The sap's running! Yay!! :-) - DPChallenge Forums

03/25/2013 06:11:13 PM · #151

Originally posted by RayEthier:

Originally posted by snaffles:
Hey, what happened to the post I put up here this morning?

...If you were frolicking in the woods naked, the SC might have deleted it. :O)

Ray

Pics or it didn't happen...

Canon EF 17-40mm f/4.0L USM

03/25/2013 07:36:24 PM · #152

I wasn't nekkid!! Or in just a red dressing gown and wellies, either! If anything I was in my workout gear, aka baggy black workout pants over biking shorts and a biking jersey over a T. So there :-p

kawesttex

Apple iPhone 11 Pro

03/25/2013 07:39:40 PM · #153

Still need pics though.

03/25/2013 08:01:52 PM · #154

*sigh* Ok will see what I can do, by the cruel cold light of day...no full frontals though!!

Message edited by author 2013-03-25 20:07:00.

sfalice

Canon PowerShot SX60 HS

03/31/2013 04:18:51 PM · #155

I found this article in the NY Times today. Fascinating discussion of the 'modern' way of extracting sap from maples.

04/02/2013 10:36:59 AM · #156

More new pics up in the gallery...

Maple Gallery

@ Alice...yep that's how more and more people do it, but I am not going to get to that size or go with that gear. I've been in contact with Dr Perkins a couple of times so at least they were talking to the most legit sources around.

Also, that tubing/vacuum method isn't foolproof. Large wildlife critters can easily take down a whole stretch of line, reminds me of having to constantly go and fix long stretches of electric fencing.

I'll stick with my galvanized pails, though I may switch to plastic spiles next year.

Message edited by author 2013-04-02 10:53:42.

sfalice

Canon PowerShot SX60 HS

04/02/2013 03:40:11 PM · #157

Originally posted by snaffles:

I'm glad you're sticking with the traditional way, Susan. Even though the new methods extract more sap, and even though the producer quoted says there is no harm in taking huge amounts of sap from each maple, I cannot help but wonder if this wholesale removal of what I was taught was the tree's life blood is as harmless as he asserts.

PS You do have some appealing pictures of that liquid golden glory in your gallery.

Message edited by author 2013-04-02 15:42:24.

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM II

04/02/2013 08:48:16 PM · #158

Thanks for the nice words Alice, though with such yummy colourful stuff it's difficult to NOT get a good shot!

And finally got a good unbiased taste of all 4 batches...1 and 2 have a toasty, nutty (don't ask me what kind, hard to say) notes to them, 3 still tastes butterscotchy and 4 tastes more like traditional maple, though I still think I taste marshmallow :-)

Yeah, I feel it unfair to go and suck the sap out of the trees. Seems a little too brutal, kinda like shooting fish in a barrel. And unlike fish or hunting caged captive game trophy critters in hunting parks, trees can't get away. I take what they give and when they stop giving, that's it til next spring.

pamb

Canon EOS-5D Mark III

04/02/2013 11:46:38 PM · #159

Very excellent attitude :)

04/03/2013 12:11:19 AM · #160

Originally posted by snaffles:

The maple trees here are literally overflowing with sap. The trees in front of my house are dripping sap onto the sidewalk every day.

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 USM

04/03/2013 09:56:39 AM · #161

[quote=Spork99...The maple trees here are literally overflowing with sap. The trees in front of my house are dripping sap onto the sidewalk every day. [/quote]

Yep, trees definitely can leak sap, tree #3 has a sense of humour and likes to drip sap on me from wayy high up...but if the trees are dripping sap onto a sidewalk I'm going to guess you're in a city...and uhm nope you probably wouldn't want to try and collect it!

City trees are generally sprayed with pesticides and subject to heavy amounts of air pollution etc, the larger the city the worse the situation. Not to mention that you would probably end up with all kinds of weird yucky contaminants in the pails, like cigarette butts and probably even pee or worse.

If you're in a relatively small town, though, you would probably be OK to collect it.

RayEthier

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

04/03/2013 06:02:30 PM · #162

Originally posted by snaffles:

...Not to mention that you would probably end up with all kinds of weird yucky contaminants in the pails, like cigarette butts and probably even pee or worse.

If you're in a relatively small town, though, you would probably be OK to collect it.

Hehehehe... Raymee has a secret :O)

Ray

Message edited by author 2013-04-03 18:06:48.

04/03/2013 09:26:17 PM · #163

Originally posted by RayEthier:

Originally posted by snaffles:

...Not to mention that you would probably end up with all kinds of weird yucky contaminants in the pails, like cigarette butts and probably even pee or worse.

If you're in a relatively small town, though, you would probably be OK to collect it.

Hehehehe... Raymee has a secret :O)

Ray

*syrupy voice*

Oh really, Uncle Raymee? Then perhaps you'd like to come over and blind-taste a few batches of syrup and maybe some raw fresh sap, too? Hmmm?

sfalice

Canon PowerShot SX60 HS

04/04/2013 05:42:25 AM · #164

Originally posted by snaffles:

... you would probably end up with all kinds of weird yucky contaminants in the pails, ... probably even pee or worse.

Brings forth strange images of the various complex pi*sing contests that could ensue among the young, and not-so-young.

04/05/2013 12:45:41 PM · #165

Man oh man, a week ago there was next to zilch happening. Now the weather is finally working in our favour and best of all, my two best trees are apparently competing to see who can produce the most sap! Think I've gotten about 4 gallons from #2 and #6 alone, all the others are kickin back and letting those two do all the heavy lifting :-)

04/05/2013 02:03:33 PM · #166

Originally posted by snaffles:

Originally posted by Spork99:
...The maple trees here are literally overflowing with sap. The trees in front of my house are dripping sap onto the sidewalk every day.

Yep, trees definitely can leak sap, tree #3 has a sense of humour and likes to drip sap on me from wayy high up...but if the trees are dripping sap onto a sidewalk I'm going to guess you're in a city...and uhm nope you probably wouldn't want to try and collect it!

City trees are generally sprayed with pesticides and subject to heavy amounts of air pollution etc, the larger the city the worse the situation. Not to mention that you would probably end up with all kinds of weird yucky contaminants in the pails, like cigarette butts and probably even pee or worse.

If you're in a relatively small town, though, you would probably be OK to collect it.

Pesticide sprayed on trees in the city? I dunno what cities spray their trees in residential neighborhoods, but it isn't this one. I can't even get them to come trim the dead branches that hang over the sidewalk or pick up the dead branches when they do fall.

Message edited by author 2013-04-05 14:04:43.

04/05/2013 02:04:23 PM · #167

dbl post

Message edited by author 2013-04-05 14:05:04.

04/05/2013 05:45:10 PM · #168

Originally posted by Spork99:

*shrugs* I dunno either, I'm no arborist. But I am assuming that they do undertake some kind of course of treatment to ensure that various bugs etc don't get the trees. A lot would depend on area, tree variety etc.

ETA: Hmmm....make of this what you will, taken in conjunction with the fact that Uncle Raymee seems to have a *secret*, this particular tree is very close to the road, and suddenly I have this:

Message edited by author 2013-04-05 19:14:01.

04/06/2013 09:23:07 AM · #169

A buddy of mine on MT had to go to Montreal for a training session lasting a few days and left the sap collection to his neighbour. Here's what happened (bold mine for emphasis):

...glad to be back from Montreal , my neighbor did alright , all though the first day i was gone he went back into the bush and looked in all my buckets to check them and said to himself...... all thats in here is water !! and he poured everything out onto the ground lol , pretty sure he poured out close to 12 gallons of sap , he thought that maple syrup came out of the tree's as syrup ( even though I have explained to him the process on may occasions) , it wasnt till his wife came home and he explained to her what he had done and she just looked at him and shock her head and said , hunny .... I will look after collecting the sap for Al.

Message edited by author 2013-04-06 09:23:56.

04/08/2013 09:06:16 AM · #170

Posted a few more pics in the Gallery...Maple Gallery

So proud of my batches this year, finished them off so they're all crystal clear with no sugar crystals (meaning it was overcooked) or nitre (meaning it wasn't filtered finely enough) in the bottom. Glorious colours and a spectrum of flavours that I sure wasn't expecting especially from the first 3 batches!!

Will probably be pulling the spiles by Wednesday, the nighttime temps will no longer be cold enough. And one of my smaller-producing trees dried up so I pulled its spiles yesterday and glad to see the spile holes aren't leaking.

Message edited by author 2013-04-08 09:09:50.

04/09/2013 08:52:42 PM · #171

Jeez this is turning into a blog, just listening to myself rant is too much like real life!

Anyway a fellow local tapper on MT has offered me 25 gallons of sap, free for the taking *swoon* though I will probably be able to take only about 16g, still nothing to sneeze at! Time is of the essence though, essentially sap is only good fresh for 4 days after collecting, and then it will start to cloud and turn sour on you, which is why most of the big outfits boil on the same day they collect. So, let's just say that between work, life and 16 or so gallons of sap nearing the best-by date...I may not be around much the next couple days!!

04/10/2013 12:44:20 PM · #172

Well now I have 16g more of sap to process, ideally within the next 24 hrs before it spoils...cross fingers...

Pulled the spiles today, they were slowing up so much that yesterday I got all of 3 cups from my remaining 5 trees! So finishing up boiling my own sap and starting to boil the new stuff.