9 July 2009 by Robert.

Humulus lupulus is a rapid growing vine that grows well in zones 5 through 8. The plant reaches about 20 feet in height in a growing season and must be cut back during the winter months. This plant tolerates full sun to partial shade and should have lattice or something on which to cling while growing. It must be planted in well-drained soil.

The oils of this plant can be used in perfumes, cereal beverages, mineral waters and the stems are a source of fiber (like cotton stalks) that may be used for pulp or even biomass production. The young bleached tops are used as a vegetable (especially in Belgium) and the Romans ate the young shoots like asparagus.

Alcoholic extracts in various dosage forms have been used clinically in treating numerous forms of leprosy, pulmonary tuberculosis, and acute bacterial dysentery. Extracts are used in skin creams and lotions while the extracts and oils are used for flavoring in nonalcoholic beverages, frozen dairy desserts, candy, baked goods, gelatins, and puddings.

Additionally, recent studies indicate that a flavonoid compound called xanthohumol located in the flower of the plant show toxicity to human breast, colon and ovarian cancer cells, and most recently has shown some activity against prostate cancer in Oregon State University studies.

However, the part of Humulus lupulus that is most recognized and most used is the flower. And 99.9% of all Hululus lupulus grown and harvested is used in beer production. As many of you may know, Humulus lupulus L. var. lupulus is in the family of Cannabaceae and is commonly known as “brewer’s hop.”

Today’s beer is produced by using only yeast, grain (mostly barley), hops, and water. But hops were only used in beer since about the 12th or 13th century. Originally an herbal medicine, brewers discovered that beer brewed with hops actually preserved the beer longer. Later, they discovered the beer could be brewed with lower alcohol content by using hops. Lower alcohol meant using less grain and, therefore, greater profit could be obtained.

Being a home brewer (I make my own beer and wine at the house), I have been used to buying my hops from a local homebrew store. However, in the past two years, the price of hops has gone from around $2 an ounce to upwards of $7. Some special varieties are not even available to most markets these days. This spiral in prices is due to a world-wide shortage of hops and has resulted in a large interest to grow your own hops. Most of the literature indicated that growing hops in the south was probably not a good idea but more recently, I have discovered several successful hops growers in Texas with at least a dozen within 50 miles of Houston.

Local home brewing stores have started to carry the risome during the planting season, usually early March. My contact tells me that they sell out very quickly. So, my next planting in the spring will be some hops - if I get to the store in time.

References:

“Anti-Cancer Compound in Beer Gaining Interest”, Oregon State University, http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ncs/newsarch/2005/Oct05/beerandcancer.htm
“Humulus lupulus L.”, Center for New Crops & Plants Products, Purdue University, http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/duke_energy/Humulus_lupulus.html
“Humulus lupulus”, Vines for the Southeast, North Carolina State University, http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/vines/humulus_lupulus.html
Leung, A.Y. 1980. Encyclopedia of common natural ingredients used in food, drugs, and cosmetics. John Wiley & Sons. New York.

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22 June 2009 by Robert.

On Saturday, June 13^th, my wife and I visited the small Hill Country town of Blanco to enjoy the brutal heat and the celebration of lavender.  We began our discovery of Blanco by visiting the old courthouse square and all of the booths set up selling just about anything you could think of buying.

After a refreshing lavender lemonade and seeing several artisans at work, we decided to get back into our air conditioned car and visit some of the lavender farms in the area. The first farm we visited was the Heron’s Nest Herb Farm. There, Melanie and Fred Van Aken showed off their farm to us and others. Fred spoke about his rainwater collection system that provides water for both his large garden and the gardens around his home. He also uses a solar-powered pump to provide the energy to move water through his drip system. Then, he spoke about the organic solutions needed to successfully raise his lavenders.

We moved on to the next farm on our listing, the Hill County Lavender farm with Tasha Brieger. Tasha spoke extensively about everything you would ever need to know about farming lavender. She has at least two different French lavenders and three different English lavenders available on her farm. Lots of folks were there taking scissors and making their own bunches of lavender flowers to take home.

The next farm we visited was Karen and Don Roets’ Miller Creek Lavender farm. Don greeted everyone at the parking area reminding us to sample the lavender margaritas at the store! The great part about this farm was the Texas Master Gardener who was available to talk about how to plant and maintain your lavender. She spoke to folks from the Hill Country, North Texas, and the Gulf Coast about the specific needs of these plants. Here, we also learned the differences between culinary and presentation lavenders. It was really cool to see another Master Gardener who was helping to educate the public about these wonderful plants.

After this farm, we returned to the courthouse square to enjoy local wines, beers, jellies, jams, and other great food items. The live music was wonderful and the local population was working hard to make sure all the visitors were having a great time. We even ran into another Master Gardener who was taking a well-earned rest. What a great place to be a Master Gardener!

I’m looking forward to visiting Blanco again. For sure during the next Lavender Festival but probably even before. I had a great time and came back with six different lavender plants, two different jams, souvenir cups, a new hat, and great memories!

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12 June 2009 by Robert.

In a previous article, I wrote about preserving herbs by drying them and briefly discussed the ways to do so. Now, I will discuss another option – freezing herbs to preserve them.

By freezing herbs, you get the benefit of having the herbs almost as if they were taken directly from the plant. There are really two ways of freezing herbs – one by placing in a bag and the other by immersing in olive oil.

To freeze herbs in a bag, you can either leave the leaves whole or chop them up. It doesn’t seem to matter which one as they both work well.

Prepare the herbs by picking them early in the morning before the sun dries them too much. Wash them thoroughly and allow them to dry on paper towels or pat them dry. Do not bruise the whole leaves too much. If you are going to chop the herbs, now is the time. Remove the stems as much as possible.

Once the herbs are prepared, bag ‘em, tag ‘em, and freeze ‘em.

I actually prefer to use a vacuum-sealed bag for my herbs. Take a vacuum bag and cut it down to a small size. Place about two to three days worth of herbs in it and seal the bag. This way, I only have to open one bag for a few days of fresh herbs without compromising the entire batch.

You can also use any commercial ‘zip lock’ type of bag. Just place your herbs in the bag, zip it, and you are done.

Always remember to mark each bag with contents and date of freezing. Simple reminders like “basil, 6/15/2007” work well for me. Herbs frozen in vacuum-sealed bags should be fresh for about one year or so. Herbs in zipped bags should be fresh for six to 12 months.

The second method for freezing herbs is to place the leaves in olive oil. Simply take the herbs and mix with enough olive oil to cover them completely. Then, spoon the mixture into some plastic ice cube trays and allow them to freeze. Once completely frozen, you can take the cubes and place them into a freezer bag.

If you like pestos, you can also freeze them effectively using this method. Just add the herb mixture you like into a food processor or blender, start grinding away adding olive oil into the machine until you have the consistency you desire. Again, spoon the mixture into ice cube trays and let it freeze. Voila! You now have instant pesto available to you.

Since the herbs preserved for freezing tend to be fresher than herbs dried, you should use ‘fresh’ proportions for the frozen variety when using them in recipes.

References:

“Growing Herbs in Texas”, Texas Agricultural Extension Service, Texas A&M University, http://jefferson-tx.tamu.edu/publications/Herbs-in.tx.PDF

“What is the Best Way to Dry Herbs?”, Laurie Winn, Galveston County Master Gardeners (1998), http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/galveston/h&v_4.htm

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