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Thread: Backyard Syrup Enthusiasts 2021

  1. #11
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Mount Vernon Maine
    Posts
    217

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    Thanks Dr. Tim for the information. I'll tuck that away for reference. I probably got lucky in 2019 when I tapped in mid February but the flow didn't kick in till mid March. The taps were gravity open for a month. The cold, as you said, might have helped. I'll wait this year for better weather. I see now the 20th is still cold......

    Canterbury Maple- I use the snow dumping off the metal shed roof as my outside fridge, digging bucket holes for 5 gallon pails as they accumulate. The only thing that roof is good for. You can actually cover the buckets with snow or a blanket on a deep freeze night to limit ice accumulation. Works pretty good and it is near the evaporator so lugging is limited.
    Two 2x4 concrete block arches with three steam trays each
    Tapping in Mount Vernon since 2016, 30 to 70 taps, 5/16" tube to 1.5 to 3.5 gallon buckets, some trees on collective gravity tubing to 5 gallon buckets.

    Mostly sugar maples, a few reds on 200 year old homestead

  2. #12
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    UVM Proctor Maple Research Center, Underhill Ctr, VT
    Posts
    6,391

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    Quote Originally Posted by Mvhomesteader View Post
    Thanks Dr. Tim for the information. I'll tuck that away for reference.
    It's kind of humorous, but we see throughout the maple region that about every 5 yrs or so someone "discovers" they can make sap in the fall, and there will be a big story in the local news about it. Most likely your great grandfather knew about it 80-100 yrs or more about it, but knew enough not to bother given that the sugar content is low, can't put too many holes in a tree each year, and the cold weather after the fall season will split buckets.

    If you've got a lot of trees and you don't manage to tap them all in the spring, tapping some in the fall can be interesting and give you syrup then.

    Bill Clark, the VMSMA President many years ago, always put out a few buckets around the holidays in order to have fresh syrup for Christmas.
    Dr. Tim Perkins
    UVM Proctor Maple Research Ctr
    http://www.uvm.edu/~pmrc
    https://mapleresearch.org
    Timothy.Perkins@uvm.edu

  3. #13
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Mount Vernon Maine
    Posts
    217

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    Next week's weather looks favorable to a "start" so I'm planning on setting taps over the next few days. Sunday is sunny and 30 and it stays in the mid to upper 30's at least till Wednesday that I can see. You watch ---we'll get a polar vortex the following week.

    This would be a typical tap time for me. I'm going to add a few new trees to the rotation this year, take a couple off to give them a rest, and limit a couple of larger trees to one tap so they can rest as well.

    Here we go!
    Two 2x4 concrete block arches with three steam trays each
    Tapping in Mount Vernon since 2016, 30 to 70 taps, 5/16" tube to 1.5 to 3.5 gallon buckets, some trees on collective gravity tubing to 5 gallon buckets.

    Mostly sugar maples, a few reds on 200 year old homestead

  4. #14
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Peru, Maine
    Posts
    1,042

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    Ran the spin seal today and got the lines hooked up in 1 bush. Ran 1 line of 3/16” along our rock wall bush for 30 taps. This line has always produced amazingly for 30 taps. I am guessing around 20’ of drop. So we’ll see how the 3/16” works. Figured no harm in trying it. Can always add a shurflo if we want. We will be tapping next weekend. Might start Friday afternoon.
    305 taps on 2 Shurflo's, 31 taps on 3/16" and 229 taps on gravity. 565 in all
    Mountain Maple S3 controller for 145 of the vacuum taps
    2x6 Darveau Mystique Oil Fired Evaporator w/ Smoky Lake Simplicity Auto Draw
    Wesfab 7” filter press

  5. #15
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    West Sumner, ME
    Posts
    250

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    We got about 100 drop line changed out today. Tough walking in the woods. 2 feet of snow with a thick crust. Probably start drilling next weekend.
    West Sumner Sugar House
    West Sumner, ME
    500 +/- Taps - 2 x 8 CDL Venturi - 3 Shurflo Solar Systems - MES Dolly 300
    https://www.facebook.com/WestSumnerSugarHouse

  6. #16
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Peru, Maine
    Posts
    1,042

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    Quote Originally Posted by West Sumner Sugar View Post
    We got about 100 drop line changed out today. Tough walking in the woods. 2 feet of snow with a thick crust. Probably start drilling next weekend.
    Agreed, hate that crusty snow on top. Only did one front flip in snowshoes today because of it Hopefully Wednesday softens it up some.
    305 taps on 2 Shurflo's, 31 taps on 3/16" and 229 taps on gravity. 565 in all
    Mountain Maple S3 controller for 145 of the vacuum taps
    2x6 Darveau Mystique Oil Fired Evaporator w/ Smoky Lake Simplicity Auto Draw
    Wesfab 7” filter press

  7. #17
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Location
    Farmington Maine area 44.6* N
    Posts
    62

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    Throwing my hat in the ring this year, sat out the last one.
    Still waiting to tap, looking for conditions to ripen.
    I see a couple days here and there that sap should run some but there is still some frigid air in the forecast through the 1st week of March.
    I missed getting smokey, dirty and sticky last year.
    18 gravity taps wanting to make a couple gallons of liquid gold in two boils.
    Happy sugarin' everyone !
    Backyard Sugarin' since 1991
    Concrete block wood burner
    24 taps on gallon jugs
    2' x 2' x 6" SS pan
    5 gal. SS steamer pan for preheating
    89 Arctic Cat Panther sap hauler

    Making a few gallons syrup most years.
    Maple Baked Beans
    Maple Oat Sourdough Bread
    Maple Wine

  8. #18
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Location
    Southern Maine
    Posts
    43

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    I have finished tapping about 70 maples on my street. Pushing 50 degrees here in Gorham today, crazy! Hoping to run the RO on Saturday and do a big boil on Sunday. Sap is dripping, not sure I'd say it's "Flowing".
    2023 - 40-ish taps (25-30 “effective” ones), tapped mostly in New Year’s Eve. 5 gallons of syrup.
    2022 - 70 taps - 12 gallons of syrup
    2021 - 72 taps ~ 8 gallons of syrup
    2020 - 8 taps on droplines into buckets, stove top boil, < 1 gallon syrup

    A neighborhood consortium of red maple trees, a renegade group of neighborhood kids emptying 5 gallon buckets, a homemade RO, a 3 pan cinderblock evaporator near the street, and 1 very patient wife

  9. #19
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Mount Vernon Maine
    Posts
    217

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    Quote Originally Posted by CanterburyMaple View Post
    Sap is dripping, not sure I'd say it's "Flowing".
    Agreed - I tapped 37 out of 45 today and did pull off 2+ gallons of drippings. Some were dripping, some dry. I'll finish tomorrow provided I can buy a few more spiles. Weather looks off and on good through next Friday to get things started. The sugar content was low at 2% from probably 10 jugs, so I might set that aside till the flow kicks in and hopefully the sugar goes up. Last year's sugar content was lower than usual for me, but it is probably too early to make predictions press any panic buttons.
    Two 2x4 concrete block arches with three steam trays each
    Tapping in Mount Vernon since 2016, 30 to 70 taps, 5/16" tube to 1.5 to 3.5 gallon buckets, some trees on collective gravity tubing to 5 gallon buckets.

    Mostly sugar maples, a few reds on 200 year old homestead

  10. #20
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    rockport maine
    Posts
    71

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    SAP-N-SCHOOL Another year
    I tap the trees on my school's campus. I am a first grade teacher and making syrup is part of our yearly program. So many ways to learn! We lost access to handful of trees so we will have roughly 35 taps and 15 birch for fun. The students do all the work by hand so it is a busy time of year. We got 15 in yesterday- they were excited to see a bit of accumulation in the pails but we are more prepared this year than any other. Not your ordinary school playground photo.
    [url]http://bugsmudbooksandsticks.com/sap-n-school/


    Screen Shot 2021-02-25 at 9.17.17 AM.jpg
    Last edited by Bugsmudbooksandsticks; 02-25-2021 at 08:19 AM.

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