Farmer for a day, part of a hops trellis for life!

Howdy folks (assuming you're out there) from your favorite farming/business managing half of Glass Bottom Brewery, LLC.

Many of you know we plan to be a farm and brewery (!) and for that reason, need farmland. While I have been a reticent blogger, and an even more doubtful internet user in general, I am putting a plea out there to any and all readers to consider participating (in real life!) in our farm.

Let me back up for this paragraph. Beer needs hops. Local beer needs local hops. Glass Bottom Beer needs Glass Bottom hops. Because (corny catch-phrase incoming) in each glass you can see through to our farm. Or such is our hope. This post is not just about being in touch with the hops, it's about participating in the construction of the trellis upon which they will grow.

I may (note the use of the provisional tense) have a deal for the construction of a 20ft high hops trellis using super-beefy rot-resistant black locust poles, sourced in the lowest-possible carbon footprint kind of way on the very farm that is renting me land. While I can't do a barn-raising kind of trellis structure erecting, with 20-30 people lifting these poles into their four-foot deep holes, I can ask for your help in shaving their bark.

This yard will be 125 feet by 333 feet, or just under an acre, and comprise 60 poles at 24 feet each. Your job, noble volunteers, if you choose to accept it, is to simply help me remove the bark from these massive poles so that they better last in soil-contact conditions. This will involve use of a draw knife, axe, spud or other tools you bring to this event.

What's in it for me? you might ask... Well, as an unlicensed entity, we can't sell you any beer. That leaves us the option of homebrewing it and giving it away for free. Anyone that's been to the garage/brewery will know we don't skimp on the free beer.

This project should happen in about 3 weekends, and I need to gauge interest to see if it's worth drawing up volunteer agreement forms for using said sharp tools to remove bark from said posts. Email glassbottombrewery@gmail if you have interest in coming to the Great Barrington/Monterey area and helping me prepare our hops yard for trellising and planting. It might just be an historic event.

Cheers,

Evan