General Discussion
Making Maple Syrup
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@the dude
Im with you on the sunlight thing. I haven’t tapped anything yet and am holding off. I’m not far from you but im not focused on just temps like some are. Hell, my maples budded out in December.
Sun angle and moon phases are as important to me as a forecast. When two of the three line up I get itchy to tap. When it appears that all three line up it’s definitely go time. Right now one and only one of those three factors have shown itself.
A friend of mine a few miles away has had his trees tapped for a week. Volume has been hit or miss with him and sugar content is all over the damn place. Sure, the air temp has been above freezing but that Sun angle is still low and when the sun has come out it’s not high enough to truly warm things up.
Another friend of mine is a retired arborist. The guy has a couple of masters degrees in forestry and has tapped trees for over 50 years. Last year was the last year he cooked his own sap as this year he’s tapping trees but I’m cooking it for him this year he is seeing that my evaporator and processing set up is light years more advanced than what he has used. 200 acres of sugar maples at our disposal and his expertise, experience, and gut says it’s a no go at this point. Tapping too early to get a head start could set you up to harm the trees more than it will help you get those few extra gallons of sap. It’s just not worth it yet to open trees up leaving them more susceptible to harmful bacteria and stress.
Im with you on the sunlight thing. I haven’t tapped anything yet and am holding off. I’m not far from you but im not focused on just temps like some are. Hell, my maples budded out in December.
Sun angle and moon phases are as important to me as a forecast. When two of the three line up I get itchy to tap. When it appears that all three line up it’s definitely go time. Right now one and only one of those three factors have shown itself.
A friend of mine a few miles away has had his trees tapped for a week. Volume has been hit or miss with him and sugar content is all over the damn place. Sure, the air temp has been above freezing but that Sun angle is still low and when the sun has come out it’s not high enough to truly warm things up.
Another friend of mine is a retired arborist. The guy has a couple of masters degrees in forestry and has tapped trees for over 50 years. Last year was the last year he cooked his own sap as this year he’s tapping trees but I’m cooking it for him this year he is seeing that my evaporator and processing set up is light years more advanced than what he has used. 200 acres of sugar maples at our disposal and his expertise, experience, and gut says it’s a no go at this point. Tapping too early to get a head start could set you up to harm the trees more than it will help you get those few extra gallons of sap. It’s just not worth it yet to open trees up leaving them more susceptible to harmful bacteria and stress.
We’re starting to tap Saturday. I’ll post later how many bricks we get. Plan is to retap if needed. About 4-5 weeks is all the longer we like to go on a tap. It’s definitely gonna get cold again. Weird season we’re facing. Eau Claire/Dunn county. All under vacuum.
Sam what precent was your sugar content at?
Sam what precent was your sugar content at?
Anyone collecting right now have the ability to check sugar content in the raw sap? Just a theory I have that I would like to test…
So much in nature is tied to daylight hours and not weather. I realize the weather is making the trees run, but I’m curious how much sugar they are actually producing. If they are producing as normal, that would mean the growing season is starting. I wonder what impact that could have on the tree if we have an extended cold spell yet in late February and into March.
So much in nature is tied to daylight hours and not weather. I realize the weather is making the trees run, but I’m curious how much sugar they are actually producing. If they are producing as normal, that would mean the growing season is starting. I wonder what impact that could have on the tree if we have an extended cold spell yet in late February and into March.
Displaying 76 to 90 of 1,726 posts
