The Bar Towel

Right on. Thanks! That's what I figured, but my experience growing is pretty limited. Put some centenial in the ground summer, but didn't get any cones the first year. They survived the winter and are growing gangbusters right now. Didn't know if it was just the mild SW Ontario winter we had or if they are indeed pretty hardy and could survive slightly colder temps too, like up in Haliburton.

boney wrote:Right on. Thanks! That's what I figured, but my experience growing is pretty limited. Put some centenial in the ground summer, but didn't get any cones the first year. They survived the winter and are growing gangbusters right now. Didn't know if it was just the mild SW Ontario winter we had or if they are indeed pretty hardy and could survive slightly colder temps too, like up in Haliburton.

no, man. they're there for good. in fact, they become more viable each and every year. they grow a tap root.
my hops came from outside Winnipeg. so put that in perspective re: coldness.
my 5th year wilamette plant's growing like crazy now. already close to 2 ft.

Apparently a little further North is actually the ideal range for hops. When I asked the folks at Clear Valley, who are in Collingwood, where their ideal location would be they said just a little bit further North. So Muskoka is probably just about perfect.

boney wrote:Right on. Thanks! That's what I figured, but my experience growing is pretty limited. Put some centenial in the ground summer, but didn't get any cones the first year. They survived the winter and are growing gangbusters right now. Didn't know if it was just the mild SW Ontario winter we had or if they are indeed pretty hardy and could survive slightly colder temps too, like up in Haliburton.

I've been told in the past that you're best off cutting back the first growths from a plant and going with the second round of shoots. You end up with more productive bines that way, or so I was told.

Craig wrote:I've been told in the past that you're best off cutting back the first growths from a plant and going with the second round of shoots. You end up with more productive bines that way, or so I was told.

It's counterintuitive, but it seems that also applies to tree roots.

If you cut the roots anyplace the tree releases a hormone to cause them to grow back more aggressively.

Craig wrote:

boney wrote:Right on. Thanks! That's what I figured, but my experience growing is pretty limited. Put some centenial in the ground summer, but didn't get any cones the first year. They survived the winter and are growing gangbusters right now. Didn't know if it was just the mild SW Ontario winter we had or if they are indeed pretty hardy and could survive slightly colder temps too, like up in Haliburton.

I've been told in the past that you're best off cutting back the first growths from a plant and going with the second round of shoots. You end up with more productive bines that way, or so I was told.

I know I'm doing that this year - cutting back the bull shoots. They apparently don't have the potential to grow denser amount of flowers.

What I do know is that my hop box is overrun right now with shoots. It started with 5 plants 2 seasons ago (3rd year growing this year), and now it's just a zoo.

Do other people split their plants to try to control their size?

As a wannabe gardener I have some questions:
1. are the hop flowers(?) aromatic while still on the plant?
2. will they grow in partial sun (half day), or require full sun all day long?
3. Is it an invasive plant (ie will it spread like a crazy weed)?

1. Yes.
2. Yes, but not as well.
3. Yes and no. You'll never kill the plant, since it grows deep and comes back every year, but it doesn't really spread that bad.

Craig wrote:1. Yes.
2. Yes, but not as well.
3. Yes and no. You'll never kill the plant, since it grows deep and comes back every year, but it doesn't really spread that bad.

Cool, thanks

this is what a 3rd year tap root looks like.
i had to move it because some asshole cut it down last year (accidentally or on purpose, i don't know).

atomeyes wrote:this is what a 3rd year tap root looks like.
i had to move it because some asshole cut it down last year (accidentally or on purpose, i don't know).

Holy crap, that's huge. And shitty. Hopefully you were able to salvage a few rhizomes to, unfortunately, start fresh. I take it you never caught the douche who did it, or perhaps you need to play nice with the neighbours if it was accidental? That would make me murderous.

boney wrote:

atomeyes wrote:this is what a 3rd year tap root looks like.
i had to move it because some asshole cut it down last year (accidentally or on purpose, i don't know).

Holy crap, that's huge. And shitty. Hopefully you were able to salvage a few rhizomes to, unfortunately, start fresh. I take it you never caught the douche who did it, or perhaps you need to play nice with the neighbours if it was accidental? That would make me murderous.

the hops were growing pretty high. i left to intern in Belgium on May 29. pretty sure they were cut at the bottom when i came back in July. the bines were still green.
no idea if it was a neighbour, a passer-byer, the city...who knows. we had another strange thing happen to our house. i have solar LED lights (xmas lights, but soft and not offensive) that we have as back yard patio lanterns. one set of lights is wrapped around a tree trunk, going about 8 ft up. it's on a tree that's in our back yard and the lights were on our side of the fence. noticed after a while that the lights weren't on. i take a look and the cord's cut and the solar charging box is gone (it was staked in the ground). now, squirrels and raccoons use that tree, so maybe something happened. but how/why would a raccoon take a solar box that's 3 x 5? so i was wondering if some asshole behind us didn't like seeing the supersoft glint of patio lights at night and, instead of talking to me, just came and cut the cord.

i put the rhizome in my fridge and replanted it 2 weeks ago. nothing's taken so far, but i put my finger in the soil around that area and it's still damn cold. it faces east, so it's not heating up as much as i'd like it to heat up. i may not get any growth this year, but the rhizomes are hearty as hell.

on the flipside: rhizomes are tough as hell. nothing may happen this year, but i'll probably get some growth next year. my 4th year (or 5th? i don't remember) plant already has bines 2.5 tall. i've set up my trellises for all but 1 of my plants - he's a slow growing cascade, versus the wilammette, which grow like weeds.

also, pro tip: when you cut off the extra bines (only have 3 per rhizone), eat the tips raw. they taste like asparagus

I know the common wisdom is 3 bines per plant, but I've been to commercial farms that do 6.

Craig wrote:I know the common wisdom is 3 bines per plant, but I've been to commercial farms that do 6.

i'm curious as to what constitutes a plant. you saw a picture of my taproot. in my back yard, it's extending out 5 ft horizontally. is that one "plant"? bines are coming up in the isolated areas.

atomeyes wrote:

Craig wrote:I know the common wisdom is 3 bines per plant, but I've been to commercial farms that do 6.

i'm curious as to what constitutes a plant. you saw a picture of my taproot. in my back yard, it's extending out 5 ft horizontally. is that one "plant"? bines are coming up in the isolated areas.

Yes, that would be one plant. But they wouldn't let one plant grow out like that. The odd shoot can pop up here or there, but with another plant growing 4-5 feet in each direction I'd be pretty surprised to see a shoot make it into a neighbor's turf. I've seen recent plantings too, so I know each apparent plant is actually it's own plant.

Hop farming is still very much in it's infancy in Ontario, so it's possible they do things a little differently than the norm.