sap amounts differing greatly.....

[Jim Foster]

With me living in the Great American Dessert, I believe I have come across something the rest of you guys probably don't. I only have Box Elders to tap around here in any number. I found a place on the creek north of town that has a bunch of them. One grove right where it usually floods in the spring and stays moist year around, lots of dead weed cover, is producing nicely. The other 2 where the ground is still dry and the trees are just above the creek aren't putting out a thing. I even put a cork in the early holes and re drilled new ones a couple weeks ago thinking the tap holes had dried out. All healthy trees. Just proves that even heathy trees where it receives little water year around won't give you sap. Looking at rainfall amount maps of you guys areas make me envy! Frustrating as hell since I got all that hose, fittings, buckets expecting a bumper crop of sap...…..

Jim

[DrTimPerkins]

Low snow cover and low rain (low soil moisture) are correlated with reduced maple sap flows in the northeast...you're probably just an extreme example of that in your dry soils. Not real surprising you don't get much sap from those trees.

Secondly...do not cork the tapholes after pulling spouts. They will heal over better if you just pull spouts and leave them alone. Plugging/corking just holds moisture in the taphole and can lead to rot. Letting them dry out and grow over allows them to heal naturally.

[Jim Foster]

Low snow cover and low rain (low soil moisture) are correlated with reduced maple sap flows in the northeast...you're probably just an extreme example of that in your dry soils. Not real surprising you don't get much sap from those trees.

Secondly...do not cork the tapholes after pulling spouts. They will heal over better if you just pull spouts and leave them alone. Plugging/corking just holds moisture in the taphole and can lead to rot. Letting them dry out and grow over allows them to heal naturally.

I plan on pulling the corks as soon as the season is over. Was just corking to keep sap from spilling out that otherwise would go on the ground.

Jim