Maple Syrup... who makes their own? Help?

[hwillm1977]

I'd like to tap our maple trees this spring, but I'm wondering if it's worth it...

Pros: I LOVE LOVE LOVE maple syrup, and it's really expensive

We own 5 acres of rock maple so could tap my own trees.

It would get me out in the woods in the spring.

Cons: Our maple trees are 15km from a plowed road, and I'm not sure I could get in there with just a truck... we don't have an ATV.

It takes 30 minutes to drive to the woodlot... do you really have to collect the sap daily? or could it be done once or twice a week?

How much sap/syrup do you get from one average tree? How much sap to make 1 gallon of syrup?

 

[The Vail Benton's]

 

[Wifezilla]

The pros don't collect daily. I never collected daily and I had one big tree in the front yard.

If you get tubing, some 5 gallon buckets and a way to seal them, you could wait a few days. As for access without an atv... cross country skis for you and a sled with a rope for the buckets

 

[Henrietta23]

We tapped the unidentified maple in our front yard last year. We boiled down gallons of sap in the kitchen which was a lot of work BUT we did get some usable, very tasty syrup. DH is looking to build an outdoor system for boiling it down. It was a great experience on a small scale.

 

[hwillm1977]

The pros don't collect daily. I never collected daily and I had one big tree in the front yard.

If you get tubing, some 5 gallon buckets and a way to seal them, you could wait a few days. As for access without an atv... cross country skis for you and a sled with a rope for the buckets

The skis is a good idea... I've taught my dogs to pull me on skis, sort of like a makeshift dogsled... so if I was on the skis, the dogs could pull the sap sled out of the woods And then I would be rewarded with both maple syrup and a pair of exhausted dogs... lol

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

yay dog power!!!

we are doing this for the first time and are really excited! we got a 'how to' guide from our Extension office that was actually pretty good. we are very excited!

 

[modern_pioneer]

44 gallons of sap for one gallon of syrup. Don't wait till spring to tap, I will be tapping in a few weeks. I took a cool class on it last year and helped mark with his very small last batch.

I look forward to doing it for the first time this year!!

 

[elijahboy]

i read that tapping maple trees is only for the north is this true

can i tap a maple as far south as south carolina

 

[Henrietta23]

I think you need freezing temperatures at night and above freezing during the day for sap to flow.

 

[elijahboy]

i think where i will be there is like 2 weeks with those temps

now i just have to pray that the tree i want to tap is maple

I think you need freezing temperatures at night and above freezing during the day for sap to flow.