New Sap

Our season has started.  The winter this year has been almost non-existent.  We have no snow to speak of and have started making syrup aobut 2 weeks earlier than usual.   We have already made more syrup in February than ever before in my 35 years making syrup.  We will see what March brings us for weather. 

This might or might not be the result of global warming.  I will say over my career the tapping time has moved about 8 days back into February when it used to be March 1 or so.  This year we started 10 days before that (about Feb. 8, if you're now confused).  I doubt global warming will put maple syrup production out of business but it might change the time of the season beginning and ending.  I have posted some pictures of our first sap.  Notice that it looks very similar to water.  The sap is running through the mainline plastic blue hose so the hose is blue not the sap.  A common misconception is that sap comes out of the tree brown in color.  Well, the syrup is brown but the sap looks to most folks like a dead ringer for water.  In fact, it is mostly water with only about 2% sugar.  Syrup is 66% sugar so that is one reason syrup is relatively expensive.  We have to work fairly hard to get rid of all that water!

Sap Flow

This week the weather is colder so the sap is not flowing.  We have all our 2600 taps drilled and the tubing system is nearly ready to collect sap; so we wait.  We have tapped about 10 days earlier this year as there is no snow cover and any warm weather will probably bring sap flow.

A few notes about sap flow.  Ordinarily sap flows when the temperature has been below freezing (and the tree tissue has frozen) and then the temperature rises enough to make the tree thaw out.  Natural sap flow only occurs as the tree is thawing out.  If all the tree tissue has thawed out then there will be no sap flow.  The flow is caused by a pressure differential between the inside and the outside of the tree due to the thawing process.  Ok, that's the science... now for some  sugarmakers old sayings  which usually correspond to the science.

"Sap won't flow well with a south or east wind"   This is usually true as a south or east wind means low pressure storm system is either overhead or approaching thus reducing the pressure differential described above.

" A cold rain can bring good sap flow"  This is also usually true as the rain thaws the tree out more than just a 35 degree day might on its own.

"if the tree goes into winter with wet feet, there will be a good sap season"  I am not sure on this one myself but I do know that dry weather reduces the amount of sap in the tree and may inhibit sugar production.  That does not always translate into bad sap seasons.

"good snow cover means a good sap season"  This also only makes sense some years.  Snow cover insulates the trees and can prolong the season sometimes as the core of each tree stays frozen longer due to the snow keeping the trees cooler.  Weather during the season can be just as important.

We have one tree tapped for a bucket.  It is hard to believe that millians of drips can lead to thousands of gallons of sap.

I am continually surprised by when and how much sap will flow on a particular day.  Our best sap flow ever happened after a hard freeze with no snow on the ground.  My best runs are usually what I call periods of "nasty" weather.  Days above freezing but with little sun and dreary skies.  Clear, cold nights with sunny days in the 40s do produce sap but not always the best "runs".  In the end we know something about sap flow but there is still some interesting mystery about the process.  Our vacuum system does help us produce more sap over a season but it can not produce sap in freezing weather or in extended warm spells.   It can only enhance the natural flow of sap.