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Date: 08 Sep 2006 10:56:14
From: Scott L
Subject: First year of home grown hops
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Well, back in spring I planted three rhizomes: Cascade, Centennial, and
Willamette. To my surprise, I got what looked (to a person
inexperienced in growing hops) to be a reasonable harvest from the
Centennial plant. The others produced cones, but not enough to justify
the effort of harvesting.
I'm assuming that the growth will be much more vigorous next year, but
mostly I was surprised to get anything at all -- the Centennial
rhizome, unlike the other two, sent out only ONE very vigorous shoot,
which grew into a bine almost a quarter inch think! The other plants
sent out multiple shoots which never got as thick.
I didn't weigh my harvest, but once dried and compressed into a
vacuum-lock bag, it looks like around 2 ounces. Is that a large or a
small harvest for the first year? How many ounces can you typically
expect from a single MATURE plant (I know this is going to strongly
depend on the variety, but... guesses, please).
Scott
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Date: 08 Sep 2006 16:14:15
From:
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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Scott,
I just documented the growth of my hops this past year and they are in
their third year. You can see how much I got from them. This year has
been the best and I think I got at least a pound off of them but I'm
not sure. I was using a lot for dry hopping IPAs this summer. I
started harvesting in late June and all the way until now. Hope this
link helps.
http://www.benshomebrew.com/website/Beer/myhops.html
Scott L wrote:
> Well, back in spring I planted three rhizomes: Cascade, Centennial, and
> Willamette. To my surprise, I got what looked (to a person
> inexperienced in growing hops) to be a reasonable harvest from the
> Centennial plant. The others produced cones, but not enough to justify
> the effort of harvesting.
>
> I'm assuming that the growth will be much more vigorous next year, but
> mostly I was surprised to get anything at all -- the Centennial
> rhizome, unlike the other two, sent out only ONE very vigorous shoot,
> which grew into a bine almost a quarter inch think! The other plants
> sent out multiple shoots which never got as thick.
>
> I didn't weigh my harvest, but once dried and compressed into a
> vacuum-lock bag, it looks like around 2 ounces. Is that a large or a
> small harvest for the first year? How many ounces can you typically
> expect from a single MATURE plant (I know this is going to strongly
> depend on the variety, but... guesses, please).
>
> Scott
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Date: 09 Sep 2006 14:48:44
From: David M. Taylor
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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<knoerdel@gmail.com > wrote in message
news:1157757254.994137.174510@h48g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
> Scott,
>
> I just documented the growth of my hops this past year and they are in
> their third year. You can see how much I got from them. This year has
> been the best and I think I got at least a pound off of them but I'm
> not sure. I was using a lot for dry hopping IPAs this summer. I
> started harvesting in late June and all the way until now. Hope this
> link helps.
>
> http://www.benshomebrew.com/website/Beer/myhops.html
Very nice website, thanks for sharing.
My Hallertaus are on their second year, but I only ended up with 1.1 ounce
of hops. I harvested them all at the same time at the end of July. Some of
them were huge but many were quite small. I wonder if I had let the smaller
ones grow for a longer time, I might have ended up with a heavier crop. Oh
well, next year will surely be better.
--
Dave
"Just a drink, a little drink, and I'll be feeling GOOooOOooOOooD!" --
Genesis, 1973-ish
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Date: 09 Sep 2006 13:29:25
From: Wheat
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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"David M. Taylor" <dmtaylor@SPAM.geocities.SUCKS.com > wrote in message
news:wUEMg.25$JT6.13@newsfe04.lga...
> <knoerdel@gmail.com> wrote in message
> > My Hallertaus are on their second year, but I only ended up with 1.1
> > ounce
> of hops. I harvested them all at the same time at the end of July. Some
> of them were huge but many were quite small. I wonder if I had let the
> smaller ones grow for a longer time, I might have ended up with a heavier
> crop. Oh well, next year will surely be better.
>
> --
> Dave
If you want to harvest bigger crops you will need to debud the hop vine so
that it produces no fruit and that all of it's energy goes into growing a
massive root system.
I know it's heresy and most people won't do it, but it is necessary with
most perennial crops.
Bill
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Date: 09 Sep 2006 21:59:28
From: Dan Logcher
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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Wheat wrote:
> If you want to harvest bigger crops you will need to debud the hop vine so
> that it produces no fruit and that all of it's energy goes into growing a
> massive root system.
>
> I know it's heresy and most people won't do it, but it is necessary with
> most perennial crops.
You mean remove all the flowers or the cones? So once you harvest a good
crop, what do you need to do with the hops?
--
Dan
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Date: 09 Sep 2006 19:14:16
From: Wheat
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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"Dan Logcher" <dlogcher*xspam*@comcast.net > wrote in message
news:45037178$0$567$b45e6eb0@senator-bedfellow.mit.edu...
> Wheat wrote:
>
>> If you want to harvest bigger crops you will need to debud the hop vine
>> so that it produces no fruit and that all of it's energy goes into
>> growing a massive root system.
>>
>> I know it's heresy and most people won't do it, but it is necessary with
>> most perennial crops.
>
> You mean remove all the flowers or the cones? So once you harvest a good
> crop, what do you need to do with the hops?
> Dan
You remove all of the buds and therefor have no flowers or hops that year.
This forces the vine to put all of it's energy and vigor into producing a
stronger root system.
It's the same with a first year fruit tree, you remove the buds and have no
flowers or fruit that year.
It's difficult for the part time grower to do but necessary.
The following year you can thin the buds again or let it produce an abundant
crop for you.
If you get more hops than you need, if I understand your question correctly,
you can give them away, sell them or dry them. <G >
Bill
Bill
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Date: 09 Sep 2006 23:00:19
From: Dan Logcher
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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Wheat wrote:
> "Dan Logcher" <dlogcher*xspam*@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:45037178$0$567$b45e6eb0@senator-bedfellow.mit.edu...
>
>>Wheat wrote:
>>
>>
>>>If you want to harvest bigger crops you will need to debud the hop vine
>>>so that it produces no fruit and that all of it's energy goes into
>>>growing a massive root system.
>>>
>>>I know it's heresy and most people won't do it, but it is necessary with
>>>most perennial crops.
>>
>>You mean remove all the flowers or the cones? So once you harvest a good
>>crop, what do you need to do with the hops?
>>Dan
>
>
> You remove all of the buds and therefor have no flowers or hops that year.
>
> This forces the vine to put all of it's energy and vigor into producing a
> stronger root system.
>
> It's the same with a first year fruit tree, you remove the buds and have no
> flowers or fruit that year.
>
> It's difficult for the part time grower to do but necessary.
This is what I do for other plants, trim the flowers so they don't waste energy
in reproduction.
> The following year you can thin the buds again or let it produce an abundant
> crop for you.
Right.
> If you get more hops than you need, if I understand your question correctly,
> you can give them away, sell them or dry them. <G>
No, I mean what do you do with hops you have harvested to use them in brewing?
Anything? Are they ready to go?
--
Dan
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Date: 09 Sep 2006 23:13:14
From: David M. Taylor
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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"Dan Logcher" <dlogcher*xspam*@comcast.net > wrote in message
news:45037fbc$0$557$b45e6eb0@senator-bedfellow.mit.edu...
>
> No, I mean what do you do with hops you have harvested to use them in
> brewing?
> Anything? Are they ready to go?
Hops need to be dried prior to use, otherwise they are prone to spoilage
like any other fruit. You can let them sit on a screen for a few days, or
use a food dehydrator, or even use an oven, as long as the temperature is
real low, like 125 F or so. They become very light and brittle when
properly dried. After that, you can brew with them as normal, and/or store
them in the refrigerator or freezer to use later.
--
Dave
"Just a drink, a little drink, and I'll be feeling GOOooOOooOOooD!" --
Genesis, 1973-ish
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Date: 10 Sep 2006 13:55:18
From: Scott Barron
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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On 2006-09-10, David M. Taylor <dmtaylor@SPAM.geocities.SUCKS.com > wrote:
> "Dan Logcher" <dlogcher*xspam*@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:45037fbc$0$557$b45e6eb0@senator-bedfellow.mit.edu...
>>
>> No, I mean what do you do with hops you have harvested to use them in
>> brewing?
>> Anything? Are they ready to go?
>
> Hops need to be dried prior to use, otherwise they are prone to spoilage
> like any other fruit. You can let them sit on a screen for a few days, or
> use a food dehydrator, or even use an oven, as long as the temperature is
> real low, like 125 F or so. They become very light and brittle when
> properly dried. After that, you can brew with them as normal, and/or store
> them in the refrigerator or freezer to use later.
>
I'd bet you could use the Alton Brown trick of sandwiching them between
layers of furnace filter and bungee cording it to a box fan. Faster than
using a screen and less risky (to the hops) than using the oven. Plus,
you get to play with bungee cords.
If you haven't seen the episode, the goodeatsfanpage transcripts [1] describe
it and have a picture or two. Scan down to scene 12.
[1] http://goodeatsfanpage.com/Season7/Herbs/HerbalPreservation.htm
-Scott
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Date: 10 Sep 2006 10:21:24
From: Dan Logcher
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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Scott Barron wrote:
> On 2006-09-10, David M. Taylor <dmtaylor@SPAM.geocities.SUCKS.com> wrote:
>
>>"Dan Logcher" <dlogcher*xspam*@comcast.net> wrote in message
>>news:45037fbc$0$557$b45e6eb0@senator-bedfellow.mit.edu...
>>
>>>No, I mean what do you do with hops you have harvested to use them in
>>>brewing?
>>>Anything? Are they ready to go?
>>
>>Hops need to be dried prior to use, otherwise they are prone to spoilage
>>like any other fruit. You can let them sit on a screen for a few days, or
>>use a food dehydrator, or even use an oven, as long as the temperature is
>>real low, like 125 F or so. They become very light and brittle when
>>properly dried. After that, you can brew with them as normal, and/or store
>>them in the refrigerator or freezer to use later.
>>
>
>
> I'd bet you could use the Alton Brown trick of sandwiching them between
> layers of furnace filter and bungee cording it to a box fan. Faster than
> using a screen and less risky (to the hops) than using the oven. Plus,
> you get to play with bungee cords.
Thanks for the explanation of hop prep. I'm not growing yet, still trying
to figure out a good place to locate them. They need full sun and a height,
right?
--
Dan
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Date: 10 Sep 2006 19:08:45
From: David M. Taylor
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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"Scott Barron" <nntp@elitists.net > wrote in message
news:aPUMg.4258$zt1.2182@tornado.ohiordc.rr.com...
>
> I'd bet you could use the Alton Brown trick of sandwiching them between
> layers of furnace filter and bungee cording it to a box fan. Faster than
> using a screen and less risky (to the hops) than using the oven. Plus,
> you get to play with bungee cords.
I've considered using Alton's method, however, I can't help but wonder if
this would drive off some of the more delicate hop aroma compounds, with all
that air blowing through them like that. Then again, I'm sure baking them
at low temperature isn't much better, which is what I tried this year. I'm
starting to think it's best to dry them the old fashioned way... let them
sit for a few days at room temperature on a window screen in a dark, dry,
protected area. Yeah, I wonder.... I baked mine at like 125 F, and I didn't
get much if any aroma out of them. I think baking them drove all the aroma
out of them. Maybe next year I'll get it done right. Anyone have any
personal experience with the Alton method? Did they end up with good aroma
in the final beer?
--
Dave
"Just a drink, a little drink, and I'll be feeling GOOooOOooOOooD!" --
Genesis, 1973-ish
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Date: 11 Sep 2006 08:57:59
From: Denny Conn
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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"David M. Taylor" wrote:
> I've considered using Alton's method, however, I can't help but wonder if
> this would drive off some of the more delicate hop aroma compounds, with all
> that air blowing through them like that. Then again, I'm sure baking them
> at low temperature isn't much better, which is what I tried this year. I'm
> starting to think it's best to dry them the old fashioned way... let them
> sit for a few days at room temperature on a window screen in a dark, dry,
> protected area. Yeah, I wonder.... I baked mine at like 125 F, and I didn't
> get much if any aroma out of them. I think baking them drove all the aroma
> out of them. Maybe next year I'll get it done right. Anyone have any
> personal experience with the Alton method? Did they end up with good aroma
> in the final beer?
Commercial hop growers blow hot air through theirs, so I'd think that it
would be OK. You can see some pics from Hop Madness of commercial
processing here...
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/pictures?ap=&a=67b0de21b33d45e6c4cd&pg=0
---------- >Denny
--
Life begins at 60...1.060, that is.
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Date: 08 Sep 2006 11:34:28
From: Wheat
Subject: Re: First year of home grown hops
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Good information on "hop" ranching here: <G >
http://www.realbeer.com/library/authors/smith-g/homebrew_hop.php
" A warning, your first year the vines will grow tall but usually won't
produce many hops flowers. This is normal. First year hop plants expend most
of their energy establishing root systems. Whatever your harvest prepare the
vines for a winter nap by cutting them off a couple inches above ground
level, then cover them with some loose earth."
Bill
"Scott L" <scott-sp02@neuralnw.com > wrote in message
news:1157738174.526768.84960@i42g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> Well, back in spring I planted three rhizomes: Cascade, Centennial, and
> Willamette. To my surprise, I got what looked (to a person
> inexperienced in growing hops) to be a reasonable harvest from the
> Centennial plant. The others produced cones, but not enough to justify
> the effort of harvesting.
>
> I'm assuming that the growth will be much more vigorous next year, but
> mostly I was surprised to get anything at all -- the Centennial
> rhizome, unlike the other two, sent out only ONE very vigorous shoot,
> which grew into a bine almost a quarter inch think! The other plants
> sent out multiple shoots which never got as thick.
>
> I didn't weigh my harvest, but once dried and compressed into a
> vacuum-lock bag, it looks like around 2 ounces. Is that a large or a
> small harvest for the first year? How many ounces can you typically
> expect from a single MATURE plant (I know this is going to strongly
> depend on the variety, but... guesses, please).
>
> Scott
>
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