HOW TO GROW HOPS FOR BEER

Home » Food and Drink » Home Brewing Join Sign in EzineArticles - Expert Authors Sharing Their Best Original Articles Search David A Swanson Basic Author | 5 Articles Joined: August 22, 2013 United States Growing Hops at Home By David A Swanson | Submitted On October 10, 2013 Recommend Article Article Comments Print Article Expert Author David A Swanson Growing your own hops for use in beer brewing Hops are one of the most important beer brewing ingredients and can make or break the taste of the beer. It is absolutely important to choose the finest ones. The best way to get top quality hops at a reasonable price is to grow hops at home. More and more people are opting to make beer from home grown hops rather than store bought hops. This is mainly because of the fact that beer made out of home grown hops always turns out to be of top quality as it clearly scores in the area of taste, flavor and cost. Here are few things you need to know about growing hops at home. How to grow hops at home In order to get the best hops grown at home, you need to plant, maintain and harvest the right way. If you were wondering how to grow beer hops, you will find the answer here. Planting hops - The best time to plant hops is the spring season. To start with, the rhizomes need to be planted in a light-textured soil that has a pH of 6 to 8. Make sure that the soil is not too wet. Each rhizome should be planted 1 inch deep and the space between them should be 3 feet minimum. In the first few months, you can see hops growing really fast and then they will slow down to enter the flowering stage. Maintaining - You need to water and fertilize the hops regularly. The soil should not be too dry or too wet. If the rhizomes are exposed to too much water then they will rot easily, so ensure that you water them appropriately. Adding some generic fertilizers to the hops when they are growing will bring great results, however, make sure not to overdo it. Harvesting - When the vine reaches the flowering stage, hop cones start appearing as well. You need to wait for the hop cones to attain full growth and then pick them. To test its readiness, the cone should be squeezed with your finger, if it is dry and expands back to the original position then it is ready to be plucked. Why growing hops at home is better than buying from store? Home grown hops are more aromatic and bitter than those hops that are bought from stores. This makes them more ideal for preparing the best beer. Home grown hops are fresh and require a lot of care and attention to attain the desired result. They also turn out to be a more cost-effective option and bring you a great deal of satisfaction. Time taken for growing hops The hop rhizomes are planted at the end of the spring season and in about few weeks they start growing quite fast (about 2 inch per week). The growth then slows down by the end of June and the hops will be ready to harvest by late August or September. Equipments required To make the process of growing hops at home easier you need to have a rake, spade, gardening trowel, watering can, secateurs, basket and sacks. To store the hops you need to have airtight bags and a refrigerator. Cost difference Hops grown at home turn out to be cost-effective and cost less than hops bought from stores. By growing hops at home you will be saving half of the money that you would be spending on hops bought from stores. As a whole, home grown hops definitely add better flavor and taste to the beer. By making beer out of hops grown at home you will feel the difference in quality, cost and taste. If you enjoyed this article then visit our website: http://www.beerbrewingnetwork.com Our site features tons of informative home brewing material including DIY videos, upcoming events, and latest news. Sign up for our newsletter at http://www.beerbrewingnetwork.com/newsletter to receive free beer recipes, product reviews, and a free home brewing book! Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/David_A_Swanson/1678612 0 Comments | Leave a Comment Did you find this article helpful? Happy Face0 Sad Face0 Viewed 72 times Word count: 616 Article Tools EzinePublisher Report this article Cite this article Stay Informed Subscribe to New Article Alerts: Food and Drink: Home-Brewing David A Swanson Email Address Subscribe We will never sell or rent your email address. Home Brewing Article Feed Home Brewing Article Feed Find More Articles Search Similar Articles Why Try Home Brewing? 5 Good Reasons to Make Your Own Beer Beer - The Ingredients Home Beer Making - How To Grow Your Own Hops For Home Beer Making You Can't Home Brew Beer Without the Magic of Carbon Dioxide Getting Started in Home Brew Beer and Wine Home Beer Brewing Kits Home Brewing Recipes - Find Them or Invent Them? 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