1. Tapped and hung 39 buckets on March 4th
2. Had only one week of the sap running well enough to collect
3. Pulled taps March 21st.....the last two weeks I did NOTHING but hope the sap would flow enough.......never did.
4. Total production: 3 gallons of syrup in three separate nights of boiling
I pulled my taps yesterday. I guess the good news for this poor year is that I only had to work a week to get my yield (about half what I usually make). I tapped on March 4th, boiled three times in the next week (hardly getting 45 gallons of sap each time out of my 39 taps) and ended up with 3 gallons of syrup. I give it away for gifts each year so there are going to be some disappointed relatives this year.The sap hardly flowed at all weeks two and three and never got 40+ gallons of sap again. It was strange only working one week to get my yield. THAT'S never happened before.
50 buckets in the back yard
2 x 4 Leader Evaporator (used since 1973...love that English tin)
Make 5-7 gallons/year just for gifts
Best way to usher in Spring !