Hop Rhizomes: Planting

My main order of hop rhizomes came in last weekend. In the rush to complete our move last spring, we left behind many plants that we had hoped to remove, pot, and bring with us to the new place... Sadly, my hops from last year were among those left behind. I had three varieties (Hallertauer, Tettnanger, and Cascade) which actually survived, and the Cascade were quite robust and productive.

I ordered several varieties again this year: Cascade, Chinook, Fuggle, Horizon... The first year I grew hops, I was not ready to put them in the ground, so I started them in containers (7-gallon nursery pots); they grew fine, had a decent yield, and I replanted them in the ground the following spring. The garden area at my new home is nowhere near complete, so I am starting hops in containers again this year.

I used the same 7-gallon nursery containers to plant them this time around. I remembered to print up weatherproof labels for each hop varietal - this ought to save me a bit of headache later! I partially blocked the four drain holes at the bottoms of the pots, then filled them with a mix of potting soil and enriched organic manure. After digging a 1-2" trench in the soil, I dropped the rhizomes in, mounding soil over the top.

It is spring in the Pacific Northwest, so keeping the soil moist will not be a problem. In fact, I think that part of why I lost some of my original hops was because they were too wet before the bines sprouted out of the soil. My gut tells me that finding a balance between a soil that will hold some moisture and a soil that drains well is the key, especially at the earliest stages.

I have the containers placed on the far side of my raised garden beds. This part of my yard will get around 16 hours of sun during the summer. Even now, they have sun from about 8 AM until 7 PM. I am going to rig a primitive trellis from re-bar and twine attached to the wall of my raised beds. This should be sufficient for the first year. Next year, my intention is to get them permanently planted in the ground somewhere in our garden enclosure with a better trellis system.