Kick-off to the hop season began in early February for Obendorf Hop. At the start of the season, we began working on new fields by installing trellis for our 2022 baby crop. In between putting new fields in, we started shifting fields over for new varieties and tearing down trellis on some of our older fields. As part of our crew worked on the trellis another crew started digging roots to prepare for planting. Once the fields were up and ready to go our crews started marking fields so they could begin planting around the middle of March with a goal to be finished by the end of the month.
Once the planting was finished, we got the stringing carts and paper twine out so crews could start stringing fields. Behind the carts, guys are down on the ground clipping the strings so the hops can start growing around them. While this takes most of April, our irrigation crews have been busy all year pulling drip hoses and laying out new hoses so our crops can get water once they’ve been planted. Now that the crop is growing our crews are out in the field training the hops so they can get off to a good start as they make their way to the top of the wire. Tractors are hard at work keeping the fields looking clean, planting the cover crop, and getting the spray program going. Things are off to a great start and looking forward to seeing how this 2022 crop continues to grow.
Author: Lexi Oropeza, Manager of Labor and Food Safety at Obendor Farms
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