Different sap color from same tree?

[maple6275]

Hey gang, 1st-time tapper here. I've got a couple dozen taps out, and noticed something odd during my last collection. On one particular tree, I've got three taps - two draining into one bucket and one draining into another. Interestingly, the sap in one bucket was clear as water, while the sap in the other bucket had a strong green tint to it. I only noticed this once during multiple collections from the same tree. Of course I see slight variations in sap color between trees, but wasn't expecting such a dramatic color difference in the sap from just one tree. The only thing I could think of is that the "green taps" were on the sunny side of the tree and the "clear tap" was on the shady side. What's this all mean?

[RileySugarbush]

Has it rained? Sometimes rainwater picks up color as it runs down the outside of a tree and finds it way into some buckets and not others. On my sap sacks you can see a dark layer on top of the clear sap sometimes.

[maple6275]

No rain that I can recall. If I see it again I'll try to get a picture.

[Lyle]

I,ve never seen green sap, but I had a tree that would produce clear on one side and yellowish on the other. The yellow side also produced less sap as well. I stopped tapping the yellow side and a couple of years later it became obvious that the yellow side was dying. From the way the dead section came down the stem it looked like it had been hit by lightning.

[davey]

Leprechauns

[Dill]

Its a st pattys day tree!

[Peepers]

I've never heard of green sap either - when I think of green I think of copper. Did someone pound a copper nail into the tree perhaps? Or if you you are a conspiracy theorist is someone trying to kill your tree with copper nails?

[3rdgen.maple]

I have seen it this year as well. Mine really looked more like a lime green. Seen it twice on 2 different trees. Not the first season either. Never figured out what it was but it still made syrup.