tapping trees to death

[Parker]

One of the orchards I am going to be setting up has sevral sections that are overcroweded. I was planning on thinning them out a littel and got a second opinion from a friend who suggested that I tap them to death. He suggested this has sevral advantages over cutting the trees- 1.the crop trees are released over a longer period of time giving them a chance to adjust to the new levels of light 2. you get sap from the cull trees for a few years. Any ideas? Also my friend was saying that due to climate change it would be better for the orchard to not thin them out much at all but leave the ash-soft maple-hemlock component to help shade the rockies from the summer heat. I have done thinnings in maple sugar orchards in the past and the forester hit them pretty hard. Any thoughts??? Thanks, Parker

[Salmoneye]

Sugar Maple, like all other trees, are weeds...

Darn hard to kill em...

I would be really interested in seeing how long it takes you to 'Tap A Tree To Death'...

Back when we were young and foolish and had no idea about the Ohio Maple Producers Manual or UVM recommendations on conservative tapping techniques, it was not at all uncommon to see 4 buckets/tree in the 2 foot diameter range...I know of many ancient trees here that used to carry 6 buckets and did for decades...

The only time I have seen a tree hurt by 'overtapping' was when the taphole lets in disease or insects to the heartwood...

I have a line that needs to be cleaned up and has some trees that need to be removed for a crown release...There are a number of 4-6 inch trees in that line that I figured were coming out anyway, so I tapped the heck ot of them...So far there is absolutely no sign that they were hurt in any way...

Interesting concept though...Let us know...Course it will be a few years before we hear back from ya...

;-)

[mapleman3]

if the tree is less than 10" or 40 years old and doesn't die.from the tap.. is the sap just not as sweet? or is it just draining the tree of vital sap?

hmmm
Jim

[forester1]

It would be an interesting experiment. There is a guy near here who taps 6 inch trees on the theory that they are going to die anyway. He burns with oil and doesn't want to cut his trees. So far most haven't died after 5 years. 5 years should equal 10 feet of crown expansion at an average of 1 foot branch growth per year. So he lost the chance to increase growth on the crop trees. Research has shown large crown trees are sweeter, more productive, and heal faster. I think burning with wood is an advantage in a young sugarbush in that you can use the thinnings for fuel.

You can thin a stand too much. Sugar maple borer will invade a stand with too much sun on the trees bole especially young smooth bark trees. Having a mixed stand is better ecologically. For instance, basswood will capture calcium deeper in the soil and deposit it to the surface in leaf fall providing it to the maple with roots closer to the soil surface. All species use nutrients different. Disadvantages would be hemlock shading the trees and lines and other species taking up space that could be occupied by maple. Everything in the sugarbush, like in life, is a compromise.

[mapleman3]

Just reading back on this thread... interesting, I have a small bush thats in back of my sis in laws... I finished marking 105 taps, lots of underbrush, some large pines. I am wondering since it's not my land, but they will let me manage it a bit. for now should I just cut the underbrush where my lines will be so I have easier access? and slowly thin out the saplings and such? and do you have to drag it all some where, or can you leave alot to rot on the ground?

any help... thanks

Jim

[forester1]

I would just leave the brush scattered. It will get recycled and absorbed by the surrounding trees eventually and is better than fertilizer.

[themapleking]

Jim; just cut the under brush and thin out like I did. take the bigger stuff for fire wood the rest can rot. It's alot easier hanging lines with out all that crap in your way. To many sapplings will choke out the woods. Like I was showing you in mine.

[powerdub]

I will go with Salmoneye on this as I have not yet been able to thin out some of the trees that I set out to several years ago. Only one has died off and that is because it broke off around a series of tap holes higher up on the tree. It was four inches in diameter when I started. I would not hesitate to tap the snot out of them but you more than likely will have to cut them down to thin them out. A logger suggested to me one year that if I want to release the crowns on some trees but don't have the time to log them out right I off I could girdle the tree. It will become standing dead wood and the surrounding trees could start growing into the dead ones place. The only problem is you need to go back in a year or so and get the thing out of there otherwise it will start dropping dead limbs on your lines. He says thats how it occurs naturally when a tree gets choked out, you are just helping the process along a bit.

[mapleman3]

Good tips, I'll start slowely cutting the underbrush, and see how it goes
as long as my line are clear I will be happy, and also easy walking would be nice. I saw a huge pine up there that got NAILED by lightning, blew the thing apart, except 50 ft of it is still standing completely split in 3 ways all the way down, very dangerous.. I'm not sure how to aproach it if I need to drop it, I will take a pic of it this weekend, it's awesome!!!

Jim