Hops 'Cascade' Up

Three years ago I was given a few sprigs of a 'Cascade' hops plant from a good friend, a brewer and a farmer.  I began growing them in pots at the Garden Center.  At that point I began daydreaming of trellis systems and where the best place would be for one in the yard. 

My thoughts were to build one more for aesthetics than utility, there are many system designs online for trellising hops, but I wasn't drawn to the metal poles and cables that most suggested.  I had come across some old 6x6 timbers, and decided to re-purpose them.  Along with that I found an old wood & chain conveyor belt at the Farm and the materials designed themselves into a trellis.

Rough sketch of trellis, simple and rustic.

From then it was still a process to build and implement.  Assembly went well, though it was too big for one to install on their own.  Last year, at the same time as when I dug the holes for the posts, the power went out in the barn.  This put an hiatus on the project until the power could be restored to the barn.  A slight relief was gathered when it was determined to be gophers and not my shovels that took out the power.  Though my battle remains with the yard varmints. 

This spring, the power back on, nothing was going to stop me from getting my trellis up and my hops in the ground.  Heck, I was already getting reports of batches of beer made from offshoots of my original 'Cascade'.  And here I was still watering mine twice a day in a container. 

Potted plant ready for planting.

Finally, one Monday (April 23) this spring my hopes for hops had been planted. Lets just hope its not another three years before I get to the next step with these vines, brewing. There has been much progress since the planting and before the post.  Here's a few photos of my trellis being filled with the vines of 'Cascade'. 

The Hops climbs trellis' chains with ease.

Old chain and wood rungs add to the aged look of trellis.

Little fella found the leaf tasty, don't he know the flowers are where the flavor is?

Hops have nearly reached the top, have have just begun to grow side shoots..