Red Roof Maples 2016

[red maples]

Good for you... No sap here since Sunday... Thank goodness for clouds and rain trees haven't progressed... thank goodness just need to get through today!!! but will definitely be boiling water on Sat.

[SmellsLikeSyrupNH]

Ive got nothing in over a week now :-( I guess its really over in So NH. Im jealous you guys are still getting some!

[Russell Lampron]

Found 375 gallons in the woods tank this morning and it is still coming in but real slow. It looks like I will have enough for both days of maple weekend. The buds are swelling but don't look like they are ready to open yet. If I make it through today it looks like some good sap weather starting with tomorrow nights freeze.

I feel bad for you guys south of me. The customers really like it when you are boiling sap. The wood pile suffers too when you are only boiling water to make it look good.

[red maples]

I am in a cold spot I have a few trees that are really swelled but not popped I might have a couple that popped. Reds that is. sugars are really tight still (wish I had more of those) So I am gonna do a quick walk though and pull all the taps that the buds are really swelled up. and then hope for the best!!!

[Russell Lampron]

You were up late, or should I say early Brad. I don't think you have to worry about the buds until the trees flower. Even my reds with big buds haven't done that yet and in the past I have made good syrup until the trees flowered.

I don't know how cold it got but everything is covered with frost this morning and it wasn't supposed to freeze here last night. I hope you guys down south got it too. Looks like another sap day here. So far I have over 1000 gallons of sap for the weekend.

[NHguy]

Good for you Russ! over here by Shaker Village it is 29 degrees- while accuweather says its 39 at the moment, and it wasnt supposed to frost last night im really hoping my trees can hang on until tomorrow- and then we will be back to running weather for a good many days! ( im all on buckets and gravity drop tubing) i boiled off the little sap I had collected this week last night so that it wouldnt spoil - debated pushing all of my sap from rear pan and near syrup/gradient from the front pan through with water last night in case i didnt get any more sap

but then i figured that even if it runs again for me- i may not get enough to sweeten the pans again - so i held off and shut down, gradient intact ( and at least boiled what was in the pan to keep it from spoiling) the next few days will see whether i gambled right or wrong!

good luck and have a great maple weekend

You were up late, or should I say early Brad. I don't think you have to worry about the buds until the trees flower. Even my reds with big buds haven't done that yet and in the past I have made good syrup until the trees flowered.

I don't know how cold it got but everything is covered with frost this morning and it wasn't supposed to freeze here last night. I hope you guys down south got it too. Looks like another sap day here. So far I have over 1000 gallons of sap for the weekend.

[Russell Lampron]

Good for you Russ! over here by Shaker Village it is 29 degrees- while accuweather says its 39 at the moment, and it wasnt supposed to frost last night im really hoping my trees can hang on until tomorrow- and then we will be back to running weather for a good many days! ( im all on buckets and gravity drop tubing) i boiled off the little sap I had collected this week last night so that it wouldnt spoil - debated pushing all of my sap from rear pan and near syrup/gradient from the front pan through with water last night in case i didnt get any more sap

but then i figured that even if it runs again for me- i may not get enough to sweeten the pans again - so i held off and shut down, gradient intact ( and at least boiled what was in the pan to keep it from spoiling) the next few days will see whether i gambled right or wrong!

good luck and have a great maple weekend

I last boiled Tuesday night and have been saving the sap since then for the weekend. The sap was cloudy from the start and it has gotten more cloudy since but as of last evening it still tasted good. It isn't supposed to be as warm today and I think last nights frost helped with the bud situation.

My Weather Underground app said it was 31* on Loudon Ridge and my Weatherchannel app said it was 35* when I got up this morning. My thermometer at the house died and I haven't replaced it yet. It is always colder in my woods than it is at the house.

[Greyfox]

NHguy; you say you're by the Shakers? I'm up the road from you. I know what you man about the temps up our way. I turn off 106 at the Beanstalk, and the thermometer in the truck always drops five degrees when I get to the top of Hills Corners. That, and my woods face North.

Russ, I'm thinking that this will be a great three days coming up here. A good number of my trees have red buds, but they're still holding tight. I gathered and boiled a bit that limped-in yesterday and I found a few moths, so maybe this will be the last hurrah. I'm taking the day off from work tomorrow to go to the Trappers Rendezvous, so I'll try stop by to say hi.

Doc

[NHguy]

NHguy; you say you're by the Shakers? I'm up the road from you. I know what you man about the temps up our way. I turn off 106 at the Beanstalk, and the thermometer in the truck always drops five degrees when I get to the top of Hills Corners. That, and my woods face North.

Russ, I'm thinking that this will be a great three days coming up here. A good number of my trees have red buds, but they're still holding tight. I gathered and boiled a bit that limped-in yesterday and I found a few moths, so maybe this will be the last hurrah. I'm taking the day off from work tomorrow to go to the Trappers Rendezvous, so I'll try stop by to say hi.

Doc

Hey Doc! - im not far up the hill from the Beanstalk you can probably see some of my buckets as you drive up the hill. Since we moved here in '07 - we laugh every year about how much lower our temps are than the forecast, and how much more snow we get than what is predicted

Im REALLY hoping my trees can hang on until the weather returns to perfect tomorrow..... i more than doubled my taps this year, and picked up a 2x4 flat divided pan arch set up (from steam table pans on cinder blocks last year)

now im desperately needing more sap!!!!

I learned alot this year- ( tapped too early, and i think when frozen - i think most of the sap i should have gotten ran down my trees and not through my spiles)

learning as i go - and really hoping i can get another 50-100 gallons....

[Russell Lampron]

It will be good to see you again Doc. Anyone that wants to stop by is more than welcomed to.

I'm as ready for maple weekend as I am going to be. Got to go shut the RO down in a little bit and then get a couple hours of sleep. I hope the valve on the sweet tank doesn't freeze before I need to start concentrating again in the morning.