Growing Hops
Cascade plant #1 (middle): planted 04/02/05
Cascade plant #2 (right): planted 04/09/05
Centennial plant (left): planted 04/09/05
The hole dug about 12" deep. I put some composted dirt and material in the hole, then a thin layer of dirt, then the rhizome.
The first Cascade rhizome, back when I thought I would just do one plant.
The rhizome ready to be covered with 1-2" of dirt.
The above pictures were taken on 04/02/05. The next week I thought I should plant at least one more in case my first one failed to grow. Then I decided to do a different variety as well. I purchased one more Cascade rhizome, and one Centennial rhizome. These were planted on 04/09/05. The Cascades are 3' apart, while the Centennial is 5' from the nearest Cascade.
The Cascade plant #1 breaks ground. Picture: April 20, 2005.
The Centennial hops break ground. Picture: April 20, 2005.
The first and tallest Centennial shoot is trained up some twine, May 13, 2005.
The first and tallest Cascade shoot (plant #1) is trained up some twine, May 13, 2005.
Centennial hops May 28, 2005. The one at the left is the tallest of any of them.
Cascade plant #1 on May 28, 2005. This one is doing pretty well too. It has been in the ground the longest of any.
Even Cascade plant #2 (May 28, 2005) can now be trained up some twine (at least one of the bines). The smaller one at right is the only bine that has not yet been trained.
Here is the view on May 28, 2005. It has been 7-8 weeks since planting (8 weeks for middle bine, 7 for outer two).
June 14, 2004. I put up a 12 foot 2x4 with a T at the top for the Centennials. The other bines will be run up to the house, as you can see one has been done in this picture.
July 1, 2005. A couple of them have reached their peak, and are left to fend for themselves.
July 30, 2005. The tangle at the top continues to grow.
July 30, 2005.
August 16, 2005. I now have a decent handful of cones, so it looks like I will get some hops this year after all.
August 16, 2005. Centennial hop cones.
August 16, 2005. The top of the Cascade bines.
This is what they looked like shortly before harvesting.
Cascade closeup.
Harvesting the cones in early September, 2005.
I got one big bucket of hop goodness from my first-year Cascade plant. It ended up to be 3 ounces and I plan to use them in some beers this fall. Next year I should get even more.
I set them on a screen and dried them in the garage before packing them into small freezer bags.
Here's my Ten Buck ale, for which I used 3 out of the 4 oz of my hops that I harvested. They imparted a different flavor than pellets, a little more spicy and earthy. Pretty interesting and very good.
© 2008 Don Osborn