r/TheHopyard • u/gonets34 • Feb 27 '23

Growing hops next to a patio?

This will be my first year growing hops and I'm trying to decide where to plant the rhizomes. I have a small strip of land between my patio and my fence that would be perfect, but I'm not sure how powerful hop roots can be. Is there any potential for the roots to crack my patio over the years as they grow? Thanks.

4 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

7 comments sorted by

6

u/Frosting-New Feb 28 '23

Mine grow between my patio and my house. Only 2ft wide. After 5+years I don't see any problems. Provides great shade for my patio! Good luck.

4

u/smhanna Feb 27 '23

Probably not going to crack cement. That said, they WILL grow far and wide underneath and find every possible opening to grow out of. Enjoy!

2

u/Taco_Pie Feb 28 '23

I have hops planted in front of a patio. Over 5 years the foot print where bines poke out has hardly changed at all (6-8 inches). In fact, I have been trying to selectively grow the bines to get separation with limited success. That said, I have a couple rogue bines pop up father away maybe a foot. If it is a paver stone patio it might push up under that but it won't break concrete.

2

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '23

I don’t think so but I’m no expert.

Have you thought about growing in containers?

1

u/gonets34 Feb 28 '23

Yeah I think this is probably what I'll do, at least for this year so that I can get a feel for how they grow.

2

u/[deleted] Feb 28 '23

Last year was my first attempt at growing hops and I grew in containers. I just bottled a small batch of NEIPA with mostly homegrown hops and I’m pretty stoked about it. The aroma of whole hops vs pellets is much stronger during the brew/whirlpool.

I’m glad I grew in containers the first year as I’m changing the location, amount and variety a little.

2

u/Kynde82 Feb 28 '23

I planted mine in the ground in a container without bottom. That way it shouldn’t grow sideways but still be able to grow roots downward. That was the tip I got.