How to Grow Hops & Barley

Hops and barley are two of the main ingredients in beer.

Barley and hops are two of the four major ingredients in beer -- the other two being water and yeast. Both barely and hops are plants that can be grown throughout much of the U.S. It is important to remember that hop plants are perennials, while barley plants are either winter annuals or spring annuals. Home brewers can save a great deal of money by growing their own hops and barley.

Things You'll Need

• Shovel
• Stabilizing structure for the hop shoots to grow around
• Organic compost

Instructions

Hops

1. Dig about 2 inches into nutrient rich soil that gets plenty of sunlight and has good drainage. Hop rhizomes should be planted in early spring. A stabilizing structure, such as a fence, trellis or rope, must be near for the hop shoots to grow around.

2. Plant the hop rhizomes into the hole you have dug. Fill the rest of the hole with organic compost. Plant the rhizomes around 3 feet apart from one another.

3. Water the hops daily. Make sure they grow around the support structure you have built for them.

Barley

1. Find an area with well-drained soil and full sunlight. Make sure the area has enough room to hold the amount of barley you wish to grow.

2. Till the seed bed you have designated using a shovel, hoe or rake. This prepares your land to accept the barley seed.

3. Sow the barley seed in rows over your seed bed. Sow 20 to 25 seeds per square foot. Sow seeds in October for winter barley and January for spring barley. Barley will grow on its own from this point. Don't water barley every day, but if your area is experiencing a drought, you may wish to hand water the barley ever couple of days.

Tips & Warnings

• Hand remove any weeds that grow around your barley. Weeds will steal nutrients from your crop, thus harming your overall yield.

References

• Purdue University Center for New Crops and Plant Products; Alternative Field Crops Manual - Hop; P.R. Carter, et al.; 1990
• Purdue University Center for New Crops and Plant Products; Barley; J.R. Magness, et al.; 1999
• BrewOrganic.com: Growing Organic Hops
• Heirloom Organics: How to Grow Barley
• Moongrow: Barley