Northern Wisconsin. 2017

[markcasper]

Word on the street down around the Menomonie area is 3-4 gallons per tap have already ran with those on vacuum and that tapped on Valentines Day. I guess the sugar content is nothing to brag about. I have heard 1.9% to 2.1%. I have only tapped 3 test trees, one big boxelder by my shack has ran 2.5 gallons, huge silver maple in our yard ran the bag over Monday (thing runs all the time whether it freezes or not) the last tree in the woods, I have not been there since I tapped it. These were all on Valentines Day tapped. The silver maple sugar was 3.2%,, however. I'm thinking I'll hit tapping after this snowstorm.

I really didn't want to deal with this warm weather trying to keep sap b/c of off farm work yet.

[Joe Bob]

This year is my first attempt at sugaring. My location is a forested valley about 15 miles west of Shell Lake. I tapped 20 trees and set bags on 2/18. As of yesterday I have next to nothing, about 2 gallons of sap total. I got a quart out of a couple of trees, half of the rest are barely wet, the remainder totally dry. I plan to tap another 10-20 trees. Based on the weather forecast I will probably wait another 10 days or so to tap more trees.

[markcasper]

You are further north and if you are on open taps, another 10 days will be fine. I obviously have missed some sap and will be missing more Monday and Tuesday. I am going to start tapping tomorrow. This is 2 years in a row now that we should have been tapped by February 20th. It is a guessing game.

On Thursday night, I was able to drive back to my one tank in the woods with water for cleaning and you would have thought it was April 1. No mud, frost gone, unbelievable for 2-23.

The guys that tapped early probably did the right thing.....(those on vacuum). Am thinking maybe these equipment guys should rethink their open house plans and start having in the fall.

[motowbrowne]

I agree with you on the open houses. Waiting til early February to get a deal on tubing or applied at the open house doesn't fit into the schedule if we gotta be tapped by the 20th.

Mark, i hope our taps will just run extra hard and we can make up for the lost time last week. On the one hand, the sap woulda been nice, but on those 60 degree days, I was happy I didn't have holes drilled. Vacuum or not.

[markcasper]

I agree with you on the open houses. Waiting til early February to get a deal on tubing or applied at the open house doesn't fit into the schedule if we gotta be tapped by the 20th.

Mark, i hope our taps will just run extra hard and we can make up for the lost time last week. On the one hand, the sap woulda been nice, but on those 60 degree days, I was happy I didn't have holes drilled. Vacuum or not.

I hope so and I guess there are worse things. Yeh, the sample tap boxelder I dumped out Thursday night resembled something of a few days before the end of the season.

[GramaCindy]

This year is my first attempt at sugaring. My location is a forested valley about 15 miles west of Shell Lake. I tapped 20 trees and set bags on 2/18. As of yesterday I have next to nothing, about 2 gallons of sap total. I got a quart out of a couple of trees, half of the rest are barely wet, the remainder totally dry. I plan to tap another 10-20 trees. Based on the weather forecast I will probably wait another 10 days or so to tap more trees.

I think that would be a very good idea Joe Bob. I plan on doing the same for my sap sacks. I did tap my 3/16th lines though. With it being a "closed system" the taps stay good until the tree buds.

[Rhino]

No regrets here on not tapping. Looks like I will just watch the long range forecast and hopefully start around March 7th tapping like normal. Ended up with 8" of snow but that will settle and melt fast the next warm days. Also glad I waited because I don't like concentrated sap sitting so long in the evaporator.. and to drain a big evaporator and finish it off on a flat pan is only fun at the end of the season.

[mike z]

I don't think I missed much so far. What I miss in the next few days, I hope to be able to make up for at the end of the season. Might tap at the end of the week???

[Brad W Wi]

I put out 125 taps today. Still not sure about when to put out the rest. The 12 test pails I have out vary from 1/4- full to 3/4+ full. But that took 4days to reach that. I hate to miss much and we sure don't know how long everything will last.

[flying squirrel maple]

This weekend might be go-time for us. Will watch the weather for next week before we completely commit. The itch to tap is almost unbearable.


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