Sugar Content Dropped

[Shawn]

Saturday was a good day and yesterday (Sunday) we collected 165 gallons but sugar content had dropped from a two to a one. What makes this happen? to warm outside? was in high 40's yesterday almost 50. Headed back up to sugar house for another full day into night:o

[Springfield Acer]

I saw the same thing here. I have a 50-50 mix of sugars and reds that average about 1.8. Yesterday was the second day of 1.4 at best. I asked the same question and hopefully it will recover!

[Shawn]

Mother nature I guess. I thought it had not froze last night it was like 35 -36 this morning at six and just checked some of the buckets and they are just starting to drip now and the pipeline is starting up. Love it! Well second cup of coffee and pan cleaned and ready to go again for today. Cloudy here at this point but its starting to run again. Good luck today!:cool:

[PerryW]

I guess that explains why I only made 6 gallons from the 400 gallons I gathered sunday nite. (I made 10 gallons from the 400 gallons I gathered saturday nite.)

[Dill]

Mine dropped from 1.9 to 1.6 yesterday. Another sap hauler to Josh's went from 2.4 to 2, I hope it bounces right back up.

[not_for_sale]

My guess would be its the weater. Tree needs frost to make sugar. If you are on vacuum you get the liquid but since no frost.... Less sugar.

[PerryW]

My guess would be its the weater. Tree needs frost to make sugar. If you are on vacuum you get the liquid but since no frost.... Less sugar.

I never actually checked my sugar content going into the evaporator (and I don't have vacuum), just noticed that not much syrup came out the other end. I did pick up another 90 gal. of sap yesterday and had a big take-off which evened things out a bit.

[DrTimPerkins]

My guess would be its the weater. Tree needs frost to make sugar. If you are on vacuum you get the liquid but since no frost.... Less sugar.

Good guess. Freezing weather stimulates the conversion of starch to sugar. With no cold nights, the amount of sugar in the wood tissues is fixed. The sap will stop running with buckets after a few days. On vacuum, it will keep running, but the sap sugar content will slowly drop off over 7-10 days.

[PerryW]

Good guess. Freezing weather stimulates the conversion of starch to sugar. With no cold nights, the amount of sugar in the wood tissues is fixed. The sap will stop running with buckets after a few days. On vacuum, it will keep running, but the sap sugar content will slowly drop off over 7-10 days.

Thanks! Another reason to remain a Luddite and stick with gravity tubing.

[jake22si]

I dont measure the sugar in the sap either, but have noticed a significant drop in the final product. My first 2 boils were 40, and 45 gallons of sap and I got about a gallon apiece. Last 2 boils were about 60 gallons each and I got about 3/4 of a gallon each. If the season is dying down now, I will have made as much syrup last year as I did this year, and I have 24 more taps and a better evaporator!

[DrTimPerkins]

Thanks! Another reason to remain a Luddite and stick with gravity tubing.

The other difference is that with gravity you'd have little or no sap, whereas with vacuum you will have sap, although not quite as sweet (not a problem if you have an RO).

[DrTimPerkins]

If the season is dying down now, I will have made as much syrup last year as I did this year, and I have 24 more taps and a better evaporator!

The season is FAR from over at this point. More cold weather headed our way later this week. That'll recharge the trees and soon we'll all be back in business.

[Dill]

Which is why the drop in sugar content sunday morning was very odd. We had a hard freeze saturday night down to the 20s, and we have the advantage of 4 types of sap collection, high vac, low vac, gravity only tubing and buckets. All of which dropped in sugar sunday. Oh well thats what makes it interesting.