Growing barley and hops

[rosetti200]

 :oHello all,
Rosetti here,
Very chuffed and excited as a lovely friend of mine has just given me a corner (roughly 4mtrs by 4mtrs) of her lotty.
She has a whole plot and was finding some areas were being neglected. The rest of the plot is well-managed and vegetable-tastic.
I have had a vegetable garden before and there's nothing like diggin up your own tatties and picking your own peas.  I'll never forget pulling up my first carrot and running round all my neighbours houses, shouting, "it's a carrot, it's a carrot!"
That said, I'm probably more into the garden as a visual spectacle, even in my veggie plot.  I let my lollo rosso lettuces go to seed, and they looked splendid, like little christmas trees. And the tattie flowers were a delight and a suprise.(novice-me)
I am also a florist (I know,... the anti-gardener. Experiments in death I sometimes feel. My conscience does nag me on this one) and I love flowers, growing together, not being picked, and going to seed, maybe then being picked. Basically all of nature's wonders.

So, now I am starting to plan a mainly floral plot, striking, with lots of colour and really tall spikes, think a spike wood!Maybe a bit of a growin, floral-art kind of installation.
We'll see!
Alongside this, and onto my second love, I hope to be growing hops against a back wall and barley in front of this.  I just want to grow enough to make one experimental barrel at first.  

Has anyone any experience to pass on to me? Keep the old ways alive, if a little squiffy!

Deep Spades!
Rosetti

[rosetti200]

[Moggle]

Hello rosetti, and welcome.  :D

I know nothing about barley and hops, but I'm sure someone else on here will.

Good luck with it.

[rosetti200]

cheers moggle, what are you into growing at the mo?
Tell me bout your lottie.
Rosetti

[cleo]

A barrel? of beer or a decorative feature?. Growing barley is not a problem and I am sure you could find hop seeds?. But you will not have enough for much more than a couple of pints-and `malting` is something I would not attempt.

Stephan.

[Wicker]

Welcome rosetti200, see you are in the same area as myself.

Girl on our site grew hops against a high fence last year but I think she put the crop in her compost!! Another chap grows wheat then plants his potatoes through it - he was overrun with marestail and is gradually, very gradually, getting to grips with it by various methods all experimental for him.  don't see that barley would be a problem.

Flower lottie sounds absolutely great - wish you were on our site!!

[rosetti200]

Hey Wicker,
Maybe I am on your site, Edinburgh, Warriston?
Just come back from lottie the noo, nettle stung good and proper, the kind that don't get better for a good 24hrs. Managed to clear almost the whole section, and uncovered two nice red hot poker plants and a black currant bush. Poor things, haven't seen the light of day for a while.  The hardest job was trying to pul up the carpet of clover and grass which seemed to want to come up like a carpet,i.e. in a one-er.
Starting to see the size of my bit now, half of it used to be the compost heap for the plot so it's sure to be good soil, but it's also sure to be full of woody bits and old rubbish.
Well i'm in no hurry, I think this is a good time of year to get started as it gives me loads of time.

Feeling emense joy at being in touch with the earth, all the wee beasties and the bird songs.

Hope you are too.

[rosetti200]

Thanks Stephan, I was actually meaning enough to make a barrel of beer. I have a great book which goes through the process of malting barley and it dosen't seem too complicated. A labour of love though.  I'll let you know,
Rosetti

[flowerbaby_uk]

hi rosetti its lovely reading ur posts and its very true nothing beats the feeling of being at one with the earth and nature itself is truly a wonderfull thing i could and sit and watch the birds and insects and stuff for hours i often do isnt life wonderfull :) :)

[rosetti200]

 Hello Flower,
The older I get, the more in touch with life I seem to become, and love it, I do. I feel like nothing could really get me down as long as I can look out at trees, the sky, life all around.
This spring has been really special for me as it is the first time I have actually noticed the blossoms, catkins and the like.The early iris, and helebours(ithink they're called helebours?)  The first stirrings of wonderful spring .
Sure I've seen them before, but never felt moved in this way before.
I don't know if I'll be able to cope with the splendour that is autumn!
Yours, Can't stop grinning yet nearly weeping,
Rosetti

[Les_Woof]

Hi rosetti

Make sure that you keep a bottle of your beer for me! :o :o

It sounds as though you will be putting a splash of colour on your friends lottie, big hand for rosetti.

Take care

Les

[flowerbaby_uk]

rosetti i know exactly what u mean theres been a bit of an event in my life very recently which has made me look at life and appreciate it even more than i did before if thats possible  ;D but its lovely to see posting like urs and to know others feel the same blimey u can tell im not at work im yakking my head off on here ;D ;D

[Moggle]

Rosetti I finally reply:

I don't have a lottie sadly, but I'm aiming to have the most productive balcony in the country! It will be quite a feat as I have 2 and they are only about 1 metre by 3 metres. And I still have to have room to hang out my washing!  ;D

I have two 15x15 inch pots of spuds currently growing in to a jungle, some sweet peas that aren't quite sure if they want to climb yet, some marigolds just coming in to flower that I have nursed since they were mere seeds. Also have some petunias that are going ok, but don't want to flower yet, some mint, rosemary and some sage.

I also have about 8 mini plum tomato plants that I grew from seed, and are now just flowering. Peppers and chillis ditto, and 10 strawberry plants squished in to a grow bag that look like they are going to fruit ok and give me loads of runners too, to make a bigger crop next year.  ;D

I might have to get myself a lottie by then though  :D

[rosetti200]

Moggle
Sounds like you've got it sorted on your balconies, lots of lovely flowers to enjoy before the harvest.
I'm into the idea of growing a few climbers together, maybe sweet pea, morning glory and passion flower.
I'm thinking of a kind of fence-covering tapestry.
I'm sure your balcony would look great both to you, and from the outside, with things like this in pots against it.
Before I had the chance to grow outside, I planted 4 sweet peas in a pot, var. giant mixed, why I picked giant, I didn't know at the time.
I have them in a pot on my window sill and, in a moment of crazed inspiration, I thought it would be nice to have them flowering all round the window in a kind of floral frame.
So, I now have a web-like contraption of strings and drawing pins.
I've since realised why my higher conscience chose giant var. I can now plant them out for me to marvel at as I pick the trillions of fragmented nettle roots out...endlessly.

Hope your chillis are as you like them,
Rosetti

[rosetti200]

Hi Les,
The bigger hands the better for the weed -fest that I am currently putting an end to!
I've written up my huge and impossible plant dream list, including such darlings as Cleome-spider flower, molucella and the biggest veronicas I can find.
The one flower which I had my heart set on is Eremerus-foxtail lilly, but me book say's it Needs late afternoon and evening sun, and me book should know as it claims to be an 'expert'!

I think I'll start a couple in pots then ask our lottie neighbour to show them off for all to gasp and giggle at.

Just keep on weeding that lottie! (sung in an 70's rock way)

rosetti

[gilgamesh]

I think you are on a hiding to nothing trying to get enough malted barley to make a barrel of beer out of 16 sq. metres. At 1 ton per acre, that will yield about 9lbs barley (give it plenty of food & you might double that). How much barley does the receipt say you need? How big is your barrel?

[rosetti200]

Gilgamesh, good handle,
Unfortunately my book dosen't seem to mention quantities, at least not that I can understand, maybe in some ye olde fashiondy talk.
But your probably right, maybe just to grow the hops myself would satisfy my curiosity, as for the barrel, I haven't got one yet bet I'd like it in some unusual kind of wood, small but stout, a thing of beauty.
Maybe I could buy locally grown, organic, matled barley from some where round here?
Brilliant!
Must look into that.

No doubt, beer is goooood.
Rosetti