Along the 42nd parallel, the hop and turf farm is located by the Connecticut River surrounded by farmland with rolling hills towards the west. Four Star Farms has the biggest hopyard in the state of Massachusetts at roughly 17 acres, growing several varieties including Centennial, Chaos, Crystal, Magnum, Mt. Rainier, TeaMaker, and an experimental field.
At the moment the hopyard is in its dormancy phase until the temperatures start to rise and the bines start to shoot through the soil again. Hops are the flowers of the herbaceous plant with bines that grow annually with perennial rootstocks. The bines grow along rope reaching upwards of 20 feet tall. The lupulin glands inside the hop cones contain essential oils and resins that are sought after for flavoring, bittering, and stability agents in beer. They also impart citrus, floral, and fruity aromas and tastes that many of us have come to love.
With a taproot that can extend 15 feet into the ground, this part of the hop plant can handle temperatures as low as -20 F with proper preparation. Covering the plant with several inches of mulch or using a plastic tarp will help protect the much shorter peripheral feeder roots and crown from freezes and death during the cold and winter months.
I’ll be following the harvest this year from the ground to the glass and am excited to learn about hops, how to grow them, and how brewers use them. Over the year I will be joining the crew at Four Star as they prep, tend, harvest, process, and brew. This agricultural photography project will also act as a bit of a documentary of the multi-generational farm, hopyard, and more recently, brewery.
