Homegrown cascade hops

I am not a gardener. I would like to be, but I'm not. Or at least I haven't been.

The last time I "gardened" was when I was about 8 or 9 years old. I feel like it had something to do with Boy Scouts, but it may have been just for fun. Sadly, I often kill plants, or neglect them to the point that they're the sad-faced, plaintive stepchild of the yard.

But making beer at some point is going to lead to growing your own ingredients, so on a whim, I bought a hop rhizome a couple of weeks ago. I planted it yesterday.

It was fun. I like getting dirty in pursuit of making something, especially since it's novel and not what I do at work every day. Colorado's soil sucks but I added a bunch of good organic soil and compost to the heap, and threw mulch around it to help keep in some of the moisture. I think I'll set up a simple trellis to train the vines around, though I may get lazy and just use the fence. I hear they grow like mad, so it could be fun watching this little plant take over a sizeable portion of our yard's north border.

I planted a cascade rhizome. Cascade hops are just wonderful. They impart a ton of fresh-smelling, flowery aroma and citrusy flavor to pale ales, lagers and IPAs. Cascade hops remind me of a beautiful, mild May day spent outside.

It snowed just a touch last night, but I don't think that matters. With a little luck, I'll be picking and using my own this summer. That's a joy to think of but like I said, I'm not a gardener, so I'm not counting my chickens before they hatch.