The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Growing => Herbs => Topic started by: RUSTYME on February 23, 2014, 11:39:42 pm

Title: . Hops
Post by: RUSTYME on February 23, 2014, 11:39:42 pm

I have put this under herbs as i won't be using them for brewing but as a herbal plant , could have put it under alt meds , but here will do as well .
I have seen the variety 'golden tassles'  on ebay for £3.95 + £2.95 p+p , does that sound about right ? Bloody dear for a bit of root , lol .
 No money atm , but just wondered what to expect to have to pay .
Seems to be a small variety 2.5-3.5 mtrs , but that will do .

Title: Re: . Hops
Post by: HesterF on February 25, 2014, 11:47:18 am

Sounds reasonable to me - I've seen them for a heck of a lot more than that.

We'll be paying nearly £2 a vine for grapes arriving shortly and we're getting several thousand of them. It's not the root you're paying for - it's the labour of cultivating them.

Just check you're going to have them in the right sort of location. Hops are quite picky, I believe. I live in the heart of hop country in Kent - just down the road from Wye where many of the great Kent varieties were developed - and would love to have some but have yet to identify somewhere they'd be happy around our land. They don't like wind, they're picky over the earth and 2.5 to 3.5m is no small beast if you have to set up a framework for them to grow up (there are small hops that top out at about 6ft, I believe).

Title: Re: . Hops
Post by: Marches Farmer on February 25, 2014, 11:54:52 am

We're in hop country here in Herefordshire.  Most hopyards I know of are quite sheltered.  We have heavy clay soil.  We have some of the 2 metre variety growing over split chestnut fences - will actually put on 3-4 metres in a good year but they took a couple of years to really get going.

Title: Re: . Hops
Post by: Bramblecot on February 25, 2014, 03:26:13 pm

We have wild hops growing in the hedge but only in one part  ??? .  It is right on the break between heavy Oxford clay and where the chalk hill begins.  Anyone know if it propagates by seed, cuttings or layering?

Title: Re: . Hops
Post by: madcat on March 27, 2014, 06:29:07 pm

Sounds like a plant that would grow from root cuttings. I'm looking out for wild ones I can get a root from and will try cuttings too. I like plants with attitude and hops seem to be in the grow your own razor wire category being rough and hairy