Poconos 2017

[Maplewalnut]

I have about 1000 taps in and will finish tapping this weekend. Some were wet yesterday afternoon but extended forecast looks cold for a couple weeks still. In any case I will be ready. Missed the early run due to work travel but I know some made some good syrup. Looks like a marginal warm day or two next week to clean lines out find leaks. Squirrel population is well in check thanks to teenage boys so I am expecting little chew damage. Mix of clear cdl smart spouts and white opaque ones this year. Put the white in shady areas to see if they in fact do thaw faster than clear. The trade off is off course you cant find tap hole leaks or hollow trees as well with the white

Good luck to all

Mike

[Z/MAN]

Good luck Mike. With my gravity I will wait about two more weeks. That is unless we were to get a prolong warm up.

[Maplewalnut]

All tapped and had small run yesterday to clean out lines and collect a little in tanks. Slow start today but only suppose to get warmer through the night before turning cold again tomorrow. Quite a few bear chews again this year when vacuum got turned on.

Paul- good luck to you, hopefully a better maple season than our snowmobiling this year

[carpenter#ryan]

Hi I'm new here and hoping not to be too late on starting my first tapping season. My first real question is when do we tap with this crazy winter we have had. I'm in lower bucks county pa

[psparr]

Next week looks as good as it's gonna get.

[shess6]

carpenter ryan
I'm in upper bucks county and sap flow is good. I already have boiled 500 gallons, so i would say to tap being the weather has been so up and down.

[carpenter#ryan]

shess6
thanks for the reply , was hoping to get started late this weekend . I plan on only making a gallon or so , i really just want to give it a try the whole process. Any tips on how to store it until time to boil. From what i read i will need about 40 gallons of sap. I work full time so weekend is my best time to boil.

[Cabin]

shess6
thanks for the reply , was hoping to get started late this weekend . I plan on only making a gallon or so , i really just want to give it a try the whole process. Any tips on how to store it until time to boil. From what i read i will need about 40 gallons of sap. I work full time so weekend is my best time to boil.

Storing the sap in the shade where it can freeze at night helps. I use large(30 gallon) plastic containers and garbage cans(new of course). As to how much you will need it depends on the type of tree you are tapping. Around here I have only 3 small sugar maples and the rest are red maples all in a wooded area. I need about 100 gallons of sap to make a gallon syrup.

[Maplewalnut]

Making syrup from a few small runs, it looks to open up in the next week. Will put out a few buckets this weekend. What can I say, I like popping the lid to find it full from time to time.

[carpenter#ryan]

wow did not know about the 100 gallons for 1 gallon ratio. that is a lot. I tapped one sugar which is flowing about 1 gallon a day and one red which is flowing about two gallon yesterday. My neighbor my bee mentor, let me tap his one tree he said that he made syrup from it years ago and it is flowing about half gallon a day. my last two i tapped pretty sure are red as well but they haven't even dripped. they are huge trees about two ft diameter i still drilled south side same as other trees i did , do large trees flow later then small? i am a bit confused as to what would cause that there big healthy trees and getting sun.