How are your home grown hops doing?

Me too. Controlling the ants is key. The ants farm the aphids and store them over winter. They will then bring them up and run them up the bines. As the aphids eat they excrete a sugary substance that the ants then feed on. Spraying the leaves with the soap only kills the aphids that are above ground. The resurgence of more aphids is from the ants farming them up the hops from the nest itself.

EDIT: Doing some quick reading on it, appears that some of the ants will actually kill lady bug eggs and larvae to keep them from eating the aphids. A good read if interested in this a little more:
http://insects.about.com/od/coolandunusualinsects/f/antsandaphids.htm

 

In past years I have had very good success with imidacloprid for controlling hop aphids. From the Pacific Northwest Insect Management Handbook:

"Imidacloprid (various formulations) to the soil at 0.3 lb ai/a. PHI 60 days. One application to the soil per season applied as (1) a drip irrigation, (2) a subsurface sidedress shank irrigation, or (3) a hill drench. Follow sidedress and shank applications by furrow or sprinkler irrigations to ensure incorporation into the root zone. Do not apply more than 0.3 lb ai/a per season of any imidacloprid formulation. Group 4A insecticide. - See more at: http://insect.pnwhandbooks.org/agronomic/hop/hop-hop-aphid"

As with all insecticides, it is important to follow the recommended application dosage. ai/a = active ingredient/acre.

I was hoping to avoid treating this year, but the aphids finally showed up. In researching this in the past I found that the hop aphid overwinters on certain fruit trees, such as plum. Unfortunately, I have a flowering plum right next to my hops. I also treat the tree with imidacloprid.

 

A couple more shots from today:

 

First year hops.

 

This is my first year growing and I've learned a few lessons the hard way. I think I'm still going to get some pretty good production out of them this year.
(1): don't spray soap water while under direct sunlight.... (duh)
(2): A mixture of potting soil, top soil, and peat moss works great!
(3): Don't order plants, order rhizomes. My rhizomes did much better than my plants. I had 2 rhizomes (nugget and cascade) and two plants (Centennial). I had to cut the plants back because I couldn't keep them going inside. They are doing well now, but it set them back far enough that I don't expect to get any production out of them this year.
(4): Water.... Check the soil daily, when its dry water.
(5) Using a fence is not Ideal but... it works, it just involves a lot of extra effort training them.

 

This year I cant keep the damn deer away from my brewer's gold.

While all my other varieties have mature cones and visible lupulin, the poor brewers gold keeps getting munched down to the ground. 1 or 2 bines got up to about 6 feet but the deer have consumed every leaf and side shoot. It looks like a hop bine version of charlie brown's christmas tree.

 

Consider the Brewer's Gold your sacrificial anode

 

First year centennials hit about 4 feet and stopped, started to yellow out at the crown./ Came in with some richlawn 5-10-5 organic veggie food and they started shooting up again. I'm just hoping to get the plants established this year and start harvesting next year...

 

2 bines of third-year Newports are doing nicely. Long since hit the top of the trellis, now starting to for cones.
2 of brand new Cascade are OK. I have growth, but only a few feet tall. Not worried, since they're do what they do this year, and next year I'll look for some growth (unless I have to pull them and transplant in a new yard.)
1 of brand new Nugget apparently didn;t survive planting. Oh, well. try again next year.

 

Thought I'd update now that the burrs are really popping up/out. It was difficult to get a comprehensive pic of the Cascades, as they're everywhere, but here you go:





My Golding also have burrs, but they're not as exciting. Tettnanger have no burs, and Centennial just aren't doing much of anything.

Looks like I'll be getting a pretty decent harvest this year.

 

I'm super jealous of ya'll plants.

I'd love to grow, not sure they'd last down here in GA that well. I'm not one to really pay attention to plants outside, and have a backyard with WAY too many trees and shade.

That, and dogs, who I would be terrified would eat some hops, as they will eat anything out there in the yard.

A wet hopped Cascade pale would be fantastic this fall.

 

That is exactly what I'm planning.

 

The hops are looking great, European aroma varieties are full of cones and will need to be harvested the earliest I can remember. The Alpha NA varieties have abundant vegetation and are setting cones like crazy.

Chinook is a beast this year.

 

A lot of aphid problems are caused by imbalances (excessive) nitrogen in the soil. The aphids are drawn to this "free nitrogen". If you irrigate on a regular schedual from the beginning of the season you will help flush out any excess nitrogen that is in your soil. This is a common problem. Remember: treat the problem, not the symptoms.

 

Plants are doing pretty well so far, no pest that I can tell, and no flowers that I can see yet. The first pic was taken around mid june and the second is today. They are centennial and columbus.

 

Third year Cascade and Centennial are at about 12 feet now and are developing burrs. Really dense and thick foliage. I think next season, I'll trim back some of the new growth and let the healthiest bines go crazy.

 

Japanese beetles starting doing a number on my cascade's, had to put out a beetle bag. I thought I was going to have to wait a year to do a batch with the home grown stuff, but there is going to be plenty of first year nugget and cascade to do a good fall brew. The Centennial are going to have to wait a year though.

 

I hope you have great luck, something always eats mine.

 

Harvesting Chinook, Cascade, and Zeus today...still have hops from last year...so only the finest cones will make it in the sack this year.