On Friday 3 March, we finally harvested #MyLittleHopGarden. Here's how the day went: It's not over, however... Now we have to decide what to do with the hops!
DAY 115
Hop harvest time is in our sights!
DAY 111
After over a day of persistent rain... They hops' aroma has started to change from ultra-green celery like to what we'd expect from hops. We were considering harvesting the hops this week, but we'll have to wait for them to dry out a bit now.
DAY 108
We clearly didn't need to pull out the watering can today... The time to harvest these little beauties is getting closer and closer - we'll then have to decide what to do with them (putting them in a beer would make most sense, right?). Stay tuned.
DAY 101
It's really been quite the journey for #MyLittleHopGarden. In spite of a bout of dreadful weather and relentless sou'westers, we've finally had a week or so of weather that the hops love: Lots of sun, no wind. It won't be long until we'll harvest the hops, we're looking forward to them developing some sweet hop aromas.
DAY 81
This is a thing of great beauty!
DAY 79
So a lot has happened over the holiday break. It seems that this summer has been quite windy, which as discussed before, does not make hops happy. Nonetheless, our first hop flowers have developed. Most are still at the "burr" stage, but here are some of the flowers that we have so far:
looking good, eh?
DAY 50
Perhaps the last update until after Christmas. The leading plants have grown about two feet since day 48 - the result of some beautiful sunny days!
DAY 48
Let's have more of this sunshine! The hops have had a real beating from the wind lately, and they clearly don't like it. It really is incredible to see how much they grow in one day when the conditions are right.
DAY 47
After a relatively slow growing week (hops hate wind and lack of sunshine), the hops boosted over the sunny weekend. We are going to have to figure out what we're going to with our scales - these hops are getting up there...
DAY 42
DAY 39
DAY 37
They are over 6 feet high! The leaves and stems have started to get bigger too. They are clearly liking the fertiliser they were given.
DAY 35
DAY 33
The "Ed Scale" is introduced to track the growth of the hops. How long will this be sustainable?!
DAY 28
DAY 23
DAY TWENTY
DAY THIRTEEN
DAY TWELVE
DAY NINE
Check it out - our hop plants are boosting! As you can see, they are starting to grow leaves now, so they're growth is going to be even faster from now on. Photosynthesis is our friend! We hope you're enjoying watching them grow as much as we are.
DAY SEVEN
DAY SIX
And they're off! It's pretty cool to see the difference that one day makes. All four hop plants have now emerged! [caption id="attachment_4879" align="alignnone" width="561"] Hop plant 1[/caption] [caption id="attachment_4876" align="alignnone" width="563"] Hop plant 2[/caption] [caption id="attachment_4877" align="alignnone" width="563"] Hop plant 3[/caption] [caption id="attachment_4878" align="alignnone" width="563"] Hop plant 4[/caption]
DAY FIVE
The heavy rain showers and sunny weekend clearly paid off for our hops. Check it out - three of the four plants have sprouted! A few people have asked what we're feeding them. They are growing in roses mix, which is meant to be best for growing hops in pots. Now that they've sprouted they'll grow like crazy, so we'll have to sort out their new home under a support structure. We may be looking for some help with building this - stay tuned.
DAY TWO
No watering required - plenty of fresh Auckland cloud juice today.
DAY ONE
We've got our hands on some New Zealand hop rhizomes! We're not sure of the variety yet, we'll let you know as soon as we find out. We'll be following their progress and keep posting updates for you here. At this stage, we've just put the rhizomes into pots in a sunny sheltered spot. We'll build a frame to suspend the hop bines in a spot that gets optimal sunlight. Stay tuned!
We hope you're enjoying watching them grow as much as we are.
Hop plant 1[/caption] [caption id="attachment_4876" align="alignnone" width="563"]
Hop plant 2[/caption] [caption id="attachment_4877" align="alignnone" width="563"]
Hop plant 3[/caption] [caption id="attachment_4878" align="alignnone" width="563"]
Hop plant 4[/caption]
A few people have asked what we're feeding them. They are growing in roses mix, which is meant to be best for growing hops in pots. Now that they've sprouted they'll grow like crazy, so we'll have to sort out their new home under a support structure. We may be looking for some help with building this - stay tuned.
At this stage, we've just put the rhizomes into pots in a sunny sheltered spot. We'll build a frame to suspend the hop bines in a spot that gets optimal sunlight. 
Stay tuned!
