Backyard Syrup Enthusiasts 2021

[Mvhomesteader]

As the first real snow storm of the season is in full swing and after a really cold week, it hardly seems that maple season is approaching, but it is.

Welcome to all backyard operators and anyone who loves the pursuit of maple. Backyard syrupers seem to come in all levels of sophistication. I'm pretty simple with my setup. This is my sixth season making syrup, fourth here in Mount Vernon, northwest of Augusta. I use a concrete block arch with 3 steam trays in conjunction with a wood stove/steam tray as a warming pan. This setup will evaporate around 7 gallons per hour so I can easily get a gallon of syrup a day. No big changes in operation from past seasons....aiming for 13 gallons again this year. We still have 2 left from last year.

My wife and I have a small homestead here where we raise a good portion of our food. Syrup is food, right???? Anyway every homesteader general loves tools. My favorite homestead tool which crosses into maple production is the chain saw. I keep two, both Stihls, an 026 and an 029/ms390 combo saw my son cannibalized, covering 16 to 20 bar length. We burn a cord+ of wood for sap another 3 for the house. Sap wood is everything, whatever is most plentiful. If there is any big stuff, my son has an 084 with a 36" bar used for milling. That is one big saw.

My least expensive favorite tool is an old hair dryer I use to warm the engine on my tractor. 45 minutes with an old wool blanket cover works great even in the cold we've had.

While we wait for sap to run, what other favorite tools are out there?

Best of luck to everyone this season!

[CanterburyMaple]

Greetings! I got bit by the maple sugar bug last March when I saw a neighbor with buckets out and tapped 8 maple trees. I've since been grateful for discovering MapleTrader and everyone's wealth of experience and knowledge. I talked to most of my neighbors and am planning on tapping 50+ trees in my neighborhood this year, and putting together a homemade RO and homemade cinderblock evaporator. I did tapped some "waste" maples in late November and have collected ~15 gallons that I could play around with to tweak my evaporator structure and filtering skills. Was goign to tap this week with temps near 40, but with the deep cold in the forecast, it looks like it won't be until Feb 20th or later.

[Mvhomesteader]

I agree Canterberry Maple--hold the line for a bit. Seems to be one of my go-to statements lately. I typically tap after mid February, but it will be too cold next week and into the following week. I used to get antsy in January when temps could be up for a week, but I've got over that tendency finally.

Interesting that you tapped in November and got some sap. That coberates with what I've read in old tapping stories. Are those taps still functional? If like to know how long they run, and how they compare flow wise with your taps this spring. Any idea of the sugar content? Good experiment......

[CanterburyMaple]

So the taps ran until about early to mid-January, then dried up even on days when they "should have ben running". Seem consistent with the 4-6 week life of a tap hole. I added an additional hole on 3 of the larger "waste" trees, and I've gotten another ~5-ish gallons ove rthe past few weeks. Keeping well frozen outside with this arctic weather haha! I'm almost done building my RO (4 membrane set-up patterned off of soulyrested.com and their diagrams), so I'm going to try a full RO cycle (wash prep/run sap/flush membranes) to see what mistakes I've made in design, any leaks, and what I need to learn before the gushers start coming. Looks like the 17th or 18th might be my tapping days for my property as I'll be out of town for a few days then need to tap my neighbors trees. The itch is getting very hard not to scratch...

[CanterburyMaple]

Also, how do you add the "signature" portion below all your posts? Where people put their history of what they've done. Like to make sure people know how novice I am as they read anything I say !

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Also, how do you add the "signature" portion below all your posts? Where people put their history of what they've done. Like to make sure people know how novice I am as they read anything I say !

Go to “settings” in the upper right corner of the page then on the left look for “edit signature”
I was originally planning to tap this coming weekend but will hold off and see what the weather does. Looks cold. 2 of us can easily get our taps in in a day. Still need to finish hooking up the new shurflo and S3 system.

[CanterburyMaple]

Go to “settings” in the upper right corner of the page then on the left look for “edit signature”
I was originally planning to tap this coming weekend but will hold off and see what the weather does. Looks cold. 2 of us can easily get our taps in in a day. Still need to finish hooking up the new shurflo and S3 system.
Thanks so much!

[Mvhomesteader]

So the taps ran until about early to mid-January, then dried up even on days when they "should have ben running". Seem consistent with the 4-6 week life of a tap hole. I added an additional hole on 3 of the larger "waste" trees, and I've gotten another ~5-ish gallons ove rthe past few weeks.

Interesting evolution of your tap holes. Do you happen to know the sugar content? It would be interesting to see how it compares with traditional spring taps.

Just looked at the 10 day forecast and I see 30 for the 18th and 19th....still cold at night. At least it's getting warmer during the day. I usually tap around mid month, but that's too cold this year. I might wait till I see some days of 35 or so. I'll use the time to boil my spiles, clean out the arch, gather more newspaper, etc. and remove three pine trees that cast some shade on a couple of my sugar maples.

[CanterburyMaple]

I'm guessing the sugar content was pretty low. I was probably getting a cup of syrup for every 4 gallons of sap, so that's 1 to 64 ratio, vs. the 1 to 44 ratio for 2% sap. Consistent with what others have said on here about low sugar contents in the fall/early winter. Just got 2 hydrometers so I can test both sap and syrup BRIX, woot! And yes, agree on the cold setting in for longer. Tapping in February looks "optimistic" this year. I still have plenty to do: need to drill holes in lids/buckets and get my sap storage container fitted with a valve at the bottom. And create a snow refrigerator for it at that. And dig out my evaporator that got buried in snow (but I covered it with a tarp first).

[DrTimPerkins]

Interesting that you tapped in November and got some sap. That coberates with what I've read in old tapping stories. Are those taps still functional? If like to know how long they run, and how they compare flow wise with your taps this spring. Any idea of the sugar content? Good experiment......

Sap will flow from tapholes (or wounds) in maple anytime the weather conditions are appropriate: warm periods after freezing periods. The sap sugar content will be considerably lower in the fall however.

Tapholes exposed to air (gravity flow...buckets, bags, tubing without vacuum) will dry out after 4-6 weeks...perhaps a tad longer if it is cold and there is little flow during that time. They will not flow (much) after that.

Tapholes on strong vacuum with good sanitation practices can remain viable far longer. Tapping in January and sap flows into mid-April are not uncommon.

Reaming, bumping, drilling deeper may rejuvenate flow a bit (a lot depends on the timing) after stoppage (drying out...actually a misnomer since it is more akin to "clogging up" and a natural wound response to microbes in the taphole), however the internal wound of these practices can be 2-3X the size, so in general, these practices are not sustainable in the long-term and should be avoided.

[Mvhomesteader]

Thanks Dr. Tim for the information. I'll tuck that away for reference. I probably got lucky in 2019 when I tapped in mid February but the flow didn't kick in till mid March. The taps were gravity open for a month. The cold, as you said, might have helped. I'll wait this year for better weather. I see now the 20th is still cold......

Canterbury Maple- I use the snow dumping off the metal shed roof as my outside fridge, digging bucket holes for 5 gallon pails as they accumulate. The only thing that roof is good for. You can actually cover the buckets with snow or a blanket on a deep freeze night to limit ice accumulation. Works pretty good and it is near the evaporator so lugging is limited.

[DrTimPerkins]

Thanks Dr. Tim for the information. I'll tuck that away for reference.

It's kind of humorous, but we see throughout the maple region that about every 5 yrs or so someone "discovers" they can make sap in the fall, and there will be a big story in the local news about it. Most likely your great grandfather knew about it 80-100 yrs or more about it, but knew enough not to bother given that the sugar content is low, can't put too many holes in a tree each year, and the cold weather after the fall season will split buckets.

If you've got a lot of trees and you don't manage to tap them all in the spring, tapping some in the fall can be interesting and give you syrup then.

Bill Clark, the VMSMA President many years ago, always put out a few buckets around the holidays in order to have fresh syrup for Christmas.

[Mvhomesteader]

Next week's weather looks favorable to a "start" so I'm planning on setting taps over the next few days. Sunday is sunny and 30 and it stays in the mid to upper 30's at least till Wednesday that I can see. You watch ---we'll get a polar vortex the following week.

This would be a typical tap time for me. I'm going to add a few new trees to the rotation this year, take a couple off to give them a rest, and limit a couple of larger trees to one tap so they can rest as well.

Here we go!

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Ran the spin seal today and got the lines hooked up in 1 bush. Ran 1 line of 3/16” along our rock wall bush for 30 taps. This line has always produced amazingly for 30 taps. I am guessing around 20’ of drop. So we’ll see how the 3/16” works. Figured no harm in trying it. Can always add a shurflo if we want. We will be tapping next weekend. Might start Friday afternoon.

[West Sumner Sugar]

We got about 100 drop line changed out today. Tough walking in the woods. 2 feet of snow with a thick crust. Probably start drilling next weekend.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

We got about 100 drop line changed out today. Tough walking in the woods. 2 feet of snow with a thick crust. Probably start drilling next weekend.

Agreed, hate that crusty snow on top. Only did one front flip in snowshoes today because of it :lol: Hopefully Wednesday softens it up some.

[woodsy]

Throwing my hat in the ring this year, sat out the last one.
Still waiting to tap, looking for conditions to ripen.
I see a couple days here and there that sap should run some but there is still some frigid air in the forecast through the 1st week of March.
I missed getting smokey, dirty and sticky last year. :lol:
18 gravity taps wanting to make a couple gallons of liquid gold in two boils.
Happy sugarin' everyone !

[CanterburyMaple]

I have finished tapping about 70 maples on my street. Pushing 50 degrees here in Gorham today, crazy! Hoping to run the RO on Saturday and do a big boil on Sunday. Sap is dripping, not sure I'd say it's "Flowing".

[Mvhomesteader]

Sap is dripping, not sure I'd say it's "Flowing".

Agreed - I tapped 37 out of 45 today and did pull off 2+ gallons of drippings. Some were dripping, some dry. I'll finish tomorrow provided I can buy a few more spiles. Weather looks off and on good through next Friday to get things started. The sugar content was low at 2% from probably 10 jugs, so I might set that aside till the flow kicks in and hopefully the sugar goes up. Last year's sugar content was lower than usual for me, but it is probably too early to make predictions press any panic buttons.

[Bugsmudbooksandsticks]

SAP-N-SCHOOL Another year
I tap the trees on my school's campus. I am a first grade teacher and making syrup is part of our yearly program. So many ways to learn! We lost access to handful of trees so we will have roughly 35 taps and 15 birch for fun. The students do all the work by hand so it is a busy time of year. We got 15 in yesterday- they were excited to see a bit of accumulation in the pails but we are more prepared this year than any other. Not your ordinary school playground photo.
[url]http://bugsmudbooksandsticks.com/sap-n-school/


22039

[Drop-In-The-Bucket Farm]

Tapping tomorrow, never mind that trees are frozen. Hoping for some Sunday rewards.




2019 7 taps < 1 gallon
2020 50 taps 11 gallons
2021 100 taps
2 x 4 WF Mason Evaporator
Sugar maples, with a few reds

[Mvhomesteader]

Finally got all the taps in today. I'm trying something different this year. I tapped 50 trees, some of which I haven't done to date but have wanted to try. I only need/can manage 43. Since l have a number of trees that seem to produce a sap with a lower sugar content than I would like to see (each season) I am going to use the top 43 trees and discard those with the lowest sugar. Next season I can tap the selected 43 trees and skip the low producers. Once the flow kicks in I've got to go from tree to tree with my refractometer and figure out who's who. For the losers, I plan on keeping the spile in but plugging the outlet hole so the tree gets to keep its sap and not waste it on the ground. I quickly tested a small cross section yesterday and the ssc ranged from 1.8 to 3.8. I'll see how this works out.

I did collect 14 gallons over two tapping days so 41 more and a boil is on. Weather looks good next week to get the ball rolling!

Good luck Drop-in-the-bucket and welcome to Mapletrader. I didn't see a lot of frozen trees here, but I'm quite a bit further south.

[Drop-In-The-Bucket Farm]

Most of my trees are deep forest and pine-shaded. Seems to take forever for enough thaw for sap to run, and yesterday was no exception. I'm guessing your trees are mostly in the sun?

2019 7 taps < 1 gallon
2020 50 taps 11 gallons
2021 100 taps
2 x 4 WF Mason Evaporator
Sugar maples, with a few reds

[Mvhomesteader]

Most of my trees are deep forest and pine-shaded. Seems to take forever for enough thaw for sap to run, and yesterday was no exception. I'm guessing your trees are mostly in the sun?

It's a combo, probably 50/50, though the "bigger" trees are in the sun along a rock wall /field or near the road. I recently removed a 20" and several smaller pines in one area to reduce shade on a group of 12" sugars. I'd love to get rid of all the pines, but there are way too many. Maybe I should get a sawmill I think this week's weather will open things up a bit, except for Tuesday which is wicked cold. Weird actually.

[CanterburyMaple]

I had my first boil yesterday in Gorham. Collected 27 gallons over the past few days, RO-ed about 20 gallons and pull 10 of water out, boiled the remaining 10 but had to call it quits before finishing to syrup to play with the kids. Froze about 3/4 gallon of the concentrate (~40% sugar) and will finish it some other time. It was exhilarating to process as much in one day as I did over many days last year! Man is the RO amazing...

I also learned some lessons:
1) Make sure the evaporator is fully built before the ground freezes. I had a 1 pan setup and expanded to a 2 pan. I had some leveling to do with a pick axe on frozen ground and that was 0 fun. Not the way I wanted to start the day, nor was it the way my back wanted to start the day.
2) It's more fun with other people! Had 4 guys over to watch the boil and collect sap. Good times. Alone by self is fun for 15 minutes for me.
3) I need to keep a timer on my RO; I almost overflowed the 5 gallon concentrate bucket! Or better yet, get fancy and get a switch installed for auto shut off..

[Mvhomesteader]

Glad to hear your first boil was successful Canterbury Maple. Your lessons learned are interesting. I also have learned that you should remove ash from the arch at the end of the season---don't leave it all year to turn into a frozen mass come next winter. I have to light a "pre-fire" to melt the ash so it can be removed before my first boil.

Speaking of which, I've collected 45 gallons since as of today, 30 over the past 2 days. Some trees are letting it loose, some still waking up. 10 more gallons and I will boil, so likely this weekend. No sap tomorrow I'm sure, but maybe Wednesday. The weather is odd-several days next week are 48 with 35 at night. We go from blistering co!d to balmy warm. The sap will sure run though. I bet that will be a stretch of all day and night.

[Mvhomesteader]

First boil today to clean out the 48 gallons accumulated over the past weekish, and to get a clean slate as this upcoming week looks promising.

I boiled 48.5 gallons and got a gallon, pint, and half pint, for a ssc of 2.5%. That is pretty close to last years start, though slightly less. If I remember right the first boil last year was 2.6%. I'll be testing individual trees this week and perhaps pull "under performers" (those <2%) so they don't weight the average down.

One little experiment I tried was testing the ssc of sap ice. I had a few buckets where there was quite a frozen piece-2 gallons worth of ice chunks in total. Using the refractometer the ssc of the melted ice was 0.3. Not worth the time to boil it down so I chucked it. With that in mind, I will in the future chuck ice rather than melt it down to boil. I've got plenty of wood to burn, but time can be at a premium.

With what I hope to see this week for a run, I expect to be boiling again perhaps Friday and Sunday. Cross your fingers.

[Drop-In-The-Bucket Farm]

Boiled 40 gallons yesterday that had been collected before the big wind on 03-02. Had to melt buckets inside to get the ice out. Yield was less than a gallon of syrup, so the sugar content was low. Hoping for better results this week, but still waiting for a cycle of good temperatures.


2019 7 taps < 1 gallon
2020 50 taps 11 gallons
2021 100 taps
2 x 4 WF Mason Evaporator
Sugar maples, with a few reds

[Tuckeradams2012]

Boiled down 65 gallons of sap this weekend for my first time ever boil...was quite nervous that it wouldn't go as expected, and surprisingly went off without a hitch.

Here are my lessons learned for the week:

Negatives
1. Sap was completely frozen from last week so had to add in chunks at a time, killed the boil in the 3rd divider on my 2x4 but not the others.
2. Back part of my pan did not boil hard, I chalk it up to adding the ice sap, and it just couldn't get hot enough to boil. However, I may look to adding a few bricks near the back of the pan, to force it up a couple of more inches.
3. I had pretty inconsistent firings, not like I should, It would get low, and then i would fully reload it. Need to reload it better.
4. I also noticed that my boil went to next to zero without using the blower, although it ate wood like no ones business. I chalk this up to it being starved of oxygen and a short stovepipe.
5. My arch door (a barrel stove kit) will need to be insulated, it was so ridiculously hot I could feel the heat easily from 5 feet away, must be losing a lot of heat.

Positives
1. Even with frozen sap I maintained a 12 gph evaporation rate easily, I didn't push her all that hard and constantly was boiling at 3 inches rather than 2.
2. Evaporator help up well, uninsulated back section behind the pan got hot, but I could for a quick second put my hand on the side of the firebox
3. Slight gradient was built, although I still have many gallons of sap before I am able to draw off.
4. The sap is going to come in droves this week as I track the weather. Will have to go up Mid-Week for a boil session late into the night after work.

May you sap lines be filled and your evaporation rate high,

-T

[Mvhomesteader]

Boiled down 65 gallons of sap this weekend for my first time ever boil...was quite nervous that it wouldn't go as expected, and surprisingly went off without a hitch.

How much syrup did you get? I comparing ssc's in different areas.

[Tuckeradams2012]

How much syrup did you get? I comparing ssc's in different areas.

I have a 2x4 divided pan, so only sweetening the pan for now, I was not able to draw off with only that much sap.

[newmaplah]

Haven't boiled yet, but got 85 taps in over the weekend. Looking forward to a boil soon. 12 volt adapter got delivered today and I am trying out a Shurflo on a 3/16 line with 21 taps on it. I was able to get it all hooked up after I got home from work. Was cool to see the sap pumping through it tonight, although by the time I got done I had to use a flashlight to see it. Curious to see how it works out.

[eustis22]

Tucker are you running any tubing on the Greenwood Rd? I see a main and a tank close to the spring.

[Tuckeradams2012]

Tucker are you running any tubing on the Greenwood Rd? I see a main and a tank close to the spring.

I'm not that far up, if you are talking about the spring by Bryant Pond on the way to Bethel. I do however have a 3/16 line right next to the Jehovah's Witness Church on the ROW we own, right at the start of the Greenwood Rd as it breaks off from 118. Can easily be seen from the road.

[eustis22]

Ok,,,theres a guy across from Mud (or Hicks, I dunno) who boils and that might be his. I will look for your lines next time I am up (gf lives by Twitchell).

[Tuckeradams2012]

Ok,,,theres a guy across from Mud (or Hicks, I dunno) who boils and that might be his. I will look for your lines next time I am up (gf lives by Twitchell).

Wicked cool! I wish they would pave the road better, down by Twitchell it isn't exactly the friendliest of roads, feel like I need a new alignment each time!

[eustis22]

There is also a gentlemen,2-3 houses north of Round The Pond Rd who has a backyard set up.

[CanterburyMaple]

How much syrup did you get? I comparing ssc's in different areas.

I'm in Gorham, and I've collected about 100 gallons of sap over the past 2 weeks, and pretty consistently between 1.5% and 1.8%, averaging 1.65% brix. I've got a mix of "open air" maples and forest maples, and they're all reds. I've been dumping ice the past few days and that's been boosting my sap to 3%+ which is great and brings my average "collected" to just over 2% brix (I'm keeping a spreadsheet tally because I love data!).

It's a growth step for me to "dump sap" in the form of ice as I used to want every drop, but I know (from other posts here) that the ice has very little sugar in it (<0.5%).

[western mainer]

And if you take the Rowe Hill road up at the head of Twitchell Pond there's a guy with 100 taps on buckets and then I have 700 off the Rowe Hill on to the Dunham Road
Brian

[Mvhomesteader]

The small details of maple are part of what makes this interesting. I tapped a few more trees this season than normal (50 up from 42), some for experimenting, and I have been curious who has the best ssc. I spent the past two afternoons testing each tree. The highest I noted was 3.5 (only two trees 3 and over) and the lowest was 2. Each days average over 44 trees done was 2.5 % which is what I noted out of last weekends boil. I'm happy with that though I looked back a few years ago and was having boils at over 3%. Each year since then had been less than that, though steady at 2.5 or so.

A few trees haven't started yet, so I'll keep all 50 on line for the present and reduce off the low end as the flow decreases later.

Thanks Canterbury Maple for the numbers. Interesting.....I did the spreadsheet as well a few years back. Once I added more trees it got too cumbersome to keep up! I was recording daily output, etc.-a lot of data.

50 gallons collected over the past 3 days so looks like boiling this weekend!

[woodsy]

1st boil here Sunday , hoping for a gallon of syrup if sap will flow today and tomorrow.
It has been nice being back on the tapline and hanging out at the sugar shack. Our pet Chipmunks are entertaining.

[highlandcattle]

Ron did good for a couple days. His 3 trees did well for a bit. Now stopped. Snow gone from front yard. Real high winds last night. He's made 2 qts. So far. It'23 right now. Winds dying down. Expected to be around 40 later. He was pretty upset about having to wait it out...Will see what today will be....

[maineboiler]

Definitely a slow start. I’ve collected about 200 gallons so far, will be boiling today. Well behind last year. Last night was certainly cold enough but the winds today may cut down on any sap run. Hopefully the trees will wake up Tues-Wed

[Mvhomesteader]

1st boil here Sunday , hoping for a gallon of syrup if sap will flow today and tomorrow.
It has been nice being back on the tapline and hanging out at the sugar shack. Our pet Chipmunks are entertaining.

Good luck with your boil Woodsy. I'm thinking of going for a boil Sunday as well if it's not too windy. The flow was much improved today with 21 gallons. I expect as much tomorrow, again if it's not too windy.

Along the lines of chipmunks, we feed as many gray and red squirrels as birds. Seriously, I'm a sucker for the antics. We have a regular crew at the feeder and back steps daily. There was a gray squirrel this morning who spent 15 minutes practicing his kung fu moves on a hemlock branch. That poor branch. They go crazy in the spring-mating moves I guess. I think a red squirrel mom has set up a next in my wood pile in the shed so hopefully she moves out before I need the wood.

[woodsy]

Thanks, heading down right after breakfast. Came up with 40 gallons this week, might
get another 10 by this afternoon so should be close to a gal of syrup.
I saw you mention somewhere that you don't filter your finished product and I've been thinking
along the same lines here but let the nitre settle out for a few weeks then repackage at 180* without the nitre .
Seems I read that approach on here somewhere. That final filtering has always been a royal pain.
On critters, I watched a red squirrel chewing on a sugar maple tree branch recently, knows how to get a sweet drink and maybe even
the difference between a red and sugar maple..

[Mvhomesteader]

My wife and I gave up the final final filtering last year. We filter the boiled down sap/syrup coming off the pans through a fabric cone "pre-filter" from the hardware store. This gets out ash, small crud, etc before final finishing in the kitchen stove. We're only talking less than 2 gallons. Once in the canning jar after finishing to 220 we just let the nitre settle out on its own and eat it with the rest of the syrup. Slightly gritty but tastes good. And we don't loose any to the filter, especially late in the year when the filter clogs easily. Saves loads of time. No effect on flavor of the syrup.

Second boil today produced a gallon, quart and better part of pint for a ssc of 2.4+%. The sap is coming on better now. I've got 60 gallons in the shed so it won't freeze solid over the next couple of days, then I'll return it to the cold storage snow bank till the next weekend boil.

I think the only thing red squirrels around here know the taste of is black oil sunflower seed.

[Tuckeradams2012]

Didn't collect as much as I thought we would this week. Processed a total of about 125 gallons so far and have drawn off a gallon. Pulling 18" of vaccum off the 3/16 line in one area and it still isn't producing all that well. Good news is the evaporator absolutely tears when I stoke it properly. Easily processing 15 gallons an hour on the 2x4. Finally insulated the door and now I don't have any trouble standing next to it. Looks like a this is going to be a hot week at the end in Norway but dipping down enough at night. Week after does not look promising at all. Hopefully the little bit of snowpack that we have can keep our trees from budding out.

Anyone else have season predictions here in Maine?

[Drop-In-The-Bucket Farm]

Cooked off 91 gallons Saturday for 8+ quarts, all dark amber. Last year's syrup was much lighter, not sure why. Wonder if it's related to last summer's drought and trees under stress, higher mineral content etc?


2019 7 taps < 1 gallon
2020 50 taps 11 gallons
2021 100 taps
2 x 4 WF Mason Evaporator
Sugar maples, with a few reds

[woodsy]

And here we got 40 gals sap reduced to 2 gallons and its now frozen solid in the finishing pot.
Almost zero here this morning. 1st boil went good but used too much boiling soda.

[eustis22]

How can there be "too much" boiling soda? Do you also make "too much" syrup?

[CanterburyMaple]

I've done 3 small boils, producing about 3 pints, 4 pints, and 1 gallon respectively over the past 3 weekends. So just about 2 gallons of syrup from 80+ gallons of sap but not sure exactly as I chucked a lot of ice to save space in my storage barrel. My sap is coming in at 1.5-1.6% pretty consistently. Lower in the woods, higher out on the street in Gorham village. I gotta say I was freaking out about sap spoiling last week and was shoveling snow around my storage barrel like a mad man. No problem today as everything is frozen solid. Looking forward to 6 straight days of flow as we head into Maple Sunday here in Maine!

[Mvhomesteader]

Does anyone have any concerns about the 50 degree weather next week? I saw five straight days of 50's and above freezing at night. Though my sapping experience is limited, my gut tells me that combination means a loss of flow and, dare I think of it, budding. Last April when it turned warm the first of the month was the end for me. My last boil was 4/4 and it was my 9th or 10th---so far this year I've done 2 with 70 gallons currently on ice. Where's the flow?

I would love to hear from those with more experience that this is nothing and the flow will be unaffected. I encourage you to tell me not to sweat it.

As a hedge against a quick season I am placing some more taps in a group of big sugars along the road that I haven't tried yet. I've got plenty of storage capacity and the next 5-6 days look good. Get it while I can!

[West Sumner Sugar]

Im hoping we can at least dip below freezing next week to preserve the season a little longer. I too poked in 37 more taps today hoping to stock up while I can.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Our colder woods have still not let loose yet. I suspect they will today or tomorrow. We still have a foot or more of snow in the woods but that will be gone by Sunday if it gets as warm as they are predicting. This time of year I think we'll survive a few 50 degree days but it will shut down until we get a freeze at some point. I have a feeling the zapbac spouts will get put to the test! Also- the only time I have seen it shut off completely part way thru the season was the year we had 3- 80 degree days in a row in March, 2011 maybe.

[Tuckeradams2012]

Our colder woods have still not let loose yet. I suspect they will today or tomorrow. We still have a foot or more of snow in the woods but that will be gone by Sunday if it gets as warm as they are predicting. This time of year I think we'll survive a few 50 degree days but it will shut down until we get a freeze at some point. I have a feeling the zapbac spouts will get put to the test! Also- the only time I have seen it shut off completely part way thru the season was the year we had 3- 80 degree days in a row in March, 2011 maybe.

Thanks Backwoods, that's good to hear about your previous seasons, I am also hoping that the snowpack in my tight woods holds me through for a couple of those 50 degree days. I am also unsure how quickly buds would come out beforehand. It has certainly been a weird year weather wise!

[boxygen]

Hi Everyone, I have about 45 taps out. Sugar maples seem to be running here in southern Maine but my Red Maples have been almost dry so far. Getting a little discouraged. Sugar content has been high so far though. Wondering if everyone else's red maples are running? Made just over 2 gallons of syrup last weekend.

[CanterburyMaple]

I am worried about the reds budding out next week, but it’s in God’s hands! Come what may...

My reds have been flowing Ok, maybe 1-4 gallons per tap depending on the tree so far at 1.6% sugar. Hoping for an additional 5 gallons from each by end of the weekend! I tapped 2 of my friends sugars and they have given 12 gallons each! Crazy... only 1 tap in each but they’re 18 inch trees out in the open. I can’t believe how much they’ve flowed so far. Sugar content at 3%+ for them.

[bagpiper]

I'm in Berwick and have a woodlot with only red maple. I have about 100 taps on vacuum and I have about 40 buckets out. Surprisingly, very little flow today. It's been a very late and weird season so far. I've only pulled a total of about 250 gals. out of the woods. We'll see what the next few weeks brings.

[woodsy]

Sap run good in south central maine today, even some reds giving up a gallon.

[Mvhomesteader]

Thanks for all the thoughts on the weather vs sap production. I guess we'll all see how it pans out. If I could find more taps I think I'd drop more in, but they are sold out at the hardware stores. Note to self for next season-have extra taps and tube on-hand.

I did tap 8 big sugar maples with 12 taps today--some running fairly well, others not quite active yet. My other trees were flowing pretty well with 31 gallons gathered. They were still running at 5 so I'll have to empty in the morning to allow for accumulation tomorrow. I'll bet tomorrow's take will be 40 or more. My original game plan was to eliminate those trees with low sugar sap and only collect from 42. That p!an changed and I'm keeping all I can get. Glad I over tapped early.

The name of the game for me will be collect/store/boil for the next week and hope the buds stay tight. I can't boil til Saturday, and then I've got to get on a schedule to get all this sap processed before it gets too warm to preserve it well. Luckily my snow bank storage is in the shade.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Saps running now folks. Dumping..... Shurflos will be on all night. Boiling tomorrow afternoon. Wouldn’t be surprised to over 300 gallons of sap. Cold woods started running for first time today.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Collected 310 gallons around 1 today. Still running pretty good. Sap was crystal clear and 1.9%. Boiling!

[Mvhomesteader]

Happy boiling mainebackwoodssyrup! I "heard" somewhere that the original AC/DC title was "For Those About to Boil, We Salute You."

The flow is on here as well and it best stay that way for a few days. I pulled in 52 gallons off 62 taps, some still not flowing yet. Quite a bit came overnight. The 12 taps I dropped in yesterday afternoon provided 15 gallons in 24 hours. At last count I have 145 gallons ready to start boiling Saturday. To make my 10 boil goal I need 300 gallons more before everything shuts down. I'm counting on Saturday thru Tuesday to be decent, so that's 76 gallons a day. Tall order. I might make it if flow keeps up for a few more days after Tuesday, even at a reduced pace. I bet I'll get 9 anyway.

[CanterburyMaple]

Collected 310 gallons around 1 today. Still running pretty good. Sap was crystal clear and 1.9%. Boiling!

Congrats, Mainebackswoodssyrup! Thanks for the update. I'm still seeing clear sap in Gorham from my Reds as well, huzzah. Over the past 2 days, I'm estimating between 125 to 150 gallons have flown from the 70 taps I have out in my neighborhood. Yesterday mid-morning (and hopefully today around lunch) I was chucking floating ice out of my buckets so I have a chance of processing what's there and everything that's coming over the next 4 days. May your boil be strong this weekend my friends!

[woodsy]

Snow is going away fast here and a couple days in the 60s will probably shut down my sap hauler.
Close to capacity on another boil now so probably wrap things up by beginning of the week.
Will have made plenty of syrup for two till next time.
We didn't get a lot of snow last winter so probably be the shortest season in memory for me.
Boil on !

[maple flats]

I am worried about the reds budding out next week, but it’s in God’s hands! Come what may...

My reds have been flowing Ok, maybe 1-4 gallons per tap depending on the tree so far at 1.6% sugar. Hoping for an additional 5 gallons from each by end of the weekend! I tapped 2 of my friends sugars and they have given 12 gallons each! Crazy... only 1 tap in each but they’re 18 inch trees out in the open. I can’t believe how much they’ve flowed so far. Sugar content at 3%+ for them.
Don't worry about the reds, they will stop giving sap before the sap turns buddy. Reds often bud 7-20 days before the sugars. Sugar (or rock) maples will still give sap after it turns bad (buddy). Early season buds on sugar maples come to a sharp point, as they near opening the points will begin to open very slightly at the tip, as soon as color appears, the sap can turn buddy. When you think it may be buddy, keep that sap separate, boil some in a pan, if it's buddy, it will smell like you are boiling dirty socks. If that happens, toss the sap.

[maineboiler]

Huge day for sap on Thursday 3/18. 200 gallons collected and then I ran out of space with my collection tanks. Should be good for the weekend but may be a short season. Warming up next week

[highlandcattle]

Great day here. 5:30 p.m. and 52 degrees. Ron has boiled twice today. Buckets will be full by moring. Looks like only a couple of cold enough nights. Will see what happens. Snow all gone on sputh facing lawn. Backyard has some large patches. Had to go to Illion today. High area still in snow. Lower elevations are bare. Looks like a short quick season

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Sap ran decent yesterday but took a while to get going. Slight freeze last night and we’ll be boiling today. Hoping for some freezes at night this week to keep it going. I still say if it ever cools back down the sap will continue after this week. But ****, 6-7 days of above 50, nearing 60 is rough so we’ll see. Hopefully it’s a little cooler here. Still haven’t got the gusher yet and still around a foot of snow in the woods that will be gone in a couple days. Good luck, keep boiling and don’t let that sap sit around in these temps. Good news our sugar content is staying around 2% and we are making a very light medium, close to golden when filtered.

[Mvhomesteader]

When it flows, it flows. I'm nearly out of storage capacity with 40 gallons out of around 275 left. At last count I've got sap stored for four more boils plus, and I expect enough will come in the next few days to make that six. With the three already done that would give me nine this season. Maybe if I'm lucky a tenth?

We had our third boil Saturday as planned and got though 55 gallons. The sugar was slightly lower than #2 at 2.34%. It looks like I'll have to boil the next four days to make sure nothing spoils in the warm weather. At least everything is in a snowbank.

Busy week!

[CanterburyMaple]

I am wishing I had more than my 55 gallon barrel... I'm a bit overrun right now. 15 gallons of concentrate and 55 gallons of sap and more in buckets that I need to get out of the sun. But we had a nice little neighborhood "sugar shack" gathering yesterday and I walked everyone through tap to sap to syrup and gave out a gallon and a half of syrup. I did little 2 oz glass bottles as well as some 8 oz and 32 oz jugs. Seemed like the spring gathering people needed after the winter/pandemic as everyone lingered well past "closing Time". Some neighborhood kids brought $1 and gave me my first revenue! Now what equipment will I put it toward for next year...

Good luck to everyone processing the next few days!

[eustis22]

"Now what equipment will I put it toward for next year..."

275 gallon Tote.

This has been another in Simple Answers to Simple Questions.

[woodsy]

Finished off Sunday's boil today. Not sure exactly how many gallons of sap were boiled but ended up
with 1 3/4 gallons of liquid gold. Had a rolling boil at 10 AM and stopped stoking the fire hard about 5PM.
Couple hours later had a little over 3 gallons in the finishing pots. All time record 1 day boil for me.
Sap was spitting from the trees yesterday. Thats it for me , back aches but pulled out and cleaned up till next spring.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Boiled 240 on Sunday. Sap ran today but not great. Need a good and prolonged low 20’s freeze. Snow still holding in the woods which I’m hoping gets us through this crap week. We will see what happens next week. Still making a light amber.

[West Sumner Sugar]

We cooked about 800 gallons of sap this weekend. Just about 30 gallons of syrup completed which is about half way to a good season for us. If we can survive this week, next week is looking good.

[Tuckeradams2012]

In Norway I've been lucky to post big sap numbers, the woods I think are still too cold with snow still 6-12 inches in most places and they all sit in a low valley by the lake. I have been pulling 20" of vacuum on 3/16 on one of my lines, 10" on the other and 12" on the last one. I think next year for my sanity I am going to invest in a shurflo connected to a 275 tote, I can't keep dealing with how I am collecting now in 55 gallon drums, might have been faster as buckets!

I have pulled off 5.5 gallons so far, most however off of sap from a new friend that is ending his season. He was generous enough to give me 115 last weekend and I collected on his buckets for another 110 gallons last night. I am having an issue with the syrup being in the really dark range, but I still haven't filtered it, only stuck it in the fridge and I think I've figured out that I need to run my sap through a t-shirt or strainer before hand to get out larger particulates. Also need to not wait a week to boil, even though I have it stuck in my 35 degree basement or covered in snow. I am going to empty my sweetened pans tomorrow, filter everything through and put it back in. the pan itself is pretty coated on the bottom with a combination of sugar sand, ash and the occasional leaf bit.

Boiling tomorrow! Hope I can come up with some more strong numbers!

[eustis22]

clen your pan before your next boil

drain it, water + vinegar above the boil lines, boil it, while still hot use a nonscratch sponge to clean the niter off, then drain cold and rinse really well.

[Tuckeradams2012]

Thanks eustis22, thats a good idea on top of draining it and boiling in vinegar, I do have some rough spots of burnt material because I sometimes get too crazy and it boils so hard it jumps out of the pan!

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Cooked off 140 gallons at 1.8% today and made a few gallons. Went from a light medium to darker medium by the last draw. Sap was a little cloudy, no surprise with the heat. Our cold woods really let loose today. 120 taps, collected 40 gallons and had 50 gallons back in the tote in only 5 hours. Should run all night, Shurflo vacuum at 13”. Going to boil again tomorrow then decide what to do with no freeze in sight. Almost hoping it just stops so I don’t have to dump anything. I’m thinking the sweet in the pans will be OK. May bring it to a boil Saturday and chase with some water if needed. Looks cool again after Saturday, fingers crossed!

[Mvhomesteader]

It looks like everyone experiencing the flow surge early this week. Same here, though it's been declining steadily each day. Saturday and Sunday were on the order of 70 gallons each, 50 yesterday, and 30 today. The sap still looks good so I'm stashing like crazy. I started boiling Monday (55 gallons), today (55) and will boil tomorrow as well (another 55). That will leave me with roughly 160 gallons left to do starting Saturday. At this point I will be able to get 9 boils in. If the flow comes back next week, perhaps I'll squeeze in a tenth. Time will tell. My trees are not generally in the woods, and most of the snow is gone so I have no cooling help there.

The sugar content of today's batch was up slightly over yesterday's (2.51% vs 2.34%).

Congratulations Woodsy on your mega boil. That is a good haul. Enjoy it in the off-season and we'll see you next season because you'll need to duplicate the feat.

[woodsy]

[QUOTE=Mvhomesteader;394776]. The sap still looks good so I'm stashing like crazy. I started boiling Monday (55 gallons), today (55) and will boil tomorrow as well (another 55). That will leave me with roughly 160 gallons left to do starting Saturday. At this point I will be able to get 9 boils in.
QUOTE]

You considering one of those shiny and fancy hobby evaporators yet ? Would be nice to knock out 100 gals sap in an easy day.
I know my setup is due for a overhaul after 3 yrs with the concrete blocks all cracked barely holding together and Firebrick is rather spendy for this frugal woodsman.

I'm thinking my next setup will be made of rocks mortared together on a better concrete footing. Have plenty of rock wall around to pick stones from.
Design it more like a conventional arch with room for another pan making it a 4 x 2. Always looking to go bigger and be more efficient, lol.
I see more Maple trees coming of age all the time although mostly those fast growing Reds but there are dozens of them
Happy sugarin', boil on !

[Mvhomesteader]

You considering one of those shiny and fancy hobby evaporators yet ? Would be nice to knock out 100 gals sap in an easy day.
I know my setup is due for a overhaul after 3 yrs with the concrete blocks all cracked barely holding together

Not yet, though I will never say never. I'm frugal at heart, so keeping things on the less expensive side is part of the challenge, as long as the set up functions well. For the cost of an added steam pan I could expand to four pans and increase my efficiency -I might consider that for next year --my bricks also need some work. I put my concrete blocks on a concrete paver pad. That has worked super and only cost $2 per paver.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Boiled off 100 gallons last night. Sap was at 1.6% and the grade went to the lighter end of dark. Trees are all dried up now. No signs of buds around here and frost now coming out of the ground with the snow all gone. If the trees hold tight until Sunday, forecast for next week looks OK. Should be able to recharge and continue boiling I hope. We're at half crop and have not yet had the gusher we usually get but this is an unusual year. Will be bottling Saturday and am considering boiling out the flue pan this weekend to rinse it out and reset for next week.

[Tuckeradams2012]

Boiled off about 100 gallons yesterday, and stashed another 100 for boiling on Saturday. Thanks to eustis22 for the tip of draining the pan, using vinegar & water and then putting it back in. Did only a little scrubbing with the non abrasive side of a sponge and that worked well. That seemed to help with the color of the syrup, as I am guessing that the longer holding time compared to others contributes to a little bit darker syrup. I think the season is coming to an end likely on Easter. The weather likely won't cooperate after that in Norway as most of the snow is finally gone.

Still, after getting some donated sap, I am at 11.5 gallons and likely will get to 15 by seasons end, if not closer to 20. Right around where I wanted to, but only thankfully to the donation.

[Mvhomesteader]

We're at half crop and have not yet had the gusher we usually get but this is an unusual year. Will be bottling Saturday and am considering boiling out the flue pan this weekend to rinse it out and reset for next week.

I agree that the flow volume is down to date. I've got 62 taps when I normally do 42 and yet at this point I'll be 2 gallons short of my usual 13 by the time I finish boiling all that is stored. Assuming of course that the trees don't rebound next week (crossing fingers........My wife says go for it if they do.)

So mainebackwoodssyrup -- tell me why you think this year is unusual. This past week certainly is unseasonable temperature wise. Lack of snowfall? Temperature swings?

I got a whopping 8 gallons today. Still pretty clear though.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

I would say usual is some temperature swings but to have this many nights in March without a freeze and NO SNOW is exceptionally unusual. We had a pretty average fall in regards to rain before it froze but I also wonder if the dry summer affected the trees. Certainly wasn’t the most impressive year for foliage. Almost like a perfect storm of things so far. I hope it turns around next week. I talked to 2 friends today that are making syrup in Byron and Rangeley. 1 doing ok and the other 1 not. Neither have made any amber, all dark and said the sap so far had looked more like late season than early season right from the start. These are guys that make nothing but golden and amber usually. The conversation went from me asking about buying syrup to them asking what we wanted for our 14 gallons of amber :lol: Very strange, just weather related mostly which is something we can’t control. It also doesn’t help that the last few seasons were very good so it’s easy to get frustrated. Keep boiling, looks like at least a couple freezes next week.

[Mvhomesteader]

Thanks! That makes sense to me. I agree that the past few years have been good, and I haven't been doing this long enough to have a basis for what might be "poor". After Wednesday next week the temperatures look good, but we've got to get past the two 50+ degree days of early week.I

Boiling tomorrow and probably Tuesday/Wednesday to move my stored sap along. Last boils of the season? We'll see.......

[Mvhomesteader]

Seventh boil today yielded 1.25+ gallons off 57 for 2.34% ssc. This sap was gathered last weekend. Two more to go with current stock.

On an optimistic note I collected 5 gallons today from a variety of trees. I would like to think that if they are still running a little now, when we get the right temperatures this week they will run more. Perhaps wishful thinking but I suppose there might be some logic as well. Tuesday and Friday to Sunday are the magic days.😀

[Drop-In-The-Bucket Farm]

Quite a good run of sap for six days beginning 03-19, but since then, a bust. Will trees recharge this week, when temps return to normal? If not, then I guess it's curtains on this sugaring season. Ahead of last year on syrup, but only because I doubled the number of taps. Will end up with about 13 gallons, amber.

2019 7 taps < 1 gallon
2020 50 taps 11 gallons
2021 100 taps
2 x 4 WF Mason Evaporator
Sugar maples, with a few reds

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

We just bottled 11.5 gallons of amber today from our early runs. Have 5 gallons of dark still to do. We boiled out the pans not being sure when we’ll get sap again. We are ready to go if the trees can recharge.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

I almost can’t believe my eyes but the thermometer has dropped below 32 degrees. Guess we’ll see what the trees have left tomorrow. End of the week looks decent too.

[West Sumner Sugar]

I almost can’t believe my eyes but the thermometer has dropped below 32 degrees. Guess we’ll see what the trees have left tomorrow. End of the week looks decent too.

Hoping for another good run or two. We are very close to a normal season, sitting at 39 gallons bottled right now. But a little more is always nice.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Hoping for another good run or two. We are very close to a normal season, sitting at 39 gallons bottled right now. But a little more is always nice.

Glad to hear it west sumner. We’ve had a dismal year so far, 1/2 crop to date. Our shurflos are working but not to max potential. We have some work to do there and it’s figuring out the pumps. Woods are tight.

[West Sumner Sugar]

Glad to hear it west sumner. We’ve had a dismal year so far, 1/2 crop to date. Our shurflos are working but not to max potential. We have some work to do there and it’s figuring out the pumps. Woods are tight.

I feel your pain. Being on vacuum certainly adds another level of "babysitting" to this hobby. We dont get up to Sumner during the week so we are 100% dependent on nothing going wrong during the week. I check my system here in Lewiston daily when its running and it seems like once a week there is something to fix. We had a line what we could not pull any sap through. Turns out when we put the line over the hose barb on the pump manifold a tiny sliver of plastic shaved off and was blocking the hole. Little things like this can really pull down your yield.

[Mvhomesteader]

Quite a good run of sap for six days beginning 03-19, but since then, a bust. Will trees recharge this week, when temps return to normal? If not, then I guess it's curtains on this sugaring season. Ahead of last year on syrup, but only because I doubled the number of taps.

I hope your buckets overflowed today, because I know mine sure did, or at least a few overflowed and many were near full. My second best day total at 47 gallons, and not all the 62 taps were flowing. I tested the ssc and 2% seemed to be the average. Quite clear for late season sap.

My eighth boil total netted gallon, quart and half pint. I'm on again tomorrow to catch up on old sap. Tomorrow's boil will be probably dark because the sap is less than stellar coming in during the warm spell. But that's OK, it tastes just as good. I'm sure when I get up tomorrow the buckets will need to be emptied and I should have more than I need for a tenth boil, which was my goal a week and a half ago. A tenth boil will put me at 12 1/2 gallons, so just shy of my 13+ gallon goal. Given the strangeness of the season, I won't comp!ain. Maybe this weekend will allow for an 11th.

Glad I over tapped. The volume flow just isn't there this year. Good luck to all who are still hanging on.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

I feel your pain. Being on vacuum certainly adds another level of "babysitting" to this hobby. We dont get up to Sumner during the week so we are 100% dependent on nothing going wrong during the week. I check my system here in Lewiston daily when its running and it seems like once a week there is something to fix. We had a line what we could not pull any sap through. Turns out when we put the line over the hose barb on the pump manifold a tiny sliver of plastic shaved off and was blocking the hole. Little things like this can really pull down your yield.

I think I figured it out partly today. Sap started running hard this afternoon and vac was at 15", most we have seen yet. I believe we need a recirc line to help feed the 4048 pumps. Our best woods had 125 gallons so far on 140 taps today at 5:30 and was still running. Going to keep pumping tonight, collect tomorrow and boil. You may have some tree damage, I had to cut up two this morning after yesterday's winds. Downed trees pulled out 2 taps that I cut off and plugged before going to work. Good thing because that would have been the difference between 0 vac and the 15" we have!

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Boiling off 260 gallons of 1.5% sap right now. Given the 1 night freeze after being dry for nearly a week, I’m happy with that. Looks like a couple good freezes coming up and should make syrup through the weekend. Sucks starting over in the pans again today, we have never had to do that. Good luck to everyone, the end is in sight.

[maineboiler]

Had a decent run yesterday, 80 gallons of sap at 2.5 %. Today was 70. Boiling tonight and we hope to have a good run this weekend. Pepper run?

[highlandcattle]

Ron pulled the buckets. Weather has been so strange. Now a cold wind with high winds. Tonightvsnow. Trees budding. Ended with 8 pints of an amber. 9 taps. Gave him something to do. Hope my flowers make it through the storm. Have a momma squirel in the one maple tree. She had her babies there last year after the starlings fledged. I leave her food at the base of the tree so she doesn't have to go far. Cheap entertainment for us, the cats and dog. Ron's sap stayed at 2%. Everything cleaned up and put away.

[Mvhomesteader]

Ron pulled the buckets. Weather has been so strange. Now a cold wind with high winds. Tonightvsnow. Trees budding. Ended with 8 pints of an amber. 9 taps. Gave him something to do. Hope my flowers make it through the storm. Have a momma squirel in the one maple tree. She had her babies there last year after the starlings fledged. I leave her food at the base of the tree so she doesn't have to go far. Cheap entertainment for us, the cats and dog. Ron's sap stayed at 2%. Everything cleaned up and put away.

I agree the squirrels are worth the seed cost. We have red ones with a nest in our shed and equipment lean-to, as well as myriad grays, reds, and chipmunks at the bird feeder. Endless entertainment.

I boiled my "warm weather" sap today and got a gallon of # 6 fuel oil, maple flavored. I've never done a batch so dark, but it tastes great. The ssc was 1.93%.

This small cold spell has given up 80+ gallons for boils #10 and into #11. Really clear too. I have no doubt that this weekend will pump it again so likely there will be boils 12 and 13? I guess I'll expect my goal of 13 gallons will be in reach. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday I expect a small flood. Perhaps it's time to take the sap with the best ssc.

[Mvhomesteader]

The daytime temperature today held the flow back till afternoon. The trees finally released a little and I managed 20 gallons of at least 2%. The reason I know it was a 2% is that I tested every tap before collecting. Those less than 2% were dumped and pulled. In the end I removed 23 taps leaving 39 still producing 2% or more. I even found one near 3, though not one of my heavier producers.

My plan is to collect through Sunday. I have 120 gallons ready to boil starting Saturday, and finishing Sunday. In the meantime I'd like to collect another 55 or 60 for one final hurrah perhaps Tuesday. That would make 12 boils of over 600 gallons and probably over 14 gallons of syrup. I'll tally when its over. An overall descent season but I had to work for it with 50% more taps

Anyone else still in the game? It seems quiet in mapleland.

[abbott]

The daytime temperature today held the flow back till afternoon. The trees finally released a little and I managed 20 gallons of at least 2%. The reason I know it was a 2% is that I tested every tap before collecting. Those less than 2% were dumped and pulled. In the end I removed 23 taps leaving 39 still producing 2% or more. I even found one near 3, though not one of my heavier producers.

My plan is to collect through Sunday. I have 120 gallons ready to boil starting Saturday, and finishing Sunday. In the meantime I'd like to collect another 55 or 60 for one final hurrah perhaps Tuesday. That would make 12 boils of over 600 gallons and probably over 14 gallons of syrup. I'll tally when its over. An overall descent season but I had to work for it with 50% more taps

Anyone else still in the game? It seems quiet in mapleland.

Well I've been below 2% for quite some time now. But I tested the sap from the tree that my kids tapped. 5.6%. They've been drinking it as it comes. As far as the season goes... I was going to call it quits yesterday - I've been seeing signs of buds swelling and thought I could smell the buddiness while boiling. But then I decided I might as well see what I get after some cold nights. Not much sap today and it was awfully cloudy, so I dumped it. Either tomorrow will be better or the season is over for me!

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

We’re still in the game with these temps. It should run this weekend. We’ve never made buddy syrup and I don’t think we’re there yet. Our sugar maples are still tight and the reds just swelling a little. 17 degrees this morning and a high of 32 so no sap today.

How was your season Abbott?

[Drop-In-The-Bucket Farm]

I'll call it a good season, strange though it was. Quit on April 1, not because trees weren't still running clear and sweet at 2.6%, but because of fatigue with all-day boils. 15 gallons of mostly amber this year. Looking forward to more volunteers next year, post-pandemic! Thanks to everyone for all the good info and updates, which was very helpful to me as a relative novice.

2019 7 taps < 1 gallon
2020 50 taps 11 gallons
2021 100 taps 15 gallons
2 x 4 WF Mason Evaporator
Sugar maples, with a few reds

[abbott]

We’re still in the game with these temps. It should run this weekend. We’ve never made buddy syrup and I don’t think we’re there yet. Our sugar maples are still tight and the reds just swelling a little. 17 degrees this morning and a high of 32 so no sap today.

How was your season Abbott?

Looks like the worst since 2012. I'm at about .35 gallons syrup per tap, with the sugar content being my worst ever. If I can get a few more days, there is an outside chance of getting to .4 gallons/tap, which I would consider the minimum target production. But we've had a nice stretch of good seasons, so I suppose we were due for an off year.

[Mvhomesteader]

I'll call it a good season, strange though it was. Quit on April 1, not because trees weren't still running clear and sweet at 2.6%, but because of fatigue with all-day boils. 15 gallons of mostly amber this year. Looking forward to more volunteers next year, post-pandemic! Thanks to everyone for all the good info and updates, which was very helpful to me as a relative novice.

Congratulations on a good season! I hear you on the fatigue issue - getting a bit tired myself. Wish my trees were 2.6, or better yet how about that 5.6 posted by Abbott! That's some tree. the sap is flowing like crazy here the past two days and tomorrow will be no different. I only need 20 more gallons for that twelfth boil which I'll get when I wake up tomorrow. What to do with the rest that will come? I'll have to check the sugar. If it's still 2% I'll have to consider a 13th next weekend. Just can't let it go......

[maineboiler]

Decent run today with 100 gallons at 2.5%. Should be good tomorrow too. It’s been a slow season but there appears to be a strong finish coming. I’m looking to boil tomorrow and maybe wrap it up

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Agreed Steve, easy to get frustrated after 3 very good years in a row. Same for us, worst since 2012 but never a bad season. Just some better than others! Good sap run today, took a while to get going with 2 cold days. Should run good tomorrow as well. Our plan is to boil it all Monday for the last time this season. Was easy to balance work and syrup this year, spent today looking for more taps!

[twitch]

I have had a good season as far as things going pretty well. Definitely the worst season as far as productivity goes in the 12 years I have been playing with it. I will probably be a little over half of what I made last year. Abbott those big high sugar trees are valuable every 5 gallon bucket is ten or better compared to normal sugar bush. There are some big old trees in down town mechanic falls that are pushing 7 percent. I picked up about 250 gallons today it is in my truck tank and honestly not sure if I'm going to boil it. Its cloudy 1.5% If I do boil it it will be the syrup I eat for the year.

[Mvhomesteader]

Agreed Steve, easy to get frustrated after 3 very good years in a row. Same for us, worst since 2012 but never a bad season. Just some better than others! Good sap run today, took a while to get going with 2 cold days. Should run good tomorrow as well. Our plan is to boil it all Monday for the last time this season. Was easy to balance work and syrup this year, spent today looking for more taps!

My sentiments as well. I've got enough for 60 gallons Tuesday (#11) and 60 gallons Saturday (#12) assuming it will stay good that long. I've stashed it under the barn out of the light.

I'm down to select trees that are producing 2%, so my plan is to collect for a few more days, test the ssc in all the 5 gallon buckets that are waiting boiling, and boil the clearest and/or top ssc buckets. The sap sure is running clear right now. Too bad it didn't flow like this two weeks ago.

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Heck of a run here the last 2 days but mostly today. We had 350 to do around 5:30 and it was still running good. Sap should be fine to boil tomorrow and that looks like it for us with the forecast.

[abbott]

I have had a good season as far as things going pretty well. Definitely the worst season as far as productivity goes in the 12 years I have been playing with it. I will probably be a little over half of what I made last year. Abbott those big high sugar trees are valuable every 5 gallon bucket is ten or better compared to normal sugar bush. There are some big old trees in down town mechanic falls that are pushing 7 percent. I picked up about 250 gallons today it is in my truck tank and honestly not sure if I'm going to boil it. Its cloudy 1.5% If I do boil it it will be the syrup I eat for the year.

Yup, seeing as we're posting in the backyard enthusiasts thread... sometimes I want to go back to small scale. If I stuck with the best trees around here, I have no doubt I could average 3.5-4% with 50 taps or more, all pretty easy access. Unfortunately, most of them aren't within reach of my tubing, and for simplicity I've resisted tapping them and having to collect and haul sap. Awful helpful when it all flows directly to the saphouse.

[twitch]

Yup, seeing as we're posting in the backyard enthusiasts thread... sometimes I want to go back to small scale. If I stuck with the best trees around here, I have no doubt I could average 3.5-4% with 50 taps or more, all pretty easy access. Unfortunately, most of them aren't within reach of my tubing, and for simplicity I've resisted tapping them and having to collect and haul sap. Awful helpful when it all flows directly to the saphouse.I hear ya there I could have ran a bunch buckets but didn't really just a time thing. I wish I had at this but to late. I dumped 300 gallons of sap during the long warm spell. That hurt a bit but it was gross

[CanterburyMaple]

I got a nice Easter present with 25-30 gallons of syrup from maybe 30-40 taps. Some produced little, some had filled the 5-gallon bucket. We'll see what kind of super-dark I get out of this. Very cloudy. Time to boil it, clean up and document everything I learned from my first "real" season. Good luck closing down, everyone. It's been great getting to learn from you all!

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

520 gallons last 2 days. Best run and looks like last run of the year. A very tasty dark grade so far. Will be all cooked today.

[CanterburyMaple]

I got a nice Easter present with 25-30 gallons of syrup from maybe 30-40 taps. Some produced little, some had filled the 5-gallon bucket. We'll see what kind of super-dark I get out of this. Very cloudy. Time to boil it, clean up and document everything I learned from my first "real" season. Good luck closing down, everyone. It's been great getting to learn from you all!

Yikes, I should correct that was 25-30 gallons of sap, not syrup! Ha! wish I got that much out of 40 taps...

[Mvhomesteader]

I got a nice Easter present with 25-30 gallons of syrup from maybe 30-40 taps. Some produced little, some had filled the 5-gallon bucket. We'll see what kind of super-dark I get out of this. Very cloudy. Time to boil it, clean up and document everything I learned from my first "real" season. Good luck closing down, everyone. It's been great getting to learn from you all!

Post your season summary of you get a chance! The dark stuff still tastes great, just looks like used motor oil.

[Mvhomesteader]

You know the expression "red at night, sailors delight" . My wife came up with a new one - "drought in the summer, sap seasons a bummer". My guess is the dryness of last year, combined with a warmer than normal spring caused the low production of sap this season. I know the groundwater table is low this spring as my two sump pumps have been uncharacteristically quiet. I'm guessing low groundwater for the trees as well.

I guess bummer might be a little harsh but it was a struggle. In the end I got 13.5 gallons off 581 gallons of sap for a ssc average of 2.31%.

I had big plans for two lasts boils of some pretty good sap from the last runs. I stored the sap under my barn as I could not get to it for a bit. It appears that I waited too long, as the sap was turning. In fact I started boiling it and there was a slight "cheese" scent or rather a yeast scent. As I thought about it I realized that bacteria eat sugar, so I tested the ssc and it had gone from 2 to 1.2 just sitting in the buckets. I wasn't about to spend a day boiling 1.2% sap so we put 90 gallons on the raspberries, asparagus, and such. Lesson learned - get to it right off at this time of the year.

So everything is washed and put away till next season. For next season I will be using more 1.5/2 gallon frosting buckets in place of milk jugs as they overflow less often. I also will be getting rid of my one pan warming stove in favor of a new 3 pan arch matching my other arch. With this arrangement I should be able to do 10+ gph either cutting down on boiling time or allowing more gallons done in a day. An improvement either way. Two big arches will eat the wood, but I've got plenty especially pine.

Time to forge ahead with spring and summer plans. I hope everyone in Maple Land has a fruitful off season and enjoys their syrup!