10 x 10 plot for backyard growing of barley for brewing beer - Ask Extension
Do you have any recommendations for what kind of and possibly even where to obtain beer brewing barley seed that has done well for folks growing barle...
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10 x 10 plot for backyard growing of barley for brewing beer #246133
Asked May 21, 2015, 10:39 AM EDT
Do you have any recommendations for what kind of and possibly even where to obtain beer brewing barley seed that has done well for folks growing barley here in Texas? I have heard most of the barley grown around here is for feed and have found locations locally that sell barley I could grow and use but would love to find something that has been grown and bred specifically for brewing and it would be even better if it was already proven to be suited for Texas.
Denton County Texas
Expert Response
I've spend most of the morning trying to "brew" you an answer. The quick answer is there is not much information out there except from other brewers.
Below is some of the information that I've tried to pull together from several Extension sources:
Below is some of the information that I've tried to pull together from several Extension sources:
- Barley typically thrives in a cooler climate where it’s planted in the spring and harvested in the fall. With the Texas heat, consider shifted the planting to late fall and let the grain grow over the winter for a spring harvest.
- Barley is less winter-hardy than wheat, but produces profitable returns from winter pasture and grain on less soil moisture when managed properly. Barley is the most tolerant of the small grains to soil salinity, while oats are the least.
- A soil test is the best way to determine fertilizer need. For proper fertilizer recommendations a completed information sheet needs to accompany the sample(s) to the Texas A&M Soil Testing Laboratory.
- If planting barley in such a small area, consider planting at 72 lbs per acre (about 0.72 lbs per 10x10 area). If it is dry this fall, you should not have difficulties in applying water to get a stand.
- As far as varieties that are selected for this area, I can find none in the literature. Endeavor barley is the second two-row winter malt variety released by the USDA-ARS and the IAES. It has excellent test weight and plumps, and has improved yield over the first two-row winter malt variety, Charles, that was previously released. It is average for heading date, height, and lodging. Endeavor will provide producers with a variety with a good malt profile. It has high levels of malting enzymes and is expected to be adapted to both irrigated and dry land regions. It has winter hardiness.
Error in math - Approximately 0.17 lbs of pure live seed needs to be planted on a 10x10 area.
