It's often said that beer is an acquired taste, and the growing number of craft brews on the market has helped make it a little easier to find one you like. If you find the typical domestic lager to be too bland, you might be more attracted to hoppy beers.

Hops are dioecious, producing male or female plants. John Moorhead, writing for the American Homebrewers Association, says the flowers on the male plant are responsible for pollination. The female plant is a vining perennial that produces the flower cones used in brewing. These flowers usually provide a beer with more bite, but can also be used to enhance its flavor and aroma.

Hops have been grown for brewing for centuries. The Rutgers Cooperative Extension says they were first introduced in 1629 in colonial Massachusetts. Commercial hop yards have since migrated to the drier climates of the western states, since hops are susceptible to several diseases caused by damp conditions. However, growing hops in your own yard can provide you with a useful supply source for your homebrewing as well as an interesting climbing feature to cover walls, pergolas, and other vertical surfaces.

Starting out

There are more than 120 different hop varieties to choose from; your choice will depend on the conditions in your garden and, if you are making homebrew, what flavor you want to give your beer. One of the more popular options is humulus lupulus, or the common hop.

Hops should be grown from the rhizomes of a female plant. Northern Brewer, a homebrewing supply company based in Roseville, Minn., says these rhizomes should be refrigerated until they are ready to plant. Keep them sealed in a plastic bag and moisten them with a mister to keep them from drying out.

Sunlight is essential for strong growth, so hops will do best if they are planted in an area with southern exposure. However, Moorhead says it is also beneficial to grow hops in a location with afternoon shade, since this will prevent scorching.

Like most plants, hops will require well-drained soil. Leonard P. Perry, writing for the University of Vermont Extension, says hops are tolerant of most types of soils as long as they do not allow standing water. Dry soils will work well if they are watered adequately, and clay soils can be sufficient if they allow enough drainage. Hops grow best in soil that is slightly acidic, with a pH level of 6 to 8.

You'll need to create a support structure for hop vines to grow on. The Rutgers Cooperative Extension says hops can grow up to 20 feet high, but using a shorter trellis will make it easier to harvest the flowers later on. One simple way to create supports for the vines is to run twine down walls, balconies, fences, or other surfaces.

Growing and training

If you are growing hops in rows, make sure the rows are spaced out by at least eight feet. Within each row, rhizomes should be separated by two to three feet.

Before planting the rhizome, dig a one-foot deep hole where you would like it to go. Northern Brewer says you should mix the soil with manure and fertilizers that add phosphorous, such as bone meal or rock phosphate. Moorhead  says a balanced fertilizer can also be helpful at the start, and that fertilizer recommendations will vary depending on the hop variety. Plant the rhizome horizontally about an inch under the soil.

Don't expect too much from the plant in the first year. During this time, the growth will be focused more on developing the root system. In subsequent years, you'll see stronger vine and flower growth.

Hops will require plenty of water to thrive. The Rutgers Cooperative Extension says they should get at least one-and-a-half inches of water each week. A drip irrigation system or soaking hose is ideal, since diseases can develop if the foliage gets too wet.

Once shoots appear and reach a height of one or two feet, begin training them to climb the trellis or any other support system you have. Northern Brewer says you should choose two to three vines that look particularly healthy and carefully wrap them around the support. You'll need to prune the vines throughout the growing season to keep them under control.

Hops will die back to the ground at the end of each growing system. Rhizomes will produce new shoots in the spring.

Pests and diseases

Numerous diseases and pests will affect the plants, so disease-resistant varieties can be quite useful. Moorhead says downy mildew will cause the hops to look brittle or fail to climb, while powdery mildew will create white blotches on the plant. Infected plants should be removed and destroyed.

Hops are also affected by verticillium wilt and hop stunt viroid. The former disease will cause leaves and vines to die, and affected plants should be destroyed. The latter disease will stunt the plant's growth.

The Rutgers Cooperative Extension says pests such as Japanese beetles, spider mites, aphids, leaf hoppers, and hop merchants will all feed on plants. Insecticidal soaps are often effective in keeping harmful insects at bay.

Harvesting

Hops are usually harvested at the end of the summer. The flower cones should only be picked when they are ripe or slightly overripe. Ripe cones will be light, dry, and spring back when gently squeezed. The base of the cone should be a golden yellow and give off an aroma when squeezed.

One option to harvest hops is to cut the vine about two or three feet from the ground. You can also pick the flower cones as they ripen; since this process occurs at different rates, you'll be able to harvest continually over a period of several days.

Dry the hops before storing or using them. Northern Brewer says air drying is optimal, and hops can be spread out on a window screen in a sunny area. Move the cones around each day to help them dry evenly. Hops can also be dried in the oven, although the temperature should not exceed 140 degrees.

Store hops in a cool, dry, dark location such as the refrigerator or freezer. Keep them in plastic bags with the air squeezed out to avoid exposure to air, which can degrade the quality of the hops.