8A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • August 5, 2015
Polk County Living
Brew your own beer? Grow hops?
With craft beer and home
brewing becoming more
popular, interest in growing
hops is fermenting among
home gardeners.
Oregon State University’s
h o p s b r e e d e r, S h a u n
Townsend, said he regularly
fields questions from the
public about growing hops.
“Typical questions are:
‘How do I fertilize, water
and harvest? What sort of
diseases and pests do I
need to monitor for? What
hop varieties should I get?’”
said Townsend, who an-
swers those questions and
more in OSU Extension Ser-
vice’s new publication,
Growing Hops in the Home
Garden.
To get started, Townsend
advises planting hops in
well-drained soils and full
sun exposure for optimum
growth. You’ll likely need at
least a 10-foot trellis or pole
system to train these vigor-
ous climbers if your interest
is in cone production – the
part of the plant that’s used
in beer.
Wrap the bines, or elon-
gated stems, in a clockwise
direction around the climb-
ing support to train the
plant. Use string, paper
twine, coir (made from the
fiber of coconut husk) or
anything that the bines can
grip well.
Hops produce different
flavors of beer depending
on the variety, and there are
two types of hop: bitter or
K YM
P OKORNY
Krikava-Parks
Aria Elizabeth Krikava-Parks was born to Ethan Parks
and Ellen Krikava-Parks of Portland at 11:22 a.m. on July 8
at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland.
She weighed 9 pounds, 15.3 ounces, and was 22 inches
long.
Aria joins Nola, 12.
Grandparents are Ed and Sandra Parks of Dallas, and
Shelly Krikava of Modesto, Calif.
Great-grandparents are Dennis and Lavonne Bierman
of Salem.
Your
Garden
aromatic. Townsend recom-
mended the aromatic “Cas-
cade” variety, developed
through the U.S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture’s breed-
ing program at OSU in
1972. It can withstand cli-
mates anywhere from cen-
tral Oregon to the
Willamette Valley.
“It’s pretty much fool-
proof,” Townsend said.
Other good choices for
Oregon are “Centennial,”
“Newport,” “Sterling” or
“Nugget.” Some varieties do
not do as well as others in
heat.
You can order whole
plants or the rhizome, an
underground stem that
produces buds, from online
sources and local distribu-
tors. You can also dig up a
rhizome or make a stem
cutting from a friend’s es-
tablished plant.
January and February are
the months for digging up
rhizomes for replanting,
Townsend said. Cut about a
3- to 4-inch section of rhi-
zome, making sure that a
pinkish-white bud is pres-
ent. Then grow it in a green-
house with extra lighting.
Rhizomes can also be
planted in deep containers
BIRTHS
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
To submit an event for calendar consideration, please see
information on page 7A.
Continued from page 7A
Courtesy of Oregon State University Extension Service
One or two plants are plenty for backyard cultivation. A
single vigorous plant can yield about 5 to 6 pounds or
more of fresh cones.
outside or directly in the
ground after January. In
May, transplant the potted
plant to your garden plot.
When deciding where to
place your plant, keep in
mind that it grows robustly
and prefers full sun. Don’t
plant it near shade-intoler-
ant plants that hops could
crowd out.
Apply one teaspoon to
one tablespoon of nitrogen-
rich fertilizer about once
every other week from late
April or early May into June.
After that, the plant doesn’t
need extra nitrogen. Be
careful not to over-fertilize,
as lots of nitrogen can
propagate a lush, dense
plant that could attract
pests and diseases,
Townsend said.
Water the plant with 2 to
4 gallons every one to three
days. Harvest your hops be-
tween mid-August and
mid-September.
Depending on the vari-
ety, hops typically fully ma-
ture by the third growing
season. During the first and
second season, gardeners
can still harvest enough
hops even though the plant
is not producing at full ca-
pacity.
By fall, you’ll get to taste
the fruits of your labor in
your very own homegrown
homebrew.
TUESDAY, AUG. 11
• Polk County Bounty Market-Monmouth — 10 a.m. to 3
p.m., Main Street Park, 120 E. Main St., Monmouth. 503-623-
2564.
—
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 12
• Willamette Valley Food Assistance Program Food Bank
— 1:30 to 6:30 p.m., 888 Monmouth Cutoff Road, Building E,
Dallas. Weekly distribution for eligible community members.
503-831-5634.
• Monmouth-Independence Chamber of Commerce Lunch
Forum — Noon, Polk County Fire District No. 1, 1800 Mon-
mouth St., Independence. The Polk No. 1 will present. Bring your
own lunch. 503-838-4268.
• Free Blood Pressure Check Clinic — 2 to 3 p.m., West Val-
ley Hospital (surgery admitting area), 525 SE Washington St.,
Dallas. 503-623-7323.
• Monmouth Senior Center Music Jam — 6:30 p.m., Mon-
mouth Senior Center, 180 S. Warren St., Monmouth. Open to the
public; musicians of all types welcome. 503-838-5678.
• Music in the Park — 6:30 p.m., Main Street Park, Mon-
mouth. Student Loan String Band, newgrass. Free. www.ci.mon-
mouth.or.us.
Peridot is the
birthstone for August.
It is believed that peridot will
bring the wearer good luck,
peace and success. Peridot also
signifies friendship.
MI TOWN
It’s time for Blue Jeans
and Country Dreams – this
year’s Polk County Fair
theme. The doors open at
our very own Polk County
Fair tomorrow morning at
10 a.m. It’s a big day in our
household and hopefully,
yours, where we all have the
opportunity to celebrate all
the good things Polk Coun-
ty has to offer everyone.
There’s nothing quite as
wonderful as the first bite of
a corn dog at the fair on a
s u m m e r d a y, a n d t h e
chance to visit with friends
and family right here in
Polk County.
—
The record-breaking heat
wave that has scorched our
gardens, turned out lawns
the color of burnt toast, and
tested our capacity for en-
durance beyond all reason,
and frayed tempers contin-
u e s t o h a n g ov e r t h e
P ATTY
T AYLOR
D UTCHER
Columnist
Willamette Valley like some
kind of heavy curtain. Let’s
hope for some welcome re-
lief in the form of cooling
breezes, lower tempera-
tures or good old-fashioned
rain. The forests are tinder-
dry and our lakes and rivers
need moisture that can’t ar-
rive quickly enough.
—
It’s good to see MI Town
residents and visitors to our
community support the
summer evening events at
the Independence Am-
phitheater as well. We con-
tinue to enjoy the concerts,
movies and special events –
and they’ll continue
through the month of Au-
gust.
Let’s all support our local
businesses and organiza-
tions that are so giving of
their time and financial
contributions to support
these wonderful programs
in our community.
—
Don enjoys walking our
Golden Retrievers all over
MI Town, and especially on
the Western Oregon Univer-
sity campus, where we all
enjoy an opportunity to be
out on a summer morning.
The air is fresh and clean
and the dogs love to chase a
stick or a ball as we walk
along the edges of the
fields. What isn’t quite so
wonderful about the whole
experience is that not
everybody is mindful of
what their dogs deposit
along the way (this is a fam-
ily newspaper and I don’t
want to say THAT word). It’s
very easy for all dog walkers
to bring along some plastic
bags to pick up animal
waste, and there are trash
cans located all over cam-
pus and our communities,
where it can be disposed of.
I’d hate to see our wonder-
ful campus closed to dogs
because of a few irresponsi-
ble people who don’t think
rules apply to them.
—
Drug charges reminds us
that bad things can happen
in our community, and that
we must be concerned
about what can be happen-
ing to our children and our
friends and neighbors. We
need to work cooperatively
with our local law enforce-
ment agencies to report
drug use and abuse, and to
support efforts to help peo-
ple overcome addiction.
20% Off
this Month
SPEAK OUT
ONLINE
Visit us at
www.polkio.com
503-623-3117
and click on
“Letter to the Editor”
837 Main St. • Dallas
Mon-Fri 9-5:30
Sat 9-4
PEDEE NEWS
Diane Telfer, who volun-
teers with the American Red
Cross, went to Houston for
the last week of the Red
Cross’s work with the people
who lost their homes in the
March flooding there. The
damage was so extensive
that it took several months
to get the necessary help for
everyone. Diane no sooner
got home and her garden
harvested than she had to
drive to Idaho for the funeral
of an aunt this last weekend.
Husband Paul was on the
A RLENE
K OVASH
Columnist
kitchen crew at Bridgeport’s
summer church camp, so
was unavailable to help.
—
Judy Guida has her 8-
year-old grandson, Neko,
with her for two weeks, so
Furniture Upholstery
All types: for homes, offices, equip-
ment. Also, repairs, RV cushions,
slipcovers, High Quality since 1966
Stephen
Winters Sewing
503-838-4999 or 503-375-9266
Emmy
Joseph
440 E. St • Independence, OR 97351
www.winterssewing.com
Serving Polk County 16yrs
they’ve been going to the
beach and the Enchanted
Forest, taking refuge from
the heat at the movies,
horseback riding, and play-
ing in the woods. Neko and
his parents John and Gina
Guida live in Houston.
—
Tim and Diana Barnhart
drove nine Pedee and Kings
Valley high school kids to
the Beartooth Christian
Camp south of Billings,
Mont., two weeks ago,
where they had an amazing
week of fun and spiritual
growth with 200 other kids
from around the West. Some
of them had never been out
of Oregon, so loved seeing
the countryside along the
way. They were especially
impressed with the thunder-
storms as they drove east.
Levi Bault, Brady Tarvin,
Glen Mott, Olivia and
Nicholas Hazleton, Clara
Castle, Reed and Tanner
Simmons, and Becca Barn-
hart all had a trip to remem-
ber all their lives.
Music from the Redgate Winery & Fieldhouse
Fri. August 7, 6-9 PM
featuring
Orvil Ivie / Garry Meziere
Sat. August 8, 6-9 PM
featuring
The Brothers Kidd
$5.00 cover • Must be 21
Food Available
Tasting fees & glasses of wine $5.00
8175 Buena Vista Road
Independence • 503-428-7115 • www.redgatevineyard.com
What’s YOUR neighbor up to?
Find out in the Itemizer Observer.
You may find your neighbor, your boss, your friend or yourself
in the pages of the Itemizer-Observer. Local stories on
local people - that’s our specialty.
The Next Step –
You’re Invited!
Tuesday, August 11, 2015 at 7:00 p.m.
Volunteer Hall
(144 Warren St. S.—right behind City Hall
in downtown Monmouth)
Community members, WOU students,
visitors and other interested persons have returned
more than 1,400 surveys to share their visions for
Monmouth’s future.
To transform these visions into action,
we need your help.
Please join us for this important event that will
help make the Monmouth Engaged vision a reality.
More information contact:
YOUR COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER • 147 SE Court St., Dallas • 503-623-2373
Scott McClure, Monmouth City Manager
smcclure@ci.monmouth.or.us / 503-751-0146
www.ci.monmouth.or.us