[COHO] Hop Question

[Huntkng@aol.com]

Hello Group,
 
This question is for all you hop farmers and gatherers out there.  I  have 
four varieties of hops growing.  My vines are only in their second  year but 
this years crop of hop flowers is starting to pop.  The trouble is  that I have 
some flowers that are just about ready to pick and some that are  just little 
buds.  This means that I will have to harvest them in series  and not all at 
one time.
 
My Questions are:
    *   The hops I harvested in the past were by the pound(s).  I vacuum  
packed them as soon as I got them home.  Is it better to pick the hops as  they 
mature and store them in the fridge or put them right in the freezer  until I 
have enough to vacuum pack and freeze? 
    *   From what I was told and read, I should wait until the hop flower 
(outside  petals) get a little dry like onion skin and then pick them.   Because 
I can harvest them by the dozens (instead of ponds...now)and  chose when it is 
at they are at their peak, in your experience,  what are the indicators I 
should look for before picking them??
I'll be on the forum soon and then I can get these topics where they  belong.
 
Thanks,
Bill  

William Herrick
PO Box 7499
Bend, OR  97708
huntkng at aol.com
(541) 318-8862 - Wk
(541) 410-5881 -  Cell
(541) 318-0083 - Fx




************************************** Get a sneak peek of the all-new AOL at 
http://discover.aol.com/memed/aolcom30tour
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.bendtel.net/pipermail/coho/attachments/20070728/83364559/attachment.html