What to plant on/do with 17 acres NW WI newly cropped of pines?

July 28, 2014 8:30 AM

We have friends with restaurants who would buy fingerlings, table flowers, herbs, etc. We have an artesian well. We have a giant ancient hops vines we could grow more with clippings. That's about all our ideas for now. Thank you.
posted by Kazimirovna to Home & Garden (3 answers total)

If they're really old, the hops plants will probably benefit from having their rhizomes divided to produce in both quantity and quality. It would be best to get them tested to see what variety they are, or at least their acid levels. Few folks beyond a couple adventurous hobbyists out there would purchase unnamed, undocumented hops, there's just no way to tell what they'd be best for in the brewing process.

And I speak from experience; harvesting them without proper trellises would be a giant pain in the ass. Organization is key. If you've just got a wad of hops growing somewhere, it's impossible to get a good harvest out of them. I'd check out how to build a really strong trellis that can support them; your yield will be much better, and easier to harvest.
posted by furnace.heart at 9:22 AM on July 28, 2014 [1 favorite]

If you still have all the tree stumps in the ground you have a LOT of work ahead of you before this becomes farming land. Consider the soil type and condition and the length of the actual growing season. Re-planting trees may be your best option.
posted by uncaken at 10:12 AM on July 28, 2014 [4 favorites]

What is your desired outcome? Short term income? Long term income? How much risk can you tolerate? How often can you visit the property to care for whatever you grow? What is the soil like? What kind of manpower do you have available? All of these factors effect what is the best crop. If you're looking for a tax break, look into Wisconsin's "Managed Forest Land" program, which gives you low tax rates in exchange for working with a forester to plant trees as a future timber crop. You could also lease the land to hunters in the fall for deer season.
posted by cosmicbandito at 2:29 PM on July 28, 2014