Hops: Growing the beer plant yourself

If you think of hops, the thought of a cool beer is not far off. We have summarized everything you need to know about the versatile perennial.

The real hop (Humulus lupulus) belongs to the hemp family (Cannabaceae). Certainly many people have the following image in mind in connection with this climbing plant: A stout monk in brown Kutte, who is sitting at a massive wooden table enjoying a deep sip from his mug of the tart hop drink takes. In fact, 95% of the hops grown in Germany are used to brew beer. But the perennial, originally from Central Europe, was not voted medicinal plant of the year in 2007 because of its main purpose. The real hops are also convincing thanks to some medicinally valuable ingredients. We will explain why beer and hops simply belong together and show you how you can grow this medicinal plant in your own garden.

Growing hops in the garden

location

The real hop loves the sun. When growing in your own garden, this should not be denied under any circumstances - the plant develops best in a southern location. This is also the reason why more than 80% of the hops produced commercially in Germany are grown in sunny Bavaria. Famous for cultivation of hops is above all the Hallertau region. Not only the wild form of the true hop, which is often found in very moist areas, enjoys a nitrogen-rich supply. Especially when cultivating in a pot, which is easily possible, a well-fertilized substrate should be used.

If the hops are planted in a bed in your own garden, you should know that they form rhizomes. These are subterranean shoots from which strong-growing shoots push themselves to the surface every year. If the plant has to move from its place, everyone will come up with a spade. But if the rhizome of the hop is divided and parts remain in the soil, new shoots can still sprout from them.

propagation

The usual and most sensible propagation of hops is the propagation by cuttings. There is a special reason for this: Only unfertilized, female inflorescences form the coveted cones. The structure of male panicle flowers differs fundamentally from that of spike-shaped female flowers. Pollination of the female flowers is disadvantageous for processing in the brewery on the one hand and on the other hand not as much wort can be produced from the same mass of hops as from unfertilized ones Blossoms. If you hold a bag of seeds in your hand, you cannot be sure whether the seeds are male or female. Later, unwanted pollination of the female blossoms can occur in the mixed hop culture. In order to avoid this faux pas, the hop varieties are only propagated by cuttings. If you want to plant hops in your own garden, it is therefore a good idea to buy young plants that have already been grown.

Water and fertilize

Hop is hungry and thirsty. That's no wonder with a daily growth of up to 10 cm of the individual shoots, which are also known as vines. The soil must always be kept moist. However, it is important to avoid waterlogging in any case. This would lead to a lack of oxygen supply to the roots and consequently to root rot. The high nutrient requirement should be covered by additional fertilization, especially in a pot culture. Just like the watering, the fertilizing must also be adapted to the rapid growth of the hops. This means that the intervals between fertilization are shortened with increasing size. In early summer, nutrients should be supplied up to once a week. The fertilizing is then stopped completely when flowering begins. However, watering remains a full-time job: Especially when cultivating in pots, you have to water them daily on sunny, warm days to ensure that the plant is optimally cared for. It is therefore also advisable to use a pot that is not too small for the thirsty perennial. A primarily organic organic fertilizer such as our Plantura is well suited Organic universal fertilizer.

Grooming, cutting, binding

Depending on the variety, hops can grow 4 to 8 meters long. Without their climbing hairs, however, the thin shoots would not be able to grow tall. Therefore, three to four of the climbing vines per rhizome are tied up to a climbing aid made of vertical wires. This happens as soon as the individual shoots have become so long that they can no longer hold themselves upright. It should be noted that the hop is a so-called right winder. If it is necessary to help climb the wire, the shoots must be loosely tied up in a clockwise direction. All other shoots that sprout from the same rhizome are cut out. This increases the yield of hop cones.

A pruning in winter is not necessary. All parts of the perennial plant above ground die off. The nutrients from the vines are transferred to the subterranean shoot axis. This gives the rhizome enough strength to push the fresh shoots back to the surface next spring. Incidentally, the rhizome of the hemp plant native to our temperate latitudes is not threatened by frost damage. Even prolonged permafrost cannot harm the robust hops.
It is possible that stubborn aphids infest your hops. These unwelcome small animals can best be fought with old household remedies instead of the bulky chemical club. Watering the plants with Nettle manure or the encore usually helps. The addition of a small splash of washing-up liquid to the water with which the infested plants are sprayed is usually enough to win the war with the small plant sap suckers. Many varieties are also susceptible to powdery mildew. Best alternative to chemical crop protection: choosing a less susceptible or even resistant variety.

Hop varieties: purely a matter of taste

hundreds different hop varieties are available on the market. There is something for every taste, the spectrum ranges from "flowery" to "fruity-sweet" to "menthol". The large group of hop varieties is divided into two main groups. The content of alpha acids is used as a decisive factor. So-called bitter hop varieties have an alpha acid content of over 10%. All varieties below 10% are counted among the aroma hop varieties. The low content of alpha acids reduces the bitterness of the hops. On the other hand, the aroma hop varieties contain a higher concentration of essential oils. Depending on the composition of the aroma, this can contribute to its own special flavor. In the meantime, a whole scene has turned to the aromatic variety of hops and varieties, and the richness of taste seems to grow endlessly. We will now name a few traditional bitter hop varieties, but also unusual representatives of aroma hops by name:

Bitter hop varieties:

• 'Nugget': strong growth and high yield; but very susceptible to disease; low soil requirements.
• 'Target': low demands on the soil; very beautiful, closed umbels; little susceptible to powdery mildew.
• 'Hallertauer Magnum': high bitter content; vigorous growth; largest umbels and leaves.
• 'Northern Brewer': early maturity; less productive but important bitter substances.

Aroma hop varieties:

• 'Hersbrucker': traditional variety; pronounced spicy note; overall good flavor.
• 'Hallertau medium early': old variety; still popular in cultivation thanks to the aroma; large dark green leaves; aesthetic growth.
• 'Centenniel': popular variety in the USA; Nose Beetroot and berries mixed with woody notes.
• 'Citra': aroma variety with high recognition value; diverse fruity aroma.
• 'Amarillo': moderate aroma; sweet-fruity spicy note.

Another breeding goal for the aroma and bitter hop varieties used in commercial cultivation is the creation of small but high-yielding varieties. This would greatly facilitate the machining of the culture.

Some special varieties enrich the market, especially for hobby growers in their own gardens. They are usually characterized by a pronounced undemanding in terms of location characteristics.

special varieties:

• 'Billbo': extremely low bitterness; very suitable for teas; uninteresting for the art of brewing.
• 'Comet': very ornamental light green to yellow leaves; very large and showy umbels.
• 'Gimli‘: dwarf; When untied, shoots reach a length of 4 m; well suited for growing in pots/containers; resistant to powdery mildew.

You can find more information about the varieties in our article Hop varieties: from bitter to fruity-sweet.

Harvesting and storing hops

From the end of August to mid-September, the hop cones, which are loved by beer lovers, can be harvested. When the cones are ready to be harvested, they secrete the yellow powdery hop resin. The complex manual selection is probably only common in the hobby area. In commercial cultivation, the vines are cut off as a whole just above the ground and torn from the trellis. On the farms, the unfertilized female inflorescences are then separated from the shoots with the help of a picking machine.

Basically, the yield is then dried to extend its shelf life. Either the umbels can be air-dried or the process can be accelerated in the oven. Here the moisture is removed from the cones at up to 80 °C for one to two hours. When air drying, it is important to choose a dark place to preserve the green color of the cones. If the dried inflorescences are then compressed into pellets, both the storage volume can be significantly increased can be reduced and the shelf life can be extended again without loss of aroma if the seal is airtight.
A detailed step-by-step guide and more about harvesting and storage can be found here: Hops: growing, harvesting and storing.

Hops: uses and ingredients

Hops make beer what it is - which is why it is used almost exclusively in the art of brewing. About 17 kg of hop cones are needed to brew 1000 liters of beer. It is customary to use the dried inflorescences of the female hop plants for brewing. However, the brew can also be prepared with freshly picked beans. Then a so-called green hop beer is created. The hop resins are responsible for the characteristic bitter taste of beer due to the hop bitter substances they contain, lupulin and humulone. They can also contain other flavorings and determine the note of the beer. Thanks to their antibacterial effect, the bitter substances in the hops also act as a preservative and thus enable the popular hop juice to last longer. Saint Hildegard von Bingen recognized this positive quality as early as the 12th century. Century.

But the female hop cones are also appreciated in the form of tea. The infusion is said to have a calming and sleep-inducing effect.
The hops can also be found on the hearth: young, fresh shoots of about 15 cm in length can be cut during sprouting and put into the cooking pot as hop asparagus hike. However, it is important that the shoots are still tender and young - the harvest time is around mid-March to early April. The preparation does not differ from classic asparagus. However, the hoppy counterpart to the white asparagus spear brings an interesting resinous note to the plate. If the asparagus is to be used for cooking rather than brewing beer, it is worth growing the perennial in the your own garden in any case: the delicate lace is an expensive and rare delicacy estimated.

Should you now have a taste and not only hops, but also grow asparagus If you want, we have the right tips for you here.