2017 Hop Plantations, Show Us Your Hop Garden!

[blekk]

Reshaped and mulched the Red Earth mound today. Didn't get any cones this year but had some really nice bines so fingers crossed for next year!

 

[kaiserben]

I got started today.



Started a bit late in the day, so only got 4 of the holes done (the ones in the background). Aiming for 14 holes (2 rows of 7). The half-finished fencing is because there are various animals that might like to dig in dirt. (Perhaps it might be better to lay the chicken wire over the ground).

Will put up a trellis eventually.

Each hole has a thin layer of mulch, then a few handfuls of chicken poo, then another thin layer of mulch, then a thick covering of potting soil.

I'm using those green things (Greenwell) to raise each hole area (like a mound).

 

[Judanero]

Looking good KB, even if you raise the height of each mound a bit you'll find it'll all be well by the time the first shoots spring out (as decomposition occurs the level drops quite a bit), chicken wire over the ground would be enough to stop the digging animals until the first shoots pop up, I made little boxes from chicken wire the first season I grew but found it unnecessary every season after.

Winter is the ideal time to prep for the upcoming season, a bit of work here goes a long way to helping come harvest time- compost and mulch are an easy investment.

All the best looks like a great plot.

 

[kaiserben]

One thing I'm not sure about despite reading a few how-to guides: Are my rhizomes (currently kept moist and in the crisper section of my fridge) better off in the soil or in the fridge?

 

[Judanero]

Six of one, half a dozen. IMO fridge until late August (gives your garden time to decompose any manure/ compost if not already well aged) but if put into the ground sooner rather than later it's not a problem either.

Once established, and you will learn quickly- hops are very hardy and grow quickly.... keep the water and nutes up to them and even first year (apparently first year is more about establishment than flowering) you will get a good return from the outset. I never cut back any of my bines once the first shoots pop up, I also rarely cut them back at the onset of winter... Just let them die off over winter and the new bines climb over the old ones at the beginning of spring.

 

[Mardoo]

One thing I'm not sure about despite reading a few how-to guides: Are my rhizomes (currently kept moist and in the crisper section of my fridge) better off in the soil or in the fridge?

If you keep them in the fridge long-term be sure to check them every few weeks or so, change the wrapping, and make sure the wrappings are just damp, but not saturated. Otherwise mold and drying become the issues. If you're in an area that doesn't freeze much, I'd go for storing them in pots if you can't get them in the earth just yet. If you are putting them in very large pots then freezing shouldn't be such an issue. But they will do fine in the fridge as long as you keep the wrapping fresh. When I overwintered my rhizomes in the fridge on occasion, I just used damp newspaper.

 

[hoppy2B]

I like to plant them straight away because you can see the roots growing when you have them out of the ground.

 

[Yob]

Ive finally done something to help this poor Shame of Ringwood that Ive had confined to a pot for far too long..

I really only grow it as ornamental but I feel bad for it every year stuffed in a a pot getting dried out.

Im going to line the sides of the planter on the inside to keep it 1: isolated and 2: help with water retention.. thinking of throwing a few (clean) nappies in the bottom of the planter as well.. shits and giggles...

with any luck, the poor ******* thing can get the love this year B)

 

[Rocker1986]

On Saturday I got the first of my larger garden bed things built, with a trellis on it as well (about 3.5 metres tall), and transferred my Hallertau plant into it. I had nine 65L bags of potting mix, and the rest of the soil came from a turkey mound on the other side of the yard, which contained some good shit. The plant had sprouted some shoots while it was still in the pot, so not sure whether to chop these off or just leave them be. Looking forward to hopefully getting some better growth and yield this season. The mesh is over it to stop things digging it up.

 

[Yob]

That scrub turkey is gunna be pissed...

 

[Rocker1986]

I noticed it came over and had a look at the damage after I'd finished... :lol:

I have another one of these things to build for the Fuggles plant, so will probably make more use of the mound for soil for that one too.

 

[Benn]

Good evening,
Is it possible to overdo the fertiliser? Currently I'm prepping the holes ready for the rhizomes to be planted later in the year but I'm worried about going too heavy with the fertiliser. I've read up a fair bit but I'm still a bit lost.

I'll be planting about 6-8 hops I have:

6 x 25L bag of cheap potting mix
1 x 5kg bag of "Blood & Bone based fertiliser"
2 large boxes of Cow Manure (can get more from M&D's farm)
Half a small bucket of Dynamic Lifter
Full compost bin (grass clippings, ash from fireplace, leaf litter, kitchen scraps etc)
1 x tub of Osmocote fruit and vegetable slow release granular fertiliser
Powdered Potash fertiliser from last season
Seasol & Powerfeed
Sugar cane mulch

The soil around my yard looks pretty normal, probably lowish in nutrients given my location.
Tested the Ph with a $16 "Manutec" test kit from bunnings at it gave me a result of around Ph 6.5

I figure I can't go too wrong by digging a big hole, adding a bag of potting mix, some cow manure and some compost. It's the other stuff that I'm not sure of how much if t all I should be adding.
Any advice would appreciated.
Cheers,

 

[citizensnips]

For gods sake don't blend all those ferts together, or at least if you do use a tiny bit of each. If you were to mix them all up you would have a very 'hot' soil mix, which would more than likely cause root burn and stunt the growth of your plant. Really my recommendation for this kind of stuff is always stick with organic. It's a lot more forgiving to a novice gardener and in my opinion always produces much for flavourful and aromatic harvests, not just with hops but with a lot of fruits and veg.

Nonetheless with what you have I would blend your potting soil and a small handful of dynamic lifter (dependent on size of hole, but a handful should be more than enough). Get some compost and a bit of cow manure, maybe a shovel of each, blend that all together and if you have some garden lime, sprinkle a light handful of that in amongst it....this will help balance your ph. Make that the bottom 2/3 of your hole and let that sit for at least a month before planting. The top 1/3 use nothing more than potting soil and maybe a tiny bit of dynamic lifter or your fruit and veg fert if you can't resist. That will ensure young roots don't burn.

A month or so in use your seasol and powerfeed. Seasol is more of a soil conditoner and less than a fertilsier, hence you can use it more often and not risk burning your plants as you would with powerfeed.
Use your potash a few weeks out from flower and continue to use it through until a couple of weeks before harvest. You don't want to use anything other than water in your last couple of weeks.

Hope that helps.

Cheers

 

[Benn]

Thanks heaps Citizensnips,
Less is more wins again

 

[MastersBrewery]

Good evening,
Is it possible to overdo the fertiliser? Currently I'm prepping the holes ready for the rhizomes to be planted later in the year but I'm worried about going too heavy with the fertiliser. I've read up a fair bit but I'm still a bit lost.

I'll be planting about 6-8 hops I have:

image.jpeg
6 x 25L bag of cheap potting mix
1 x 5kg bag of "Blood & Bone based fertiliser"
2 large boxes of Cow Manure (can get more from M&D's farm)
Half a small bucket of Dynamic Lifter
Full compost bin (grass clippings, ash from fireplace, leaf litter, kitchen scraps etc)
1 x tub of Osmocote fruit and vegetable slow release granular fertiliser
Powdered Potash fertiliser from last season
Seasol & Powerfeed
Sugar cane mulch

The soil around my yard looks pretty normal, probably lowish in nutrients given my location.
Tested the Ph with a $16 "Manutec" test kit from bunnings at it gave me a result of around Ph 6.5

I figure I can't go too wrong by digging a big hole, adding a bag of potting mix, some cow manure and some compost. It's the other stuff that I'm not sure of how much if t all I should be adding.
Any advice would appreciated.
Cheers,

all you need to do is grab some diesel and you too can be placed on a no fly list.

 

[Benn]

Hahaha half the gear is from last season, I read all sorts of stuff on the net and when I looked at all the various ingredients together I just went "Nup" ...better consult the AHB Oracle.

 

[Danscraftbeer]

All that fertilizer you've saved from these tips you can just sprinkle around the surface grow area once a blue moon. Trickle feed for that rain addition or top watering etc. That stinky shit also deters certain pests like Possums, Blackbirds.
I'll hang an old hop sock full of that stinky shit on hop trellises just to be unwelcoming to say an opportunistic possum, or Parrot?

 

[Judanero]

Good evening,
Is it possible to overdo the fertiliser? Currently I'm prepping the holes ready for the rhizomes to be planted later in the year but I'm worried about going too heavy with the fertiliser. I've read up a fair bit but I'm still a bit lost.

I'll be planting about 6-8 hops I have:

image.jpeg
6 x 25L bag of cheap potting mix
1 x 5kg bag of "Blood & Bone based fertiliser"
2 large boxes of Cow Manure (can get more from M&D's farm)
Half a small bucket of Dynamic Lifter
Full compost bin (grass clippings, ash from fireplace, leaf litter, kitchen scraps etc)
1 x tub of Osmocote fruit and vegetable slow release granular fertiliser
Powdered Potash fertiliser from last season
Seasol & Powerfeed
Sugar cane mulch

The soil around my yard looks pretty normal, probably lowish in nutrients given my location.
Tested the Ph with a $16 "Manutec" test kit from bunnings at it gave me a result of around Ph 6.5

I figure I can't go too wrong by digging a big hole, adding a bag of potting mix, some cow manure and some compost. It's the other stuff that I'm not sure of how much if t all I should be adding.
Any advice would appreciated.
Cheers,

Can definitely over fertilise!
For 6-8 zomes you will need more potting mix/soil.

If you're not planting the rhizomes out until later in the year you can spread the blood and bone out a tarp so that it gets weathered by the elements for a couple weeks (if you can get it to ~ 5-10cm thick and keep turning/mixing it), same goes for the cow manure.

Rhizomes love well aged compost and cow manure, 3:1:1 Potting mix: compost: manure is good for prepping if you're being pedantic, and remember that the soil will settle quite a bit before you plant the rhizomes so build it up a bit higher to allow for it.

Definitely hold out on anything else until the bines are well and truly thriving, and then I like to give them a bit of seasol or nitrosol/powerfeed (you can also soak lawn clippings for a few days and use the water to help fertilise) while they're growing, and add a little more compost and manure or worm castings when the burrs come in. Sugar cane mulch is also what I use mostly but have also used pea straw to mulch, both great once they break down as well.

Honestly these things grow like weed(s), N during vegetive growth, P & K during flowering, keep the water up to them especially during the warmer months (but make sure the soil is well draining), mulch for water retention/ weed management.
Easy.

 

[Benn]

Thanks heaps for the advice guys, much appreciated

 

[Benn]

Edit: Double post