Growing Hops

[Northern_Brewer]

Been looking for threads on growing your own hops as it's something I plan to do this spring. Was wondering how the progress is growing on this thread? I had noticed someone saying that hops are not grown in southern Europe but they are grown in León and Cataluña which are not as hot as southern Spain. I'm just a bit further south of León (Castilla) and have been told that as long as I keep them watered and not let them get too hammered by the sun they should be OK. It has been recommended that I plant Cascade as they can handle the heat better. Any road, I was looking for some tips on soil types and water if anyone has any?
Cheers :)

The southern Europe thing is partly about day length, which is why it gets difficult to set cones below 35N latitude - but you should be OK on that front? They are temperate plants but pretty tough - they don't like temperatures over 35C - some growers in Oz have misting systems to keep the temperatures down, but in hot climates you ideally want them to get morning sun but to be sheltered from the hottest sun of the day. US varieties definitely do better in those circumstances, so Cascade and Chinook are good choices. They also like to feel the seasons, a bit of frost is ideal but <4C or so is OK at some point in winter.

They are big, hungry plants that need a lot of food and water. You see figures of them needing 60-80l per week per plant, but the majority of that will come from the soil. The water isn't too critical as long as it's not too salty - but in hot climates a waterbutt makes sense just from a financial point of view. The two times when watering is particularly critical is just as the shoots emerge and just before flowering through to harvest. They don't like being waterlogged though - best to drench and then let them dry out. For similar reasons, deep clay soil is best, just because it gives them the chance to develop really deep roots which can access lots of water - East Kent is full of Roman brickworks and tileworks, the clay there is really clay-ey!

Lots of people grow them in pots successfully, watering is the main concern there.

 

[user 18729]

It’s been a very mild January, so much so there are some shoots now showing on both my Challenger and Goldings. Hopefully 2020 makes for a bumper crop