Recently there has been a pretty good rush to join my 'Grow-Hops' group
-- 34 new members in the past week to bring the total to 442 members --
with _many_ of them expressing interest primarily due to the impending
hop shortages and price increases; that is based on comments submitted
to me at the time of their member****p application.
Anyway, given the cir***stances, I thought I would post this message to
let folks know what we are doing -- that we are available to offer help
to anyone who wants to start into this extra dimension of homebrewing --
that our group is a valuable resource of LOTS of info on the subject,
pretty much _specializing_ in hop-gardening with a tad bit of info about
growing herbs as alternatives/supplements to hops -- and that it's
probably not too late in most areas to begin im****tant preparations NOW
for planting in the spring. Although it is not absolutely essential to
do things now, it will be a big help; if you're way up north and your
ground is already frozen, you'll just need to prepare your bed in the
spring. Also, some of our members are organizing a rhizome exchange
(the rhizomes are what you plant instead of seeds), and I also have a
database set up on our webpage to facilitate exchanges of rhizomes. And
our Links section will lead you to a _vast_ selection of all sorts of
information on the subject, plus we have lots of photos to give you
ideas on sup****t structures such as trellises and arbors. Without a
doubt, 'Grow-Hops' is now the best Internet resource on the subject.
Having finally grown some hops myself, I can tell you that it was _not_
difficult (and I live in the south) and I found it rather enjoyable and
'cool' to do. I'm very glad I started. My first-year harvest was only
42 dried ounces, but the quantity increases as the plants get older; in
another thread here in rec.crafts.brewing Denny Conn said that gets from
3 to 4 pounds from one plant -- http://tinyurl.com/2q7rlz
-- but I'll be
more than happy if I can get just a pound from each plant, which is very
likely next year.
Cheers.
Bill Velek - PERSONAL sites = www.velek.com & www.2plus2is4.com
770+ homebrewer group just for Equipment: www.tinyurl.com/axuol
440+ just for Growing Hops/Herbs/Grains: www.tinyurl.com/3au2uv
NEW group just for Homebrewing Supplies: www.tinyurl.com/2wnang
Join 'Homebrewers' to Help Cure Disease: www.tinyurl.com/yjlnyv
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