Hops-My Kitchen Herb Tip of the Week

Hops

 

Hops are twining vines with green flowers that resemble small pine cones or berries.

British farmers hung dried hops wreaths in their homes for good luck and prosperity.

Dried hops vines are not widely available, but beer, which is rich in hops, is. This easy

recipe will bring prosperity magic into your home.

 

Bread Recipe:

3 cups self rising flour

2 tbsp. sugar

1 12-ounce can of beer

 

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Pour into a lightly greased bread pan and bake for 40 minutes at 350°F. 

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Medicine from the Garden: Hops 

by Dena Nishek 

Hops exuberantly twist skyward through spring and flush with their 

own special "flower" in late summer. The vine's pale green blossom, 

technically a strobile, is best known for the bitterness it 

contributes to beer. But there is more to hops than beer. Not only 

are they inspiring plants to grow, but they have medicinal qualities 

as well. 

The hop plant (Humulus lupulus), believed to be a native of Asia, was 

allegedly brought to Europe by Asiatic invaders. Pliny the Elder, a 

Roman historian, noted in the first century A.D. that hops grew wild 

among the willows, like wolves among sheep. This may have inspired 

the plant's botanical name, which means little wolf plant. 

Historically, hops have been used in various cultures to treat a host 

of ailments ranging from poor digestion and intestinal disturbances 

to kidney and bladder stones, constipation, premature ejaculation, 

insomnia, restlessness and anxiety. 

Bitter Medicine

Not all of those medicinal applications have been substantiated, but 

there is evidence for using hops to ease symptoms of digestive 

problems, anxiety and insomnia. Bitter things stimulate the digestive 

system via a complex chain of events that begins at the taste buds. A 

hop tea, which will be quite bitter, can stimulate appetite and aid 

digestion. Hops can be particularly useful when indigestion is caused 

in part by anxiety. One of the active constituents in hops is a 

volatile alcohol that is believed to be partly responsible for the 

plant's sedative properties. Because the plant can relax the central 

nervous system, hops are often used for anxiety and insomnia. In 

fact, Germany's Commission E says hops can be used for "discomfort 

due to restlessness or anxiety and sleep disturbances." Its sedative 

effect is mild overall, so hops are often combined with other herbs 

including valerian (Valeriana officinalis) and passionflower 

(Passiflora incarnata). 

The standard dose is 0.5 g up to three times a day; this could be in 

the form of a tincture or a cup of tea. Whether beer could be 

construed as a hop and barley tincture and considered "medicine" is 

debatable. Thus, a more straightforward delivery system is the cup of 

tea. To brew tea with fresh hops, pour a cup of boiling water over a 

teaspoon of hops and let it steep for 10 to 15 minutes. Drink a cup 

before bed to induce sleep. A good source of fresh hops is your local 

homebrew supply store (The hop varieties are important for beer 

styles, but not as much so for sleep aids.) or your garden-hops are 

easy to grow if you have something for them to climb. 

A Jack-in-the-Hop-Stalk Experience

If you have a trellis to cover or a sunny spot in a child's garden, I 

highly recommend a hop plant. In the spring, shoots emerge from the 

crown of the plant and begin their clockwise, skyward twist. Hops can 

grow 15 to 20 feet tall, though usually not in their first year. 

Without digging too deeply into the plant's soil needs, they prefer 

well-drained, loamy soil with a middle-of-the-road pH. You can buy 

rhizomes to plant in the spring, or root some of a neighbor's shoots. 

Hops need plenty of water but won't tolerate soggy roots so make sure 

the soil is draining properly and allow it to dry between waterings. 

And to prevent pests, as well as mildew, it helps to water the plants 

at their base rather than sprinkling the leaves. 

Once the young shoots have reached a foot or two in height, pinch off 

the weaker ones and select the strongest three or four to train 

around coarse twine strung from a stake in the ground to a 

conveniently tall structure. They seem grateful for the supports so 

only a few "training" sessions are required. By late June the hop 

vines should begin branching out and filling in with leaves and 

burrs, which are the precursors to the pale green hop cones. In late 

August to mid-September you can pick the cones and dry them for 

storage. An easy way to dry the cones is to spread a single layer on 

a screen and keep it in a warm but not sunny place until the cones 

feel papery. You could dry them in a food dehydrator or in the oven-

but don't let the oven temperature exceed 140 degrees F. To keep hops 

from oxidizing and losing their flavor and essential oils, store them 

in an air-tight container in the freezer. Try to use them within a 

year for optimal freshness. 

The vines will drop their leaves and die back in the fall. Dead vines 

can be cleared away or left as a natural trellis for the next year's 

shoots. 

Dena Nishek writes and gardens from her home in Boulder, Colorado, 

where she's turning sections of stubborn sod and heavy clay soil into 

beautiful and satisfying gardens. In addition to pursuing her master 

gardener certification, she enjoys cooking, brewing beer and tandem 

cycling. Dena also loves lingering in flea markets and salvage yards 

looking for the perfect find. Dena's writing credits include Natural 

Home, Delicious!, Zymurgy and Nutrition Science News. 

References 

The Classic Guide to Hops. Zymurgy Special Issue 1997; 20(4). 

The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to 

Herbal Medicines. American Botanical Council, 1998. 

Bratman, S. Your Complete Guide to Herbs. Prima Publishing: 

Sacramento (Calif.); 1999. 

Duke, J. The Green Pharmacy. St. Martin's Paperbacks: New York; 1997. 

Hoffmann, D. The New Holistic Herbal. Element Inc.: Rockport (Mass.); 

1991. 

Tyler, V.E. and Foster, S. Tyler's Honest Herbal-A Sensible Guide to 

the Use of Herbs and Related Remedies. Haworth Press Inc.: New 

York;1999.