Sap...Howare you doing with Crappy Weather?

[DonMcJr]

Well a freeze this weekend and all above freezing the next 10 days...:cry:

Sunday I got 20 Gallons from 5 of my taps...

Sunday night to monday morning another 10 Gallons!

So a little over 30 Gallons in a 44 gallon food grade container with 6 Two Liter Bottles of Ice Changed morning and night to hold the sap til the weekend.

How is everyone else in Michigan doing...As of 8am Monday it looks like it got cold enough last night and it slowed or stopped and is starting up again!

My Sap is still clear too!:cool:

[DonMcJr]

A little over 40 Gallons now and the Sap is still clear...Still keeping it cold with Ice in 2 Litre Bottles...

Tonight is going down to 34 here which usually means 30 so that may be a plus!

BUT Monday will be 72 F... YUCK!

So I'm Leaving my Taps in but anything that looks yucky I am dumping and just hoping there's more time to collect!

[twofer]

I'm pulling for ya Don but I am currently sitting here waiting for what was left in the syrup pan to finish.

[wnybassman]

Taste it before you dump it. Good tasting sap gets boiled. If it does turn cloudy and what you have on ice is still clear, maybe keep it separate?

[DonMcJr]

The Box Elder is only giving me like a little less than a gallon a day...It's the one that smells nutty... I didn't smell it last week but this Nutty smell was stronger than my Quad Exhust because I was standing there smelling the exhust and said man what is that other smell...

Maybe Box Elder Sap has a smell I don't know...

On another sad note... the 2 Trees I tapped February 19th in my Backyard are still just red buds...

http://www.michiganoutdoorsman.com/MOPhoto/albums/userpics/10005/normal_BackYardSilver.jpg

But the Woods Trees I tapped about a week and a Half ago the buds busted today:cry:

http://www.michiganoutdoorsman.com/MOPhoto/albums/userpics/10005/normal_WoodsMapleFlower.jpg

here's then one that Flowered...Not sure what kind it is...

http://www.michiganoutdoorsman.com/MOPhoto/albums/userpics/10005/normal_WoodsMaple.jpg

I also tapped 2 Box Elder Maples a week and a half ago...
One isn't really giving much sap and the other is giving a little more but it smells "Nutty" to me and I keep dumping it...

It was fun and I have 44 gallons keeping cold to boil but it looks like that will be the last batch this year...

[michiganfarmer2]

Last year I made 300 gallons on 700 taps plus all the sap I bought. This year I have 1250 taps in, 220 buckets, Ive bought no sap, and We've made 75 gallons. It froze last night so hopefully I can get another 75 gallons. ....I hope, I hope... I just bought a used RO, and I need syrup to pay for it


...OH, and no buds are opening yet

[Cabledog]

Just wondering, what is the going price for sap? I've noticed on these forums that people sometimes buy it instead of tapping their own. I dump hundreds of gallons of the stuff whenever I don't have time to boil it, due to my full time job. I could always haul it out to the road if someone else wanted to pick it up. In fact, I could tap even more if anyone was interested.

[PerryW]

here's the 2010 sap prices in NH:

$0.325 per gallon for 2% sap
$0.575 per gallon for 3%

delivered to the sugarhouse..

[michiganfarmer2]

I only ended up with about a pint per tap

[shane hickey]

Well it rained today no snow for the last 3 weeks ground is all
unthawed high of 51 and still hardly any moisture in the ground
Cricks are run dry in the woods which i never seen before this
Season isnt looking good for my area.

[The Sweet Spot]

I am a little further north than you (Petoskey), but it rained here for a long time. We have lost most of our snow. The ground is still froozen where I checked. I am still concerned with the weather. Last year in my area the only bushes that did ok are the ones that tapped way early. Like in early Feb. or late Jan. I am watching the weather,working on lines, and bitin my nails. We tapped 180 last year and are expanding to 1000 this year. We are off the grid and utilizing natural vaccume to the fullest (steep hills). Last year I had one 5/16 line with 80 taps on it, and no mainline. When the sap ran the line was not full but had lines of full areas about 20-30' long followed by short areas of air. We were inspected by the dept. of Ag. on Thursday, tapped Friday and Saturday. Looked at the weather and knew it was going to stop flowing so I stopped tapping. In a 36 hour period we had over 400 gals. of sap. I did not have a vaccume gage to check it.