Man, I don't get it. I don't mean to get off topic but reading this post challenges all of what I thought I knew about sugaring.
In the Northeast, we generally tap at the end of February or sometime in March. I have even first tapped on April 1st (no joke). My thinking was that we tap then because the coldest part of winter was over and it was going to continue to get warmer, thereby creating optimum conditions for sugaring.
But if you tap in Kentucky in mid-December, does that mean it will begin getting warmer in your area starting now? Can Dr. Tim or somebody explain to me how this works?
And, by the way, last May we went to the Hatfield-McCoy riding area in southern West Virginia to ride dirt bikes. Great country down there!
1991-1993 traded sap for syrup, 30 taps
1994 small flat pan outdoors 30 taps
1995 barrel stove, small pan outdoors 30 taps
1996-2011 homemade 2 X 4, sugarhouse, 50 taps
2012 new 2 X 4, 60 taps