Eastern Ontario 2015

[Galena]

Thanks for the advice Galena, it's reassuring to hear this from experienced tapper; supposed to be good weather for sap production all week in Inverary so I am pumped!
Lesley

Glad to be of help! BTW are there any big sugaring operations in your area, or even a local farmer whom you've seen tap trees for as long as you can remember? That's how I learned, from just knocking on this farmer's door and asking if I could hang around and help out and learn the basics of how to sugar from them. (Of course that was before I found this site)

They even loaned me some spiles and buckets; in return I helped collect sap and drive the sap truck to the sugar shack. Even now, now that I know what I'm doing (I think) it's still nice to drive by their place and see that they also put up their 120 pails yesterday.

Mind, I'm single, so I have the luxury of a little more spare time than you might, but most sugarers are generous with their knowledge. You can also ask at the local co-op who in the area sugars each year and is approachable. Doesn't hurt to at least ask! :-)

ETA: Remember I said I keep records...well just saw a teeny tiny itty bit like 1 tbsp in one pail, tasted it to ensure it was sap and not snowmelt (we had a little blizzard here yesterday right after I put pails up). Checked my records from last year and eh wala, same tree, same pail, probably same amount too :-)