Allow me to introduce myself

[bkell947]

Hello,
My name is Bryan. I'm from east central PA, close to the city of Pottsville (Home of Yuengling Beer!). in fall 2014, a friend of mine who does honey bees mentioned to me about making maple syrup, and it got the wheels turning. I live on a 70 acre farm, with about 20 acres of that being woods. I did some nature walks and found myself finding many large maple trees, and decided to give this a try. I bought 10 plastic spiles with 2' lines, had about 15 1 gallon jugs and I tapped my first tree in the 2015 season. There have been many growing pains, mostly me figuring out as i went how to filter the mitre, how to boil sap the most cost efficient way, and so on.

For this season, I am now up to 30-40 trees i will be tapping, and 100% of them are Norway Maple. When i originally tapped the trees in 2015, i didn't realize what species they were, but I will confess, I am very much pleased with the finished products taste. I was around 50 gallons of sap to 1 gallon of syrup.

I built wood fired evaporator and a friend of mine whom is an amazing welder is building me a pan, it's just about done.

So far, this forum has really helped me along, learning many tips about hobby sugaring!

[spud]

Welcome to Trader Bryan. I hope you make a bunch of syrup with you're new pans. Please keep us posted throughout the season.

Spud

[Maplewalnut]

Welcome, good to see another PA guy. Good luck with the season

[PA TAPPER]

Welcome Bryan, Hobby or not there can be an awful lot to learn and this is a good place to start. I to live on a farm just South east of you ( Nothern Berks Co. ) If interested in seeing my setup send me a PM.

[3GoatHill]

I've only been doing this a few years too. I found that the folks on this site are very helpful! I am also stuck with , um I mean blessed with, 100% Norway Maple. When I first started out a neighbor told me you can't make syrup from "those Norwegians", but I didn't listen and went for it. I found they make good syrup and everybody that's had it loves it. However, my long term management plan includes culling the Norways and replacing them with natives. I always like to hear from others who tapping the Norways.

[maple flats]

Welcome aboard Bryan, There are many kinds of maples that can make syrup. The main ones are Sugar, Black, Red and Silver but the list beyond that is long.
Back in the 1970's I made syrup tapping 1 large sugar maple and 3 large Box Elders (also known as Ask Leaf Maple, Canadian Maple and a few other names). It made wonderful syrup and then in 2003 I got hooked and have been doing it ever since. I now tap only Sugars, with less than 5% in Reds and Silvers added in.
Beware, this IS addictive. 10 taps last yr., 40 this yr. and 10,000+ in a few yrs. But, ENJOY!

[bkell947]

Welcome Bryan, Hobby or not there can be an awful lot to learn and this is a good place to start. I to live on a farm just South east of you ( Nothern Berks Co. ) If interested in seeing my setup send me a PM.
That would be awesome! thank you

[bkell947]

I've only been doing this a few years too. I found that the folks on this site are very helpful! I am also stuck with , um I mean blessed with, 100% Norway Maple. When I first started out a neighbor told me you can't make syrup from "those Norwegians", but I didn't listen and went for it. I found they make good syrup and everybody that's had it loves it. However, my long term management plan includes culling the Norways and replacing them with natives. I always like to hear from others who tapping the Norways.
I have some red maples on my property, but none of them are big enough to tap. My neighbor, however, has a large 24" diameter Red Maple he asked me if i was interested in tapping, I think I'm going to. I talked to an old time farmer that i've known my whole life, and I asked him what's up with no sugar maples around? He said that when he was a kid, he remembers all the native, old sugar maples were cut down and used for lumber. I literally have not seen a sugar maple in southern schuylkill county, so I wonder if all the old sugar maples were cut down and used. Most of the maples I have found are Norway.

[maple flats]

I find it nearly impossible to think there were sugar maples there back when that neighbor was a kid and there are none now. Sugar maples drop lots of seeds and it seems unrealistic to harvest them out of existence for lumber. Where did the ones too young to cut go? What about the seeds in the leaf litter that were to germinate soon. My guess is that if there were sugar maples back then something else did them in, natural pest or disease. Even a major swing in the weather, but not harvesting. Sure, cutting the saw log trees certainly could put a crimp on the population but it could not get them all.

[esetter]

Welcome , new here myself but finding everyone to be nice and very willing to share knowledge. I am just about done with my first wood fired evaporator. Going big time this year with 15 taps!

[BAP]

I find it nearly impossible to think there were sugar maples there back when that neighbor was a kid and there are none now. Sugar maples drop lots of seeds and it seems unrealistic to harvest them out of existence for lumber. Where did the ones too young to cut go? What about the seeds in the leaf litter that were to germinate soon. My guess is that if there were sugar maples back then something else did them in, natural pest or disease. Even a major swing in the weather, but not harvesting. Sure, cutting the saw log trees certainly could put a crimp on the population but it could not get them all.
If the trees were all cut and turned into farm land, the seedlings were probably eaten by cows grazing. Cows will eat sugar maple seedlings.