aeroponics, he ends up eating the fish, his vegies and using the hops


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## Exile

Would love a setup like that, problem is the f*ckin cane toads will eat the fish up here :blink:


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## Hpal

I have a question. I'm digging up my EKG which made its way out of the pot and into the vege garden. I'm digging up the dirt to remove most of the roots so I can plant some cascade in there. Question is, if I miss a few roots here and there, will they sprout from the roots and then id have two varieties in there? Or can they only sprout from the nodes? I'd hate to miss a root.


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## mofox1

wide eyed and legless said:


> That's Aquaponics mofox, he feeds his plants fish shit, not to be confused with Hydroponics and Aeroponics, he ends up eating the fish, his vegies and using the hops


Duly noted, now I know my 'ponics.


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## Hpal

Can anyone shed some light on these little bastards which are all through my hop garden? I think they are lawn beetles or something and they seem to congregate around the roots of the plants. Not sure whether to put something on them to kill them or leave them be. And if I pour something in the soil to kill them will it kill my worms as well? Thanks.


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## wide eyed and legless

They are Japanese beetle larvae, they eat the roots of the grass in the lawn, that's a hefty bunch of them were they all together?
If so you have a problem, better look up on how to control them, aside from letting a mole loose on your lawn.


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## Mardoo

Probably the nymphs of these. I had them last year. The "nymphs consume a great deal of plant material either underground or on the surface." As to getting rid of them I don't know. I pulled all my rhizomes and split and sold/repotted. My daughter thought they were cute and carried them around in a handbag 'til they were dead. Problem solved 

Edit: I ran across a US page on control. Almost certainly the same means will work here as there.


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## Hpal

From the net. 
Curl grub, otherwise known as cockchafer, scarab beetle larvae, or white curl grub, is the juvenile or larval form of Black Beetle, Christmas Beetle (as referred to in Australia for obvious reasons) or any of the 
Scarab Beetles. Curl Grub is a serious threat to any plant including your lawn as it feeds voraciously on the roots of the turf grass.

Wish I could get rid of these cockchafers....


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## Hpal

From the net. 
Curl grub, otherwise known as cockchafer, scarab beetle larvae, or white curl grub, is the juvenile or larval form of Black Beetle, Christmas Beetle (as referred to in Australia for obvious reasons) or any of the 
Scarab Beetles. Curl Grub is a serious threat to any plant including your lawn as it feeds voraciously on the roots of the turf grass.

Wish I could get rid of these cockchafers....


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## Hpal

Right so there's some stuff at Bunnings called Eco-neem which is an organic tree extract which will kill my cockchafers and not harm the worms. Beaut!


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## Yob

Totes don't want your worm getting cockchafe poison...


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## Benn

They look like Witchetty Grubs,


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## Matplat

How often are you all watering your hops now that they're done for the seaon? Once a week?


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## Curly79

Hpal said:


> Can anyone shed some light on these little bastards which are all through my hop garden? I think they are lawn beetles or something and they seem to congregate around the roots of the plants. Not sure whether to put something on them to kill them or leave them be. And if I pour something in the soil to kill them will it kill my worms as well? Thanks.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1461123959.284932.jpg


Pretty sure they are cockschafer grubs mate. 
http://agriculture.vic.gov.au/agriculture/pests-diseases-and-weeds/pest-insects-and-mites/the-blackheaded-pasture-cockchafer

That's right Cockchafer. Let the fun begin[emoji106]


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## Curly79

Whoops. Just realised I missed a page. 
Yob beat me to it. Yep. Nuthin worse that a bad case of the old cock chafe


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## wide eyed and legless

That's why I referred to them as Japanese Beetle the Cock chaffer is the same thing, a girl who used to hang around with us during our teenage years went by the nick name of Cock chaffer funnily enough her best mate we nicknamed Rotten Box.


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## Mardoo

Erm... :icon_vomit:


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## Yob

wide eyed and legless said:


> That's why I referred to them as Japanese Beetle the Cock chaffer is the same thing, a girl who used to hang around with us during our teenage years went by the nick name of Cock chaffer funnily enough her best mate we nicknamed Rotten Box.


still got their numbers?


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## Danscraftbeer

Matplat said:


> How often are you all watering your hops now that they're done for the seaon? Once a week?


Never, or rarely if they are in the ground. Other than rain. If you don't get rain then throw on the beer rinses.
Soil should be just moist but not extremely dry or extremely wet.


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## Matplat

Thanks Dan....


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## Rocker1986

I cut my Hallertau bines off at the ground not long after the last harvest just to get the things to die off, and now I've noticed there are new shoots starting to come up again from the soil. What's the best way to deal with these? Let them grow a little longer and snip them too?


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## perko8

Just lifted my planters to see if any termites had been feeding on the untreated timber (which they have a bit) and found this bit of first year cascade growing out the bottom. Planters are 500mm cubes.

View attachment 88415
View attachment 88416


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## perko8




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## wide eyed and legless

They are great escape artists.
Rocker just leave them, with your climate they should just slow down, though I am not familiar with growing hops in QLD.


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## Rocker1986

They should theoretically but I'm not even sure we're gonna get a winter this year, it's certainly taking its time about cooling down. I'll leave them for a bit and see what happens though.


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## Alex.Tas

We had snow two days ago.
Bastard


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## Rocker1986

:lol: Well on a personal level I'm not complaining about it because although our winters are pretty mild compared to a lot of other places, they're still too cold for my liking, so it can take as long as it likes to get here. But for the hops I'm interested to see how they react to the warmer winter temps.


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## menoetes

Holy Crap Dans, that looks amazing - you've got me looking into an aquaponics system now. It's something I've always been interested in but growing fast and abundant hops has sold me on it now 

THIS isn't you is it? The system looks quite similar.... are you using a bell siphon?


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