Hops??

Worth1 · July 28, 2008

Does anybody know anything about this plant as far as where it will grow?
In recent news I have learned that there is a hops shortage due to farmers growing corn for fuel.
There are many cultivars of this plant and I have found one place on a forum where someone just 15 miles north of me is growing hops for his beer.
I just thought I might get in on the ground level with this product as I have found hope has gone over the top as for as price is concerned.
They all laughed at me when I mentioned growing grapes for wine in Texas many years ago but look at it now.
Texas has some great wines.

I thought about olives in Texas and sure nuff this is something else they are starting to grow here.
What about hops?

Worth

Tormato · July 28, 2008

Worth,

A shortage one year, can become a glut the next.

Gary

akgardengirl · July 28, 2008

Hops grow in Anchorage, AK. I bought my start at a home brewing store many years ago. There are different varieties of it for different types of beer but this particular store carried the cold weather ones. I didn't plant it in a good spot due to ignorance and it didn't survive that 1st winter but I have seen huge plants growing up on trellises (arbors?) on garden tours. I am sure it does better in a warmer, longer growing season.
Sue

Worth1 · July 28, 2008

Thanks for the info Sue I had no idea hops would grow in Anchorage.

Maybe some gravy with the right hops in it would be good.

Gary I might just brew my own beer if there is a glut.
I would like to brew without having to go to a high priced Brew store.
When I was a small child I drank Beer made from potatoes.
That's right, I drank home made beer and wine with a meal when I was some thing like 9 or so.
Just one bottle though.

Worth

Sherry_AK · July 28, 2008

Hops grow in Wasilla too! Mine used to grow up to the raised deck and all along the railing. A couple years ago when we replaced the deck we relocated the hops. It's not doing as well in the new spot, but it's still alive.

Sue -- Unless you particularly wanted hops, if you just want a really nice, sturdy vine, you might try Arctic Beauty Kiwi. I find it to be easier to grow here.

EDIT: To clarify, both pictures are hops.

Patapsco Mike · July 28, 2008

I grow Bavarian hops for making my own beer. They could not be easier to grow. Just get a piece of root, stick in the soil in a sunny spot with something for it to climb on, and stand back. Mine are almost 20' tall.

RonnyWil · August 3, 2008

Have you seen what they sell hops for? They sell by the ounce but by my calculation they would be around $35 to $40 a pound retail. I started 5 varieties this year and hope they will be bigger and more established next year.

Bobbisox · August 4, 2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by Worth1

Does anybody know anything about this plant as far as where it will grow?
In recent news I have learned that there is a hops shortage due to farmers growing corn for fuel.
There are many cultivars of this plant and I have found one place on a forum where someone just 15 miles north of me is growing hops for his beer.
I just thought I might get in on the ground level with this product as I have found hope has gone over the top as for as price is concerned.
They all laughed at me when I mentioned growing grapes for wine in Texas many years ago but look at it now.
Texas has some great wines.

I thought about olives in Texas and sure nuff this is something else they are starting to grow here.
What about hops?

Worth

Worth, I am on a few hop gardening boards; in the springtime there was a huge rush of folks sending off for all kinds of rhizomes to try out in their areas. There are plenty of people growing hops in Texas, some even as far south as Florida but there are varieties that do well in one spot that may not do well in others. I have been growing hops for more than 10 years in SoCal and we tend to prefer hoppy beers but we grow a variety of types.
Yes, the shortage will eventually result in a hop glut due to some hop growers extending their growing areas, and others will be hobbiests, like us growing and providing for our home brew clubs.
Good luck. I got more rhizomes this year from three different sources and homebrew heaven was some of the biggest and strongest of the rhizomes I got. I will be getting more varieties next year as my husband prefers other varieties of beer than I do.

Worth1 · August 8, 2008

Thank's Bobbi.

Worth

Medbury Gardens · August 10, 2008

Can someone tell me if hops are frost hardy and are they an annual???

Sherry_AK · August 10, 2008

I grow them in Alaska, so yes they are frost hardy. (Well, I guess I'm not entirely sure what you mean. They will withstand a light frost I think, but they die back to the ground over winter and come up again in the Spring with new growth.) I'm in Zone 3. They are a perennial.

Lilypon · August 18, 2008

Hops grow very well in Saskatchewan too (even in zone 2 which surrounds my city). I just post zone 3 because I grow in a town that is located in a valley. We have a King Maple growing in a sheltered spot in our back yard (it's rated for zone 5) so your growing location really makes a difference here.

amideutch · August 19, 2008

The spring here in Germany was dryer, sunnier than normal and the hops growers and beer breweries were sweating bullets for awhile anticipating an hops shortage which never materialized. Two things that make front page news is problems with the potato crops or hops crops. Ami

DuckCreekFarms · September 2, 2008

Hops are very cold hardy. The vines are annual and the roots are perennial. In other words, they die to the ground each winter and resprout in the spring. I had one for years but killed it with round up this spring as it didn't make very many "Hops". I supose it is due to our very hot summers.
gary

maryinoregon · January 31, 2009

Hi Worth. Just noticed this thread. Hops grow commercially in the Yakima Valley of eastern Washington state. (I was born in Yakima and spent some of my early years there. It is a desert area. Gets about 7 inches precipitation a year. Colder in the winters than Texas I assume and it does get some snow.) My dad told me once that the German brewers bought hops from Yakima growers when needed for their beers. This was years ago. My dad used to buy wine and I think beer for a retail store chain and knew a number of winery owners and some beer guys. I don't know if this is still true. I suspect it is to a limited extent. The Pacific Northwest is a hotbed of wineries and beer makers. Did you ever plant some hops?

July 28, 2008	#1
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	Hops?? Does anybody know anything about this plant as far as where it will grow? In recent news I have learned that there is a hops shortage due to farmers growing corn for fuel. There are many cultivars of this plant and I have found one place on a forum where someone just 15 miles north of me is growing hops for his beer. I just thought I might get in on the ground level with this product as I have found hope has gone over the top as for as price is concerned. They all laughed at me when I mentioned growing grapes for wine in Texas many years ago but look at it now. Texas has some great wines. I thought about olives in Texas and sure nuff this is something else they are starting to grow here. What about hops? Worth

July 28, 2008	#5
Sherry_AK Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Alaska Zone 3/4 Posts: 1,857	Hops grow in Wasilla too! Mine used to grow up to the raised deck and all along the railing. A couple years ago when we replaced the deck we relocated the hops. It's not doing as well in the new spot, but it's still alive. Sue -- Unless you particularly wanted hops, if you just want a really nice, sturdy vine, you might try Arctic Beauty Kiwi. I find it to be easier to grow here. EDIT: To clarify, both pictures are hops. Last edited by Sherry_AK; July 28, 2008 at 06:51 PM.

August 3, 2008	#7
RonnyWil Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Collierville TN Posts: 106	Have you seen what they sell hops for? They sell by the ounce but by my calculation they would be around $35 to $40 a pound retail. I started 5 varieties this year and hope they will be bigger and more established next year. __________________ I'm two days older than dirt and I like to play in it.

August 18, 2008	#12
Lilypon Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Saskatchewan, Canada Posts: 303	Hops grow very well in Saskatchewan too (even in zone 2 which surrounds my city). I just post zone 3 because I grow in a town that is located in a valley. We have a King Maple growing in a sheltered spot in our back yard (it's rated for zone 5) so your growing location really makes a difference here. __________________ "At the heart of gardening there is a belief in the miraculous" Mirabel Osler

August 19, 2008	#13
amideutch Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Germany 49°26"N 07°36"E Posts: 5,041	The spring here in Germany was dryer, sunnier than normal and the hops growers and beer breweries were sweating bullets for awhile anticipating an hops shortage which never materialized. Two things that make front page news is problems with the potato crops or hops crops. Ami __________________ Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn out, shouting ‘...Holy Crap .....What a ride!'

July 28, 2008	#2
Tormato Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: MA Posts: 4,971	Worth, A shortage one year, can become a glut the next. Gary

July 28, 2008	#3
akgardengirl Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Anchorage, AK zone 3/4 Posts: 1,410	Hops grow in Anchorage, AK. I bought my start at a home brewing store many years ago. There are different varieties of it for different types of beer but this particular store carried the cold weather ones. I didn't plant it in a good spot due to ignorance and it didn't survive that 1st winter but I have seen huge plants growing up on trellises (arbors?) on garden tours. I am sure it does better in a warmer, longer growing season. Sue

July 28, 2008	#6
Patapsco Mike Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Ellicott City, MD Posts: 62	I grow Bavarian hops for making my own beer. They could not be easier to grow. Just get a piece of root, stick in the soil in a sunny spot with something for it to climb on, and stand back. Mine are almost 20' tall.

August 8, 2008	#9
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	Thank's Bobbi. Worth

August 10, 2008	#10
Medbury Gardens Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Medbury, New Zealand Posts: 1,881	Can someone tell me if hops are frost hardy and are they an annual???

September 2, 2008	#14
DuckCreekFarms Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Mounds, Oklahoma Posts: 257	Hops are very cold hardy. The vines are annual and the roots are perennial. In other words, they die to the ground each winter and resprout in the spring. I had one for years but killed it with round up this spring as it didn't make very many "Hops". I supose it is due to our very hot summers. gary

January 31, 2009	#15
maryinoregon Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Oregon Posts: 361	Hi Worth. Just noticed this thread. Hops grow commercially in the Yakima Valley of eastern Washington state. (I was born in Yakima and spent some of my early years there. It is a desert area. Gets about 7 inches precipitation a year. Colder in the winters than Texas I assume and it does get some snow.) My dad told me once that the German brewers bought hops from Yakima growers when needed for their beers. This was years ago. My dad used to buy wine and I think beer for a retail store chain and knew a number of winery owners and some beer guys. I don't know if this is still true. I suspect it is to a limited extent. The Pacific Northwest is a hotbed of wineries and beer makers. Did you ever plant some hops?