What Hops do you Grow
  • jlwjlw
    Posts: 16,454
    What hops do you guys grow? I think this is the year I put a couple of rhizoms in the ground. I also wonder which varieties will do well in central Virginia. We are firmly in zone 7. I have a friend that grows Columbus Hops. I was thinking I might plant Centennial and a couple of other varieties.

    What say you?
  • FuzzyFuzzy
    Posts: 49,777
    i know cascade does well pretty much everywhere. willamette doesn't produce well many places at all. it will grow, but you probably wouldn't get any cones.

    in the past couple years i grew willamette, cascades, and centennial. i'll probably get a chinook or nugget rhizome to go along with those. not sure which yet.
    The pinnacle of lame and awesome in one singular moment. -Lake
  • ceanntceannt
    Posts: 53,828
    My Willamette have been in for 3 years ... no cones yet .... planted a couple cascades last year .... we shall see ....
    Never attribute to malice, that which can adequately be explained by stupidity.
  • Evan_BEvan_B
    Posts: 312
    I got a rhizome each of Cascade, Centennial, and Chinook last year. This year I want to expand a little and maybe plant Mt. Hood and/or Northern Brewer. I wanted to plant Willamette, but after reading this thread I think I will do a little more research before deciding on that.
    Amigo, lay them raises down.
  • frydogbrewsfrydogbrews
    Posts: 44,679
    willamette is seriously picky about humidity levels. fungus will keep that thing from making cones at all. very few places it can grow well.

    if you just want to grow hops for fun and some for use, just plant cascade. its basically a heavy yielding weed. bulletproof. and it likes to be mistreated.
    JLW, your weather (heat and humidity) is very similar to me, so you need to stick to the strongest varieties out there.
    this depends on the microclimate of your site though. if you happen to be on the top of a very high hill that constantly catches wind, you can grow willamette, otherwise you need to be in a fertile valley in some desserty area (eastern washington)
  • Evan_BEvan_B
    Posts: 312
    Thankfully, I think I am in prime Hop growing weather, Redding, Ca. The weather here is strikingly similar to the Yakima Valley. I was talking to some guy some time (don't remember who or when, it may have even been a dream), but he "told" me that the Sacramento Valley used to be ideal for hops, but one reason or another the hop farms moved further north.
    I guess it is my duty to bring them back...
    Amigo, lay them raises down.
  • frydogbrewsfrydogbrews
    Posts: 44,679
    looks like it was because the summers are too hot and they found better places.
    still though, your in a better place than probably 98% of the rest of the nation!

    "Because the Sacramento Valley summers seemed to be too hot, hops production moved almost exclusively to the Northwest. The state of Washington accounts for nearly three-fourths of the nation's 38,000 acres of hops. Growers there earn an average of around $4,000 an acre for their hops.

    But Sierra Nevada decided to experiment in bringing hops production back closer to their home, and brewmaster Dresler said he was pleasantly surprised by the results."

    from this:
    http://www.agalert.com/story/?id=1158
  • Evan_BEvan_B
    Posts: 312
    It does get a little toasty around here I guess.

    SN's hop field is quite impressive, though I must admit, I have never been to actual hop farm.
    Amigo, lay them raises down.
  • jlwjlw
    Posts: 16,454
    frydogbrews said:

    willamette is seriously picky about humidity levels. fungus will keep that thing from making cones at all. very few places it can grow well.

    if you just want to grow hops for fun and some for use, just plant cascade. its basically a heavy yielding weed. bulletproof. and it likes to be mistreated.
    JLW, your weather (heat and humidity) is very similar to me, so you need to stick to the strongest varieties out there.
    this depends on the microclimate of your site though. if you happen to be on the top of a very high hill that constantly catches wind, you can grow willamette, otherwise you need to be in a fertile valley in some desserty area (eastern washington)


    I would imagine we have similar weather and the humidity is crazy thick in summer. I'll go with cascade and maybe try something else. Any other suggestions?

    I use cascade a lot in my ipa's so that would be a good one to grow.
  • JayrizzleJayrizzle
    Posts: 90,648
    I've got (in almost alphabetical order) Cascades, Centennials, Fuggles, brewer's gold, Magnum, Sterling,Tetrasomethingorother, Willemette. The will's have given me about 4 cones each. The cascades and the Fuggles did best last year but it was an odd year here (western Mass). Had some mold problems on some... I forget which ones...

    I like to post a rhizome swap thread every year. I don't know if I can participate this year, because I'm not quite sure what is where anymore..... Maybe I'll find that map I drew.
    image
  • ThymThym
    Posts: 122,569
    I've planted rhizomes twice, they don't seem to enjoy my clay and heat. We will see if last years roots are totally dead or if they product shoots this year.

    I'm not holding my breath.
    The only thing between me and a train wreck is blind luck..... - Kenny
  • JayrizzleJayrizzle
    Posts: 90,648
    Lakewood said:

    I've planted rhizomes twice, they don't seem to enjoy my clay and heat. We will see if last years roots are totally dead or if they product shoots this year.

    I'm not holding my breath.



    Which kind(s) did I send you?
    image
  • ThymThym
    Posts: 122,569
    Dr_Jerryrigger said:

    Lakewood said:

    I've planted rhizomes twice, they don't seem to enjoy my clay and heat. We will see if last years roots are totally dead or if they product shoots this year.

    I'm not holding my breath.



    Which kind(s) did I send you?


    Cascade and Sterling maybe? I don't remember.
    The only thing between me and a train wreck is blind luck..... - Kenny
  • JayrizzleJayrizzle
    Posts: 90,648
    Lakewood said:

    Dr_Jerryrigger said:

    Lakewood said:

    I've planted rhizomes twice, they don't seem to enjoy my clay and heat. We will see if last years roots are totally dead or if they product shoots this year.

    I'm not holding my breath.



    Which kind(s) did I send you?


    Cascade and Sterling maybe? I don't remember.


    Then I just sent sterings, I don't think I had Cascades to share last spring.
    image
  • ThymThym
    Posts: 122,569
    There was a bag marked C and one marked S
    The only thing between me and a train wreck is blind luck..... - Kenny
  • frydogbrewsfrydogbrews
    Posts: 44,679
    jlw said:

    frydogbrews said:

    willamette is seriously picky about humidity levels. fungus will keep that thing from making cones at all. very few places it can grow well.

    if you just want to grow hops for fun and some for use, just plant cascade. its basically a heavy yielding weed. bulletproof. and it likes to be mistreated.
    JLW, your weather (heat and humidity) is very similar to me, so you need to stick to the strongest varieties out there.
    this depends on the microclimate of your site though. if you happen to be on the top of a very high hill that constantly catches wind, you can grow willamette, otherwise you need to be in a fertile valley in some desserty area (eastern washington)


    I would imagine we have similar weather and the humidity is crazy thick in summer. I'll go with cascade and maybe try something else. Any other suggestions?

    I use cascade a lot in my ipa's so that would be a good one to grow.


    honestly, the only one i have been able to grow with success around me is cascade and this wild thing i found growing along an old railroad line. hops grow around all of our rail lines because of st louis (or what st louis was in the early 1900's) i can send you some seeds of the wild ones.
    they are weird and different and grow like drunken monkey's!
  • frydogbrewsfrydogbrews
    Posts: 44,679
    last year doc sent me the same labeled bags as lake and i was told it was centennial and sterling. can probbaly pull up the message to prove it.

    sadly, with the hottest summer in my lifetime, they didn't pull through. water can only do so much for a young plant. eventually the soil temp hits 106 and things start croaking.
  • jlwjlw
    Posts: 16,454
    Cool. Good advice. I will start with the cascades and probably stop there.
  • ThymThym
    Posts: 122,569
    frydogbrews said:

    last year doc sent me the same labeled bags as lake and i was told it was centennial and sterling. can probbaly pull up the message to prove it.

    sadly, with the hottest summer in my lifetime, they didn't pull through. water can only do so much for a young plant. eventually the soil temp hits 106 and things start croaking.



    sounds right to me
    The only thing between me and a train wreck is blind luck..... - Kenny
  • JayrizzleJayrizzle
    Posts: 90,648
    Ah yes, centennial, not cascades, that adds up.
    image
  • JayrizzleJayrizzle
    Posts: 90,648
    frydogbrews said:

    last year doc sent me the same labeled bags as lake and i was told it was centennial and sterling. can probbaly pull up the message to prove it.

    sadly, with the hottest summer in my lifetime, they didn't pull through. water can only do so much for a young plant. eventually the soil temp hits 106 and things start croaking.



    Dig deeper.... so you need some more this year I take it?... where is my deer salami?
    image
  • ThymThym
    Posts: 122,569
    Dr_Jerryrigger said:

    Ah yes, centennial, not cascades, that adds up.



    all i could remember is the bag had a C on it. it was purely a guess after that point.
    The only thing between me and a train wreck is blind luck..... - Kenny
  • frydogbrewsfrydogbrews
    Posts: 44,679
    Dr_Jerryrigger said:

    frydogbrews said:

    last year doc sent me the same labeled bags as lake and i was told it was centennial and sterling. can probbaly pull up the message to prove it.

    sadly, with the hottest summer in my lifetime, they didn't pull through. water can only do so much for a young plant. eventually the soil temp hits 106 and things start croaking.



    Dig deeper.... so you need some more this year I take it?... where is my deer salami?


    i do need more and your deer salami is hanging in my basement. be done in a month and i'll send ya some.
  • scoobscoob
    Posts: 16,617
    When I migrate back to the Midwest, I will be planting hops up north at the cabin as well as at the place I move into. The hops up north will be mostly cascade I think, a bit colder there and a shorter growing season will dictate what I plant there, they will largely be planted along the power line access to the cottage, it's open and has the pole support cables to grow along, it's going to be a feral hop experiment in a way since there isn't any way to really water them if nobody is up there to mess with em.
    Jesus didn't wear pants
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