Buds opening on silvers in Hastings
The wife alerted me that the buds are opening on our silver maples in front. I verified, 2 of our 3 silvers have big fuzzy buds opening up. I'm afraid the end is near for 2009 syruping for us. I hate to wish ill-will on my trees but how cold does it have to get to freeze the buds off and restart the process? 17 degrees sounds familiar and I don't see that in our forecast.
20+ taps (mostly silvers) - welded shut kitchen sink + 2x3 divided pan on a dry stacked block arch.
What does the sap look like. With silvers you have to go by the sap as they allwasy have big red buds on them. Mine have had buds since Xmas time.
maybe 50 taps for 2011
Finally ready to boil when I get enough sap
I just might be crazy.( make that I know I am)
Trees all tapped except the ones with 5 feet of snow.
Enough rabbits to keep Elmer busy..
sap buckets today had a little yellowish rain water in them. Dumped them out and will see what it looks/smells like tomorrow assuming it freezes tonight and we get some.
these buds are big and fuzzy now, starting to get little flower stems coming out of em and stuff. One of our silvers still has tight buds still but two of them are definitely opened up.
20+ taps (mostly silvers) - welded shut kitchen sink + 2x3 divided pan on a dry stacked block arch.
Out here in the Marshall area, I've got lots of big buds with flowers too. The trickle of sap I got in the past day is a little off-color too.
But - the forecast for the next two nights calls for a low of 16, both nights, so I may yet be in luck for a bud "reset". Looks like the Twin Cities & Hastings areas might be a tad warmer though. Keep up the hope! -maybe the temps will bottom out well for you...
Dan
-15 years sugaring and counting - hoping to create a tradition my kids will always remember
-400 taps, mostly buckets (Silver Maples + a few Boxelders just for the heck of it)
-Custom-built 2x6 evap with Smoky Lake Maple raised flue, boiling in dad's old farm granary, now converted to sugar shack
-Cobbled-together RO with XLE4040 membrane
-New in 2021: experimenting with 3/16 tubing & a Shurflo pump.
sap still clear
The wife and kids collected lots of sap today and although the buds are starting to flower on the silvers they report the sap to be clear and without smell. I'll be boiling it tomorrow and we'll see what happens. I'm crossing my fingers!
The box elders don't seem to be doing anything yet. Does anyone know when they bud out in respect to the other maples?
20+ taps (mostly silvers) - welded shut kitchen sink + 2x3 divided pan on a dry stacked block arch.
Peepers,
My box elders are usually much later than my silver maples. I've had open buds and flowers on my silvers for over a week now without noticing any change in sap quality although there has been a substantial change in quantity with this warmer weather. Almost nothing going over here.
Tested sap today and my boxelders run about 1.7 and my silvers run a good 3% and the sugar maples are running 2% so I am not doing to bad. This next week of warm weather might do some trees in but on never knows. I do have one boxelder that has developed buds in the last couple of days and is slowing down with sap. Dosn't help that its pouring sap out of a place on the truck where the woodpeckers have really dup a big hunk out of it.
My silvers are really pouring out the sap the last couple of days. There is only six of them but they are big trees.
maybe 50 taps for 2011
Finally ready to boil when I get enough sap
I just might be crazy.( make that I know I am)
Trees all tapped except the ones with 5 feet of snow.
Enough rabbits to keep Elmer busy..
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