Affect of snow depth on sap production

I know this might sound like an odd question but I'm wondering if any research has been done on the affect of having a good snow pack on sap production in the spring. Where I live snow pack in March can be hit or miss but I've noticed that in years where I have decent snow cover through most of March that sap production is better. I don't know if this is because temperatures were good and so snow stays around longer or that the melting snow in combination of the temperatures are the cause.

has this ever been looked at? Should I invest in a snow making system in my sugarbush? :lol:

I've always understood it as the snow provides moisture for the trees as it melts and as a result the tree has more water available to suck up. Which in theory should provide more sap when compared to a tree that is on bare ground. At least that is what the old timers told me.

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Originally Posted by Scribner's Mountain Maple

I've always understood it as the snow provides moisture for the trees as it melts and as a result the tree has more water available to suck up. Which in theory should provide more sap when compared to a tree that is on bare ground. At least that is what the old timers told me.

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That's what I kind of thought - that added moisture would help. I would also think that snow helps keep temperatures in the bush down on those warm days later in the season. It was just a thought I had.

The snow will also tend to moderate any rapid warm ups to slow bacterial growth. Snow reflects the sun while bare ground absorbs it.

In our experience too much snow can have a negative effect on total production. A really heavy snow pack seems to delay the start of the season. It doesn't seem to delay the end of the season by the same amount, meaning fewer days for the sap to run.

No snow is definitely bad and you can have too much snow. I'm not sure where the happy median is - but somewhere around 18" on the ground is reasonable for working, plowing roads and ahving some insulating effect, plus the added moisture.

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Originally Posted by DaveB

I know this might sound like an odd question but I'm wondering if any research has been done on the affect of having a good snow pack on sap production in the spring.

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You might find this research from UVM interesting. http://www.uvm.edu/~pmrc/TempInSugarbush.pdf

Snow cover helps insulate the ground and maples' shallow root system. It's not the extra moisture from snow but the above freezing ground temps around the roots that help support sap flow. Without snow the ground may freeze solid meaning no available water to create any sap flow. There is also a reference to a snowless winter in Quebec that caused maple die-off due to freezing ground temps.

For me it seems like the snow has to melt around the base of the tree for good sap runs. This last year as soon as it would melt around the tree we would get another snow storm. It really shortened the season for me.

Last season was in our top ten years of the last 42. We had no snow and the ground was low on moisture. We had only two little showers of less than 1/4 inch. The years of at least 12" of snow seemed to be better due to the day time temps didn't climb as far. Last season we hit 72, but it went down to the lower 20's with a clear sky and no breeze. It ran hard til about 11pm and froze the mains solid.

I am expecting snow...much snow. Some of the issue with deep snow is how long it takes to tap the bush. I can remember it taking a weekend to get a bush of 300 tapped; with snow of three feet or better. It was running good but it was rough going in snow shoes and the snow was just below the lines. It was a fair season but hard to get everything tapped.

It should be interesting this season to see how guys do with what is likely to be a snowy season.

My own personal experience for what it's worth, I started this hobby two years ago, during a year we had almost no snow. I had no idea...and the old timers around were not even tapping. I kept hearing "dont bother". I read on here that it was the worst season people had seen locally. Being brand new I had no idea. I had fun, son and I made a whopping 16 ounces I think? haha. Last year we had a good snow load...I had no idea of it's effect on sap production. We made a gallon and a half of syrup! It really was night and day. So, in my very limited experience...you need snow to get sap. This winter has been snowy here in NH, and I cant wait for the end of Feb / early March!!

Last year we had snow cover and it was a record year for us, the year before with no snow cover we only had two weeks of boiling and it was the worst year we had ever had was not even worth to tap out, I believe in the snow cover to help

I defiantly believe the snowpack helps for many of the reasons already stated..continuous moisture and root insulation. I finished my woods work on sat and with my south/southeast slope there isn't much snow left. We need a good snow after this cold snap this week that would make it ideal.