Backyard Syrup Enthusiasts 2020

[mainebackswoodssyrup]

Cold this week, but next week looks pretty amazing. With my work schedule it looks like I’ll be drilling holes Monday. Anyone else planning the same?

Jamie will try to stop me no doubt but I am currently charging the batteries!! I'm gonna see what the week looks like as a whole and I may tap ours next week.

[Mvhomesteader]

I had great plans to tap the last two weekends but my son got the flu, my wife got the flu, you get the idea. I'm just getting over a nasty cough as a parting gift from this flu so tapping has had to wait. Probably just as well as temps have been mostly cool.

Next week looks like a mixed bag here...nice Sunday and Monday but snow and clouds Tuesday and Wednesday then cold for next next two days. Probably i will venture out Friday or Saturday and put those taps in. Everything is ready.

Woodsy-glad to see you back. You should make more wine to ensure you run out and therefore are compelled to tap.

[woodsy]

The Maple wine was a interesting experiment. It takes a good amount of aging and isn't particularly flavorful like red or white wines.
Colonial Spruce beer with Maple Syrup as the lone fermentable is on tap for this spring boiling fresh spruce tips on the block arc .
Good to see everyone getting excited about backyard sugarin.

[ddociam]

Hello fellow sappers. This is my fifth year in Southwest Minnesota. I’ve learned so much on this site. We had the international conference here in MN this year it was great. There was a class put on by the Univ of Maine I believe, judging maple syrup. It was so good I’m thinking of taking it again.
I started five years ago with 9 taps on 1/4 inch tubing. Simmered on a hot plate. Old cooler for storage. Next year thirty taps. 2.5 gallons. Then got serious and bought a 2x4 Smoky Lake evaporator and flat filter and bottler. 130taps. And got 20 gals of syrup. I seem to find ways to waste sap by spilling, burning or spoiling. Last year I planned on upping again but my wife became ill and that really threw a wrench in the works. I added a 4x40 single post R.O. and that helped a lot. I ended last with 20 gallons of good syrup and three of ropy. This year I have a plan. I added tubing in three groves and sureflow pumps. I’m hoping to do about 600 taps but there is so much snow and it’s been so cold I haven’t been able to finish putting in my laterals. I still plan to do a lot of buckets. This year I will have three posts of R.O.
I don’t know when it will start here. Typically mid March. I just turned 65 this year so I’m taking the month of syrup season off. My goal is a 100 gallons. I think that after boiling that much on my 2x4 and flat filtering that much. I might want to upgrade. I’m fortunate that I have two groves within a mile of my house that have 2-300 Silvers. So I have some room to expand if I want to. We will see how this year goes first.
Jerry


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Mvhomesteader]

fortunate that I have two groves within a mile of my house that have 2-300 Silvers. So I have some room to expand if I want to. We will see how this year goes first.
Jerry

That's a lot of silvers! My daughter taps a nice silver in the Portland Maine
area and the syrup is very delicate compared to sugar/red maple. You've got it cold out there. Too cold for my blood! Good luck this season!

[Mvhomesteader]

Well I got my 40 taps in yesterday and today, so here we go. There were a handful of trees that were damp, but most were still frozen. I might have collected a gallon, but it was still cool and windy. I'm holding my breath for Saturday on till at least Tuesday as the temps are all 40/20 give or take a degree, so perhaps a good first run if things can get thawed out.

[Mvhomesteader]

I'm optimistic about the next week starting Saturday! Looks like 40+ for a good portion of the early week and high 30's till Friday. I've gathered 11 gallons since I tapped last Saturday (mostly on the one nice day this past week) so 40 or so more and it's fire up the pans. If all goes as expected I bet I'll have that by Monday evening if I can get 1/3 gallon per tap per day over 40 taps. Some trees are on, others still frozen. I'll need Saturday just to thaw out from this deep freeze.

[Ltr77]

Here in Mt. V as well. My wife and I put in about 20 taps near Torsey Pond. We give maple syrup as gifts and use it as an excuse to get outside. Haven't tapped yet, waiting until next weekend with the weather turning colder on Thursday and Friday with snow coming on Wednesday- which is fine, I still have to move cider to a new fermenter from the fall and still have to process some honey that my bees when my bees decided they would rather die than eat the honey. Hate losing the girls, but we were running low on honey so we will start anew again- again.

[Mvhomesteader]

Here in Mt. V as well. My wife and I put in about 20 taps near Torsey Pond. We give maple syrup as gifts and use it as an excuse to get outside. Haven't tapped yet, waiting until next weekend with the weather turning colder on Thursday and Friday with snow coming on Wednesday- which is fine, I still have to move cider to a new fermenter from the fall and still have to process some honey that my bees when my bees decided they would rather die than eat the honey. Hate losing the girls, but we were running low on honey so we will start anew again- again.

We need to talk about those bees. Mine swarmed twice last summer and left, leaving a super of honey. I'm going to get some more this spring and give them the honey super from my last bees.

I'm surprised how many maple sugar operations there are in Mt.V. I'm over by Cottle Hill/Wings Mills area. Good luck with your sap season!

[newmaplah]

Got 85 taps out this past weekend. Still messing with the shurflo to get that set up. Probably would go quicker if I stopped breaking parts ... plastic threads aren't made to take abuse Looking forward to getting enough to fire up the evaporator soon.