Spring is in the Air

Spring has finally arrived in Connecticut.  A hard lesson I learn growing up in the Northeast, is having the patience to wait until the last threat of frost before working on the plants. 

Generally speaking if you are planting, the best time is the end of April.  The Old Farmers' Almanac gives a date for CT of 4/25.  Below is a chart from their website with growing information.  Here's the link:  http://www.almanac.com/content/frost-chart-united-states


What I normally do in spring is apply manure as a top dressing to my hop plants.  Other people I know use chemical fertilizers made for garden vegetables.  I will give more info when I get closer to that time.

City	State	Growing Season (Length in Days)	Last Frost Spring	First Frost Fall
Mobile	AL	272	Feb. 27	Nov. 26
Juneau	AK	133	May 16	Sept. 26
Phoenix	AZ	308	Feb. 5	Dec. 15
Tucson	AZ	273	Feb. 28	Nov. 29
Pine Bluff	AR	234	Mar. 19	Nov. 8
Eureka	CA	324	Jan. 30	Dec. 15
Sacramento	CA	289	Feb. 14	Dec. 1
San Francisco	CA	*	*	*
Denver	CO	157	May 3	Oct. 8
Hartford	CT	167	Apr. 25	Oct. 10
Wilmington	DE	198	Apr. 13	Oct. 29
Miami	FL	*	*	*
Tampa	FL	338	Jan. 28	Jan. 3
Athens	GA	224	Mar. 28	Nov. 8
Savannah	GA	250	Mar. 10	Nov. 15
Boise	ID	153	May 8	Oct. 9
Chicago	IL	187	Apr. 22	Oct. 26
Springfield	IL	185	Apr. 17	Oct. 19
Indianapolis	IN	180	Apr. 22	Oct. 20
South Bend	IN	169	May 1	Oct. 18
Atlantic	IA	141	May 9	Sept. 28
Cedar Rapids	IA	161	Apr. 29	Oct. 7
Topeka	KS	175	Apr. 21	Oct. 14
Lexington	KY	190	Apr. 17	Oct. 25
Monroe	LA	242	Mar. 9	Nov. 7
New Orleans	LA	288	Feb. 20	Dec. 5
Portland	ME	143	May 10	Sept. 30
Baltimore	MD	231	Mar. 26	Nov. 13
Worcester	MA	172	Apr. 27	Oct. 17
Lansing	MI	140	May 13	Sept. 30
Marquette	MI	159	May 12	Oct. 19
Duluth	MN	122	May 21	Sept. 21
Willmar	MN	152	May 4	Oct. 4
Columbus	MS	215	Mar. 27	Oct. 29
Vicksburg	MS	250	Mar. 13	Nov. 18
Jefferson City	MO	173	Apr. 26	Oct. 16
Fort Peck	MT	146	May 5	Sept. 28
Helena	MT	122	May 18	Sept. 18
Blair	NE	165	Apr. 27	Oct. 10
North Platte	NE	136	May 11	Sept. 24
Las Vegas	NV	259	Mar. 7	Nov. 21
Concord	NH	121	May 23	Sept. 22
Newark	NJ	219	Apr. 4	Nov. 10
Carlsbad	NM	223	Mar. 29	Nov. 7
Los Alamos	NM	157	May 8	Oct. 13
Albany	NY	144	May 7	Sept. 29
Syracuse	NY	170	Apr. 28	Oct. 16
Fayetteville	NC	212	Apr. 2	Oct. 31
Bismarck	ND	129	May 14	Sept. 20
Akron	OH	168	May 3	Oct. 18
Cincinnati	OH	195	Apr. 14	Oct. 27
Lawton	OK	217	Apr. 1	Nov. 5
Tulsa	OK	218	Mar. 30	Nov. 4
Pendleton	OR	188	Apr. 15	Oct. 21
Portland	OR	217	Apr. 3	Nov. 7
Carlisle	PA	182	Apr. 20	Oct. 20
Williamsport	PA	168	Apr. 29	Oct. 15
Kingston	RI	144	May 8	Sept. 30
Charleston	SC	253	Mar. 11	Nov. 20
Columbia	SC	211	Apr. 4	Nov. 2
Rapid City	SD	145	May 7	Sept. 29
Memphis	TN	228	Mar. 23	Nov. 7
Nashville	TN	207	Apr. 5	Oct. 29
Amarillo	TX	197	Apr. 14	Oct. 29
Denton	TX	231	Mar. 25	Nov. 12
San Antonio	TX	265	Mar. 3	Nov. 24
Cedar City	UT	134	May 20	Oct. 2
Spanish Fork	UT	156	May 8	Oct. 12
Burlington	VT	142	May 11	Oct. 1
Norfolk	VA	239	Mar. 23	Nov. 17
Richmond	VA	198	Apr. 10	Oct. 26
Seattle	WA	232	Mar. 24	Nov. 11
Spokane	WA	153	May 4	Oct. 5
Parkersburg	WV	175	Apr. 25	Oct. 18
Green Bay	WI	143	May 12	Oct. 2
Janesville	WI	164	Apr. 28	Oct. 10
Casper	WY	123	May 22	Sept. 22

* Frosts do not occur every year.

How to choose your hops

So I found this link to THE ULTIMATE HOP CHART.
The chart is very comprehensive, giving:

• Name 
• Alpha Acid %
• Typical Beer Styles
• Possible Substitutions
• Flavor Description

The chart is one of the better references I have found, I hope you enjoy.

Just wondering, what hops do you use in your "signature" brews?  Any unusual combination that you think works really well?  Comment back and share...




This is a great book, with good historical information as well as a great guide to how to put together recipes.

Get it at Amazon.com
Radical Brewing: Recipes, Tales and World-Altering Meditations in a Glass

Douglas Wawrzynski for AHA Governing Committee Representative

My good friend Doug is running for AHA Governing Committee Representative.  If you are a member of the American Homebrewers Association, please consider voting for him.  I believe you would be hard-pressed to find a better candidate. 

His profile can be seen using the following link: Doug's AHA Profile

Homebrew T-shirts

I made a few new designs in my line of Homebrewing T-shirts. 
Check them out at http://www.cafepress.com/redcardgear/5595199

The link at the right isn't an ad.  Red Card Gear is my T-shirt business, specializing in Soccer & Homebrewing t-shirts.  Here are a couple of my new designs that I though you might like.

Cascade Hops

Some beautiful Cascade Hops from one of my plants.  This was year 1 for these Rhizomes.  I have high hopes for them next year. 


To recap, I have 4 Brewers Gold and 2 Cascade.  My plans for this year are to add 2 more Cascade and 2 Fuggle.


I have used this book extensively for info, and highly recommend it.

Time flies by...

The more I try to stay away, the more I am drawn back to this blog...Could this be the final attempt?  I guess I can't be sure.  Honestly, my intention was never to withdraw myself from the blog.  The difficult thing which seems to occur, a balance of:  family - career - and hobbies.  While I haven't stopped my efforts to grow my own hops...the communication of this hobby obviously ceased for some time.

I am happy to report that my year 2 yield was better than expected.  I lost a substantial amount of the Cascade plants when I moved, but the Brewer's Gold came in with force.  So much force that my trellises came down with them!  Looking towards year 3, I will be planting more varieties, reinforcing my trellises, and looking into a more effective drying method.

The updates will come weekly, with planning first, then documentation of growth, and hopefully another successful year!

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures

Sorry for the delay in the postings. Things got crazy busy at the end of the school year, but now I'm on vacation so I should have lots of time to update and add pictures...

These pictures were taken about 4 weeks ago. As you can see the growth isn't great...

New Link!

Check it out! Josh from Tulsa, OK has sent a link to his blog. Another great resource in our quest to eliminate the hops shortage!

New Link!

I've added a permanent link to Pantsville. Brian is a regular listener to the podcast and is tracking his own hops growing project on his blog. He also keeps logs of all his brewing...this blog is completely worth the read. Check it out!

Hops Rhizomes are in! (the ground that is...)

So finally, (way later than planned), all my hops rhizomes have been planted. After taking a long look at the space issues in my yard, I decided to split the rhizomes and have my father plant some in his garden.

The 4 Brewer's Gold rhizomes all went into my father's garden. He built 4 single post trellis with a "T" at the top of each. There are 2 lines going up in a "V" to the T's.

The Cascade rhizomes were planted in my yard. I planted them as planned, but did make one change...Since I had trees very close to where I wanted to put the posts, I decided to use the trees as posts. This decision was made for 2 reasons. 1. - to help the system "blend in" with my yard more and 2. - because there were too many roots and rocks to get a deep enough hole in the ground. I am happy with the outcome though...

As previously promised, and this time I mean it, pictures will be up shortly. I'm in my last couple of weeks of work (did I mention I love being a teacher?) so time is suddenly on my side!

New Slideshow

I've added the first "Hops Project" to the blog. Many thanks to Mike from Collinsville, IL for the pictures. They will be running as a slide show in the sidebar. Mike has agreed to send me updates throughout the summer to track his progress...hopefully we will get a few more people from different regions to do the same. I guess this puts some pressure on me to get some of my pictures up. The only problem is I'm feeling a little depressed because Mike's plants are so far ahead of mine...

Some Pics...Finally

This is the garden soil I use as an amendment to my "dirt"

Crazy Weather!

April is just crazy in Connecticut. We had a week of 80 degree weather last week. Then what happens? A cold spell of course! We had near freezing temperatures last night and are on a frost warning tonight...This is why I generally hold off planting until May.

Thanks to everyone who has e-mailed ideas and advice. I have heard from a couple of people that if I don't plant soon, I may not get a crop the first year. For that reason, the rhizomes will be in my garden bed this week. Hopefully the weather will cooperate. Check back for pictures!

Hopefully everyone listened to the Home Brewing Perspectives Podcast. If you haven't, I think it is definitely worth a listen...check it out! Irrigation info soon to follow!

More Rhizomes!

More Rhizomes have arrived! The aforementioned Brewer's Gold Hops Rhizomes (which were ordered by Doug "accidentally on purpose" have arrived as well. It is still a little early for planting in Connecticut, so I have stored them with my Cascade Rhizomes in the butter tray of my fridge.

Hopefully you listened to this weeks podcast...if you have, you know I promised soil preparation details. They will be coming very soon as I plan on "working" my garden beds this week.

Rhizomes are here!

It's an exciting night! The Cascade Hops Rhizomes have arrived from Northern Brewer. The hops actually came from Freshops in Philomath, Oregon.

Many times plants, rhizomes, etc...will ship before you may be able to plant in your region. Remember you MUST wait until after the last possible frost. In Connecticut, I usually wait until the 2nd or 3rd week of May. There are a couple of options you have to wait out that difficult time between when you receive your Hops Rhizomes and when you can plant them.

• If you happen to have a Greenhouse, Garden Window, etc...you could start the rhizomes and transfer them when the ground thaws.
• The safest bet is to store the rhizomes in a plastic bag, slightly moistened and keep them in a refrigerator until you are ready to plant. (This is what I am doing)
  

Getting Closer...

It is finally starting to warm up in Connecticut...and the timing couldn't be better. One of those "teacher" perks, I am on spring break next week. Could you imagine? I have Spring Break and Summer Vacation for the rest of my life...I know you're jealous.

Anyways, Doug and I will be discussing soil preparation on the Home Brewing Perspectives Podcast shortly. Personally, I plan on starting the preparation of my site this week. That consists of building the trellis and getting the soil ready. Keep your eyes peeled, I will have site photos on the blog shortly, followed by detailed construction diagrams.

Hops Structure Diagram

The first work-through of my hops structure. It is important to remember to properly plan for the best location BEFORE building your trellis.

Some things to keep in mind when choosing your location:

• Southern Exposure with Full Sun (6-8 Hours)
• An Existing Wind Break to Prevent Vine Damage
• Plenty of Vertical Space
• Good Drainage
  

Hops Growing Structure

Ok, I know I'm a little late...I promised on the Home Brewing Perspectives Podcast the other day that I would post structural diagrams of the "trellis" system I'm growing my hops on. The structure will be a "straight pole" trellis system. 2 large posts spaced apart with a wire "web" between the posts. The wires will be attached to the posts through eyelet or hooks. The poles will be spaced about 20 ft. apart. That will leave plenty of room for the 6 rhizomes I ordered. I plan on having my poles be about 10 ft. high (and set 2-3 ft. in the ground). This will give the structure substantial support as well as being tall enough to allow growth, while still low enough that I can harvest the hop cones without much of a problem. Remember, I plan on training the hops horizontally before vertically.

Diagrams of the structure soon to follow...