Time to pull the buckets?!!!

[Bruce L]

My wife and I got our buses today for the upcoming school year. She had told me before about an individual producer who still had his buckets on the trees end of June when we quit driving. Went out with her on a trial run this afternoon,she pointed out the bush,sure enough,buckets still on the trees!!!!! These are ( or were) the good aluminum spun buckets,probably ruined by now,as well as the damage to the trees.

[maple flats]

Certainly have not helped the trees, but I doubt it has hurt the tree very much if at all. The taps have likely healed enough to prevent easy entry into the hole. The buckets at best will have some corrosion, might be worse.
It is possible the owner got sick or worse, or that they don't know any better.

[Sunday Rock Maple]

I was in a woods once where the trees had been cut about an inch above the spout about ten years earlier. Buckets all frozen and busted and strewn all over the woods. Inexplicable but true.