Tapped today

Thanks for all the kind words! I'm glad I found this forum. :) I boiled my first sap today and have about a quarter-pint of light butterscotch/vanilla-ish syrup that I am restraining myself from drinking right out of the mason jar. :) I'm excited to see how it changes through the season (however long that may be at this point) and how my sugar maple compares to Dad's silver maple. I'm also sensing science fair project for another year (my kids are 9 right now).

I don't think my tree is big enough for another tap. :( But I will totally be eyeing the neighbors' yards this summer. We are also talking about looking for a new house, so now I have some new shopping criteria.

At sunrise today not a drop was found from yesterday's start of our warmup. Now they are all running well and filling the jugs. The big surprise is each Norway Maple tap volume is outpacing any other tap by about 8:1, at least for now. I hope it keeps up this pace all season!
Urban Sugarmaker - I think you'll be pleasantly surprised when you collect your first sap early this week. Good luck in your first year!

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Originally Posted by LImaple

Thanks for all the kind words! I'm glad I found this forum. :) I boiled my first sap today and have about a quarter-pint of light butterscotch/vanilla-ish syrup that I am restraining myself from drinking right out of the mason jar. :) I'm excited to see how it changes through the season (however long that may be at this point) and how my sugar maple compares to Dad's silver maple. I'm also sensing science fair project for another year (my kids are 9 right now).

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Your addiction has started...Good luck LImaple!

Up until today I've gotten 1.5-2 gallons a day, but it didn't drop below freezing last night and I had barely a couple of pints. Will it start flowing again when the temp drops and rises again? Tomorrow night is supposed to go down to the high 20s.

Also, my Dad's gave him about 1/2 a gallon the first day and then totally stopped. I don't quite know what I should do there. :(

Yes, wait till it freezes again. Science can't fully explain why maple trees do what they do, so you are in good company!

Ask Dad to empty the jug at his house and keep in the refrigerator.
You can stop by for coffee when he has a few gallons for you.
Enjoy!

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Originally Posted by ponderingjunkman

Yes, wait till it freezes again. Science can't fully explain why maple trees do what they do, so you are in good company!

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Thanks! Supposed to go down to 21 tonight and up near 40 again tomorrow. One nice side effect about this whole thing is it makes me more patient for warm spring weather. :)