Disappointing year, is your sap running?

[David Wayne]

I am tapping a different woods this year, The one I tapped in the past has sold and new owner said no. So I have other options, but with 150 taps out
the most I get is 90 gallons. Tapped Feb. 5th, The weather is perfect 20s at night 40-50 daytime. A few trees started off with 3 gallons but now maybe 1/2. won't freeze now for the next two nights so won't get any, only got 30 gallons tonight, very disappointing. How are your trees doing? Is this the result of a very mild winter? We only had a couple weeks of real winter right after Christmas and very little snow. Then it seemed to be right for tapping
the second week of January, maybe I should have tapped then. I am 25 miles north of Columbus. This is becoming my worst year ever.

David

[buckeye gold]

I hope I am wrong, but I fear the season will be very short if your just starting and for those of us south of you it is over. I usually tap 50 early taps for some early syrup and I did this year on January 5th. To my surprise these taps ran almost everyday and some days overflowed my 60 gallon collection tank. So late January I tapped my main bush of 100 taps and they gushed sap for about a week and then started slowing up. I quit Monday because I had all the syrup I wanted, but my sap flows had slowed to half what they were. I think the warm, windy dry weather really shut the sap flow down. I boiled 17 days in January and boiled about 900 gallons of sap in January, mostly off 50 taps. I was on course for my best season ever, if I hadn't pulled taps. With December and January being warmer and wet I think it was an early season. That is why I never tap by dates, but weather trends. I hope I am wrong, but I fear you missed the best runs. This warm spell will only make it worse

[David Wayne]

I was worried in January that we might be missing it

[spacetrance]

I am also looking at my worst year ever.
I started clearing the woods and moving my main line January 1st. Therefore, I missed the early big runs. I did not expect them as early as they were.

I bought a new evaporator this year. One way to look at it is: I paid $500 dollars a gallon for syrup this year. The other way to look at it: I am glad and thankful that the Lord has blessed me with these trees, and I’ll do better next year.

[David Wayne]

I finished all I had in the pan, 14 gallons of syrup for the year. Some of the trees are getting the red flowers on them and with 60 degrees and rain today, and 67
for tomorrow I'm afraid they all will bud. Some cold is in the future but might be too late.

David

[RC Maple]

Seeing the weather in early January and knowing how some of our recent seasons ended in mid-March, I tapped earlier than I ever did before in a different woods than I am tapped now. I just tapped my usual woods last weekend. I am right about where I ended up last year for sap and syrup production. I am still hoping for a colder March but I know the Accuweather forecast is sometimes a bit optimistic for the monthly forecast. I'd take another month - this doesn't get old, I look forward to this all year!

[MFarmall]

Started pulling taps today, Sap went real buddy yesterday. Agree with others, if was ready should have tapped right after Christmas here.
Sap didn't run near as well this year compared to past 2 years. Best sugar % had was 1,6% for 2 days. dropped this week to 1,1%.
Did get 32 gallons syrup made.

[buckeye gold]

I tapped my early lines (50 taps) on January 5th and boiled 17 days in January and almost 900 gallons of sap. Tapped my main woods of 100 taps the end of January and quit on Feb. 14th because I had already exceeded my syrup goal. I made 18 gallons and my sugar was higher than normal for the last three weeks at 2%. I actually dumped at least a couple hundred gallons of sap on those super warm days, because I didn't need it and didn't want the long days.

[David Wayne]

Well this season keeps dragging on. After 5 days of warm nights we started getting better temperatures, still not much sap, I think it's just too dry.
But I take what I can get. Made 17 gallons of syrup so far. After the warm spell it stayed in the 20's all day. Starting tomorrow they forecast highs
in the 40's lows in the low 20's for the next 10 days so maybe I will get a few more gallons.

David