You’ve got questions, we’ve got answers:
When will my order arrive?
What variety should I buy?
What variety is best for privacy screens?
The variety I want is out of stock, what now?
Can I grow hops where I live?
How do I add to my existing order?
Where can I learn about growing hops?
Are you organic?
Do you ship outside of Canada?
Not what you’re looking for? See our planting tips, news, policies, or get in touch!
When will my order arrive?
We take pre-orders through the winter, then, depending on the weather, hop rhizomes are harvested in mid-late April and ship on a Monday in late April or early May. We’ll send out a notification of anticipated shipping dates when harvest is underway, at which point, an alternate ship date can be arranged if you will be away. You will receive tracking information when your order ships, if you have selected Canada Post Expedited (highly recommended) or Xpresspost. If you haven’t heard from us, it’s because rhizome harvest hasn’t begun, or because harvest is not far enough along for shipping dates to have been set.
What variety should I buy?
With some basic horticultural knowledge (see “Rhizome Planting Tips” page), in the right areas (see FAQ: Can I grow hops where I live?), most varieties are easy to grow, even though disease resistance and vigour vary somewhat. So we always recommend that people grow what they want to brew with, or talk to the brewers they are growing for!
What variety is best for privacy screens?
A lot of people want to use hops as a privacy screen. Keep in mind that it’s a seasonal screen! Hops only provide privacy from late June through late September or early October.
I recommend Hallertau for its vigor and disease resistance. A tighter spacing is recommended, for example, 3′. Keep in mind that the rhizomes will need pruning every year; especially on a tighter spacing, missed rhizomes one year will be a mess the next year.
The variety I want is out of stock, what now?
Throughout the winter and early spring, stock levels are only estimates of what will be harvested, and many varieties “sell out” through pre-orders. Contact us if you are interested in a variety that is sold out, so that we can notify you, if, at harvest time, additional supply becomes available, since it will be posted online at that time. You can always order whatever is available now, and add to your order later (see How do I add to my existing order? in the FAQ). However, since we cannot guarantee that more supply will become available, we recommend ordering early (beginning in January).
Can I grow hops where I live?
If you’ve got well-drained soil with a roughly neutral, or very slightly alkaline pH, 120 frost free days in your growing season, and you are between 35 and 55 degrees latitude, you should be able to grow hops.
How do I add to my existing order?
Simply create another order with the same shipping address, select “add to existing shipment” as your shipping option. Please note, only subsequent orders that will be combined into an existing shipment are eligible. Ineligible orders will not be shipped until the correct payment is processed.
Where can I learn about growing hops?
See our Rhizome Planting Tips page for some basic care instructions. Hops require trellising. There are as many solutions as there are growers, but full sun and sturdy rigging over 10 feet is a good start. If you’re going to get serious about growing hops, join a forum like Yahoo “Grow-Hops” and have a look through the existing discussions. There’s a wealth of knowledge already out there, and time spent researching will pay off.
Are you organic?
As a division of Button Brook Farm, Four Horses hops are Certified Naturally Grown! If you are, or are planning to be, a certified grower, bear in mind that section 5.3.2.2 of the Canadian organic standard, as of this time (2021), allows you to plant non-organic perennial stock, with the caveat that no certified organic crop may be harvested for a year after planting. Please see the “About Us” page for more detail on our agricultural practices.
Do you ship outside of Canada?
Unfortunately, not at this time.