My 2010 Hop Crop

[phettebs]

Just got some pics of my 3rd year Cascade and Centennial plants. They look pretty good for early June. We are trying something different this year. Last year, we trimmed back the bines to only the 2 or 3 healthiest. This year, we just let them go however they wanted. We'll see what I end up with in the fall. I still have way more hops than I can use from last year!

The Cascade is in the foreground with the Centennial in back

Facing towards the Centennial now

I think we need to build something to allow them to reach higher. They are currently about 10 feet high. We might need to sink some poles and then run wire across the garden area for the hops to crawl across. Still new to this whole hop farming adventure! :thumb:

Barry

 

[State of the mind]

Those hops are looking superb and much taller than mine. *Jealous :cry: . It will be interesting to see your yields compared to last year. However aren't your hop yields supposed to improve every year during the early years of a hop plant anyway?

Here is a nice video, if you need any help with a Hop Trellis, what he did seems to be quite similar to what you had in mind.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-toVpT-uSs

 

[phettebs]

Yeah, it's probably not a good test this early in their lifespan but I thought I'd give it a try anyway. It's also less work. ;-)

I'm fortunate that I'm able to grow these on my parents' converted farmland. The soil is great and there's plenty of sun.

Thanks for the link. I'll check it out!

Out of curiosity, how do you dry your hops? How do you package them?

Still learning...
Barry

 

[State of the mind]

Out of curiosity, how do you dry your hops? How do you package them?

I haven't had a harvest yet so I can't talk from experience. However I think when it comes to harvest time I will invest in a vacuum storage device. Such as: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/90-x-60-cm-2-PACK ... 924wt_1137

Or just use them quickly. :whistle: