2010 Hop Plantations

[cdbrown]

I really need to get mine in the ground next year. There just isn't enough nutrients in the pots. Haven't got any flowers at all this year (had a few last year).

What's a good separation between plants?

Mine are in pots with good potting mix and the bines are growing and climbing well. No signs of flowering yet which is a worry. Might have to give them some thrive to help.

 

[Malted]

Mine are in pots with good potting mix and the bines are growing and climbing well. No signs of flowering yet which is a worry. Might have to give them some thrive to help.

Mine, also in pots, seem to quite like a liquid fertiliser that is seaweed + fish (they responded heaps better to it than they did to osmacote type slow release stuff).
Now that mine have gotten fully into flowering, the bine and laterals growth seems to have almost stopped. Since yours aren't flowering, are they still on the march up and outwards?

 

[cdbrown]

Mine, also in pots, seem to quite like a liquid fertiliser that is seaweed + fish (they responded heaps better to it than they did to osmacote type slow release stuff).
Now that mine have gotten fully into flowering, the bine and laterals growth seems to have almost stopped. Since yours aren't flowering, are they still on the march up and outwards?

Yep still climbing up the twine. Last few days went up another metre on two of the bines. Also keep seeing new bines coming up from the rhizome. Should I just stop them so it focuses on what's there?

edit - they were planted fairly late and only started sprouting initially well after seeing some impressive plants in this thread.

 

[Fents]

:kooi:

 

[Lecterfan]

Awesome! I did my first full ice cream bucketful harvest of cascade yesterday - didn't weigh them wet.

Riddle me this: Why is it that a confirmed dry hopping enthusiast like me is worried about dry hopping (or even wet hopping) with my own homegrown flowers? I'm happy to use them in the boil and at flameout, but howabout chucking them straight into secondary or in primary after 7 days of fermentation?

I don't think twice about chucking pellets into secondary but using flowers fresh from the plant, or dried in the garage just somehow doesn't seem sanitary! Can I make a tea with my flowers (for aroma) and add that to secondary instead?


edit: I am aware that it is irrational, it just feels odd using them in that capacity...surely there would be some wild yeasts etc somewhere on the flower???

 

[jonocarroll]

surely there would be some wild yeasts etc somewhere on the flower???

Wouldn't that also be true of purchased hop flowers, then?

I have heard concerns from mates about consuming any home-grown plants grown near a roadway. I'm sure it can't be all that bad - what's the worst that could happen?

 

[Lecterfan]

edit: I am aware that it is irrational,

Wouldn't that also be true of purchased hop flowers, then?

I have heard concerns from mates about consuming any home-grown plants grown near a roadway. I'm sure it can't be all that bad - what's the worst that could happen?

Yea I know I know haha - just nagging insecurity, the voices whispering "you don't know what you're doing, you're doing it all wrong, everyone hates you, Satan commands you to kill", all the usual stuff.

The worst that could happen is the perfectly acceptable 20L of fresh cascade flower and willamette beer in the fridge that I am about to rack could be ruined. Now while that is hardly of concern in the grand scheme of things, it would be enough to give me a hearty dose of the shits.

 

[Malted]

Yep still climbing up the twine. Last few days went up another metre on two of the bines. Also keep seeing new bines coming up from the rhizome. Should I just stop them so it focuses on what's there?

edit - they were planted fairly late and only started sprouting initially well after seeing some impressive plants in this thread.

From what I have seen so far:

It was my experience that when I cut (or they snapped off) bines or laterals, that they just shot even more new shoots from lower down (a bit like Medusa). The thing about cutting thinner bines off to focus on more robust ones would appear to be more of a commercial thing to make flowering and harvest more uniform. You could try it, it couldn't hurt. Personally i'd just let them do their thing.

My gut feeling is that if you get flowers they will be in late March/April. The burrs just appear from no where all of a sudden. My Chinook was the last to form burrs but is first to be almost ready to harvest, it does not appear to have much in the way of yellow/orange lupulin in the flowers. The Hersbrucker is a bit behind but has more lupulin in the flowers. PoR and Saaz are still in small burrs stage so they will be quite a while yet. There are early varieties and later varieties, this could be a factor on top of when you planted yours.

My hops do not seem to have produced many burrs/flowers below the 1.5 - 2.0m mark. They are all in the top section so don't be in a rush to nip the ends off (to limit height and spread) of the exploratory shoots and laterals.

 

[wakkatoo]

it would be enough to give me a hearty dose of the shits.

He he, if thats the case then there definately was something nasty on the hops!

I understand your hesitations tho. Maybe think of it a a 'microbe war' where the yeasties have such a vast army, that the small amount of bad troops on the hops stand no chance?? As I am yet to pick any flowers (getting close tho I think), this is all theory based on a hunch!

 

[Lecterfan]

He he, if thats the case then there definately was something nasty on the hops!

I understand your hesitations tho. Maybe think of it a a 'microbe war' where the yeasties have such a vast army, that the small amount of bad troops on the hops stand no chance?? As I am yet to pick any flowers (getting close tho I think), this is all theory based on a hunch!

As long as the hops aren't harbouring 300 spartan bacteria I should be ok haha!

In regards to hops near a roadway, I'm not concerned by their location - I eat corn, spinach, zucchini, silverbeet, cauliflower and pumpkin from the same spot (not too far from a well used semi-rural road).

It just feels strang to go to so much effort with everything else but then just pluck these suckers off, dry them on shadescreenin the garage and then chuck them straight in haha. Sorry to everyone for the OT, but hey - its 32 pages already! Have another pic to stay on topic:

 

[Fents]

Lecter toughen up and get brewing/hopping with them!

You do realise hops were first used because they have special antibiotic properties to them when used in beer?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hops

 

[Lecterfan]

Lecter toughen up and get brewing/hopping with them!

You do realise hops were first used because they have special antibiotic properties to them when used in beer?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hops

Yep, I know all that. I shall dry hop with some fresh flowers and call it the Fents Says HTFU Ale...the FSHTFUA for short haha

(As I said, I've already used some in the boil and at flameout, got no probs with that side of it). Cheers.

 

[cdbrown]

From what I have seen so far:

It was my experience that when I cut (or they snapped off) bines or laterals, that they just shot even more new shoots from lower down (a bit like Medusa). The thing about cutting thinner bines off to focus on more robust ones would appear to be more of a commercial thing to make flowering and harvest more uniform. You could try it, it couldn't hurt. Personally i'd just let them do their thing.

My gut feeling is that if you get flowers they will be in late March/April. The burrs just appear from no where all of a sudden. My Chinook was the last to form burrs but is first to be almost ready to harvest, it does not appear to have much in the way of yellow/orange lupulin in the flowers. The Hersbrucker is a bit behind but has more lupulin in the flowers. PoR and Saaz are still in small burrs stage so they will be quite a while yet. There are early varieties and later varieties, this could be a factor on top of when you planted yours.

My hops do not seem to have produced many burrs/flowers below the 1.5 - 2.0m mark. They are all in the top section so don't be in a rush to nip the ends off (to limit height and spread) of the exploratory shoots and laterals.

They are still climbing, the two bines at the top probably grew another 10cm yesterday and are now looking for something else to cling to since they've reached the end of the twine. Thanks for the advice - won't take the ends off and just let them go. None of the plants look anywhere near as bushy as the pics in this thread. Maybe they're just not getting enough sunlight being on the south east side of the house. They get a good dose of sun from morning till mid afternoon, then the house blocks it. Shame the mrs won't let me grow them on the decking where it pretty much get's full sun all day.

 

[Mitternacht Brauer]

Hi Guys,

Here is a pic of some of my hop plants. I left them alone this year.Even failing to trim the foliage off at the ground.

They have just bushed up and are looking the best since I've had them. The one to the left is a Hersbrucker and is very heavy with cones. The Hallertau on the right hasn't even got any flowers on it.

One danger I have found out is that they are ruthless in regards to where they wish to go. I have the rough sandstone bricks on my place and the quad that they used where the bricks meet the eve leaves some small gaps. The smallest of these gaps is enough for the stray bile to get into and take off looking for light in the roof space.



MB

 

[mxd]

Here's mine, I think I'll do some pick'n on sundy



Chinock


Goldings


Mt Hood

 

[timryan]

Gday guys would love to start growing my own hops.. I'm located just outside Melbourne and i was wondering if there is a type that is best for the Melbourne conditions... As i would possibly love to grow some Cascade and or Chinook does anyone know where i can get these varieties from??

Cheers Tim

 

[big78sam]

Gday guys would love to start growing my own hops.. I'm located just outside Melbourne and i was wondering if there is a type that is best for the Melbourne conditions... As i would possibly love to grow some Cascade and or Chinook does anyone know where i can get these varieties from??

Cheers Tim

Mate I can fix you up with a chinook rhizome come winter, and probably goldings and cascade as well. They grow just fine for me in Sunbury.

You wont need to plant until after the last frost this year so you'll have plenty of time. If you're happy to call past Sunbury one day you can pick them up. Just send me a PM reminder in winter and I'll dig out the rhizomes for you

 

[Malted]

Gday guys would love to start growing my own hops.. I'm located just outside Melbourne and i was wondering if there is a type that is best for the Melbourne conditions... As i would possibly love to grow some Cascade and or Chinook does anyone know where i can get these varieties from??

Cheers Tim

G'day Tim, 5 posts (#609) after your last post (#605), I put in a couple of links. The first one is a link to what I did. In it I discuss the pros and cons of whether you try to get a hop rhizome for free or whether you buy a Rhizome. This may be something you need to consider.

In June or July, one source of purchasing good rhizomes (including Cascade and Chinook and many other varieties) will be from Lochrockingbeats on Ebay. He is in NSW but posts everywhere except WA.

As for what would be 'best' for Melbourne, I don't think there is a good answer. Growth, maturity and harvest rates seem to be very variable amongst growers even in the same town; there are probably more variables at play than just location. Go for what you think you'd like to use in beer you like making.

Also have a look at Post# 602. He might be able to get you started right now....

 

[manticle]

Awesome! I did my first full ice cream bucketful harvest of cascade yesterday - didn't weigh them wet.

Riddle me this: Why is it that a confirmed dry hopping enthusiast like me is worried about dry hopping (or even wet hopping) with my own homegrown flowers? I'm happy to use them in the boil and at flameout, but howabout chucking them straight into secondary or in primary after 7 days of fermentation?

I don't think twice about chucking pellets into secondary but using flowers fresh from the plant, or dried in the garage just somehow doesn't seem sanitary! Can I make a tea with my flowers (for aroma) and add that to secondary instead?


edit: I am aware that it is irrational, it just feels odd using them in that capacity...surely there would be some wild yeasts etc somewhere on the flower???

I've used other people's hop flowers as dry hop, no problem. Straight in. This year it looks like I'll actually get enough of my own flowers to do similar.

 

[timryan]

Mate I can fix you up with a chinook rhizome come winter, and probably goldings and cascade as well. They grow just fine for me in Sunbury.

You won't need to plant until after the last frost this year so you'll have plenty of time. If you're happy to call past Sunbury one day you can pick them up. Just send me a PM reminder in winter and I'll dig out the rhizomes for you

Cheers Mate that would be awesome im in bacchus marsh so its not too far away.. ill send you a pm round july then i guess Cheers Tim