Polk County Social
Polk County itemizer-Observer • January 10, 2018
Brewing beer? Grow your own hops
As craft beer and home
brewing continue to rise,
interest in growing hops
ferments among home gar-
deners.
Shaun Townsend, Oregon
State University’s hops
breeder, 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 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.
One or two plants are
plenty for backyard cultiva-
tion, he said. A single vigor-
ous plant can yield about
five to six pounds or more
of fresh cones. Wrap the
bines, or elongated stems,
in a clockwise direction
around the climbing sup-
port to train the plant. Use
string, paper twine, coir
(made from the fiber of co-
conut husk) or anything
that the bines can grip well.
Hops produce different
flavors of beer depending
on the variety, and there are
K YM
P OKORNY
https://flic.kr/p/2237d3W
Growing hops gets you on the way to brewing your own
beer.
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 two
to four gallons every one to
three days. Harvest your
hops between 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.
MI TOWN
It’s almost mid-January
in MI Town, and it seems
like springtime is out there
on the horizon, far away. It’s
hard to think about sun-
shine and flowers when
there’s a constant cleaning
up of muddy footprints
from spouses, children and
pets; and the coat closet has
a lingering scent from wet
wool coats and jackets.
—
Our local mayors and city
councilors are facing the
opportunities and chal-
lenges offered by the new
year and a better economic
outlook that’s been prom-
ised by the Powers that Be
in Washington, D.C. As al-
ways, there is a need for cit-
izens to participate as vol-
unteers for various commit-
tees and groups, so if you
have a few hours and good
ideas, please contact either
city hall for more informa-
tion. Now that the busy-
P ATTY
T AYLOR
D UTCHER
Columnist
ness of the Christmas and
New Year holidays are over,
bundle up and take good
walks around our commu-
nities to see what’s going on.
—
We began the brand new
year of 2018 enjoying a
wonderful breakfast of pan-
cakes, scrambled eggs,
sausages, and biscuits and
gravy thanks to the Mon-
mouth-Independence
Lions Club, whose mem-
bers offer MI Town resi-
dents and their family
members a free community
breakfast on Jan. 1 every
year. The Lions are involved
in many worthwhile activi-
ties in both Independence
and Monmouth and are al-
ways there to help in many
ways.
—
Winter term has begun
for Western Oregon Univer-
sity students, and the calen-
dar is full of ongoing events
and classes for everyone.
The campus is buzzing with
new voices and the return of
familiar students who are
eager to get involved with
school and social activities.
MI Town residents have an
excellent opportunity to
meet students from all over
the world, and to help them
feel welcome in our com-
munity. Language barriers
all but disappear when peo-
ple take the time to listen
and try to understand one
another. Many of our inter-
national students have
never been far away from
the communities they call
home. Some students have
lived their entire lives in
high-rise buildings in big
cities, and have never expe-
rienced life in small com-
munities bordered by agri-
culture and farming activity.
—
A friendly smile and a
warm handshake can make
all the difference. Those of
us who have college stu-
dents for neighbors can
welcome them to their
houses or apartments with
a plate of cookies, and we
can take that opportunity to
get to know them a little
better. And the students can
take a few moments to
learn about our community
and their neighbors, too. We
can all be good neighbors
with a little time and effort
on everybody’s part.
—
We can all find good ways
to banish the midwinter
gloom and enjoy life in MI
Town.
PEDEE NEWS
Andrew and Stephanie
We s t o n c e l e b ra t e d
Stephanie’s Jan. 1 birthday
by going to the Hoof N’
Holler bull and bronc riding
event and New Year’s Eve
party at the Linn County
Expo Center in Albany with
Stephanie’s parents, Tony
and Debbie Rodriguez. It
was an exciting way to bring
in the New Year for them.
—
Dave and Suzanne Bur-
bank spent the New Year’s
Eve weekend helping son
Derek and his wife Ashley
with the plumbing and elec-
trical work on the new
home they are building out-
A RLENE
K OVASH
Columnist
side of Redmond. The house
is framed in and the roof is
on so Derek and Ashley are
set to have it finished by
spring. Judy Guida recently
bought a home at Eagle
Crest and so the Burbanks
were able to spend the
nights there.
—
VOLUNTEER
OPPORTUNITIES
These Polk County groups would welcome individuals
who have time or expertise to volunteer. Organizations
that would like to be added to this list should call 503-623-
2373 or email IOnews@polkio.com.
Your
Garden
two types of hop: bitter or
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 or indoors with extra
lighting. Rhizomes can also
be planted in deep contain-
ers outside or directly in the
ground after January. In
7A
Chip and Linda’s son
Matthew and his wife Kate-
lyn had the first baby of the
year at Salem Hospital on
Jan. 1, earning them a gift
basket from Salem Health
and a cash gift from the
Oregon College Savings
Plan to go into an account
which will go toward his
college expenses. Benjamin
Matthew, or Benji as he will
be called, was born at 2:09
a.m. on the first, and Chip
and Linda are thrilled to
have him here.
—
Activities are gearing back
up in Pedee after the holi-
days. The Pedee Women’s
Club will be meeting regu-
larly each Wednesday again
and Bible studies are up and
going. The Pedee Church
men are planning to cut
wood for those who need it
on the third Saturday of
each month now. They meet
at 8 a.m. at the church and
welcome help.
—
The Pedee Tryoneers 4-H
Club is back to meeting on
the second and fourth Tues-
days at 6:30 p.m. at the
church and it’s never too
late to join. The club started
planning for the county fair
this week, signing kids up
for specific projects.
• AARP Foundation Tax-Aide – 503-930-7636
• After DARC — 503-623-9501
• American Cancer Society Road to Recovery
— 1-800-227-2345
• Arc of Polk County — 541-223-3261
• Ash Creek Arts Center – 971-599-3301
• Central School District — 503-838-0030
• City of Dallas — 503-831-3502
• City of independence — 503-838-1212
• City of Monmouth — 503-751-0145
• Crime Victims Assistance Program — 503-623-9268
• Dallas Area Chamber of Commerce — 503-623-2564
• Dallas Downtown Association — 971-701-1880
• Dallas emergency Food Bank — 503-623-3578
• Dallas Fire Department — 503-831-3532
• Dallas Food Bank — 503-623-3578
• Dallas Kids, inc. — 503-623-6419
• Dallas Police Department — 503-831-3582
• Dallas Public Library — 503-623-2633
• Dallas Retirement Village — 503-623-5581
• Dallas Riders for Christ – 503-949-6019
• Dallas School District — 503-623-5594
• Delbert Hunter Arboretum — 503-623-7359
• ella Curran Food Bank — 503-838-1276
• Falls City Arts Center — 503-559-6291
• Falls City School District — 503-787-3531
• Family Building Blocks – 503-566-2132, ext. 308.
• Friends of the Dallas Library — 503-559-3830
• Girl Scouts of Southwest Washington and Oregon
— 1-800-338-5248
• H-2-O — 503-831-4736 HART (Horses Adaptive Riding
and Therapy) — 971-301-4278
• HandsOn Mid-Willamette Valley — 503-363-1651
• Heron Pointe Assisted Living — 503-838-6850
• independence Health and Rehabilitation — 503-838-0001
• independence Public Library — 503-838-1811
• Kings Valley Charter School — 541-929-2134
• Luckiamute Watershed Council — 503-837-0237
• Luckiamute Valley Charter School — 503-623-4837
• Meals on Wheels — 503-838-2084
• Monmouth-independence Chamber of Commerce
— 503-838-4268
• Monmouth-independence YMCA — 503-838-4042
• Monmouth Public Library — 503-838-1932
• northwest Human Services — 503-588-5828
• Oregon Child Development Coalition — 503-838-2745
• OSU extension Service - Polk County — 503-623-8395
• Perrydale School District — 503-623-2040
• Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of
Polk County inc. — 503-623-8473
• Polk Community Development Corporation
— 503-831-3173
• Polk County Community emergency Response Team
— 503-623-9396
• Polk County Museum — 503-623-6251
• Polk County Public Health — 503-623-8175
• Polk County Resource Center — 503-623-8429
• Polk Soil and Water Conservation District — 503-623-9680
• Relief nursery Classroom — 503-566-2132
• SABLe House — 503-623-6703
• SALT (Sheriff’s Auxiliary & Law enforcement Together)
— 503-851-9366
• Salvation Army — 503-798-4783
• SMART (Start Making A Reader Today) — 503-391-8423
• Salem Health West Valley Hospital — 503-623-8301
• Victim Assistance Program-Polk Co. District Attorney’s
Office — 503-623-9268 x1444
• Willamette Valley Hospice — 503-588-3600
• WiMPeG Community Access Television — 503-837-0163
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
Continued from page 6A
—
TUESDAY, JAN. 16
• Dallas Rotary — noon, Dallas Civic Center, 945 Se Jefferson
St., Dallas. Lunch and speaker. Public is welcome.
• Toastmasters — 6 to 7 p.m., Pressed Coffee & Wine Bar, 788
Main St., Dallas. Learn how to effectively speak in public and in-
crease your leadership skills.
—
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 17
• 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.
• Day-2-Day Diabetes Support Group — 3 to 4 p.m., Salem
Health West Valley (main conference room inside main en-
trance), 525 Se Washington St., Dallas. 503-623-7323.
• Pickleball — 9 a.m. to noon, Roger Jordan Community
Park. Meets on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m.
to noon. Karen Freeman, 503-871-4172.
• Brew and BS: The New Testament — 7 p.m., St. Thomas
episcopal Church, 1486 SW Levens St., Dallas. A lecture series
on new Testament figures. Bring brew of choice –— coffee, tea,
chai, beer, wine, cider. 435-503-4304.
Call us.
The Itemizer-Observer can help you expand your market share, and make
your business more profitable. Call Heidi or Karen at 503-623-2373.
ADVERTISING THAT WORKS.