tapping boxelder trees

[KDM]

Good for you Guy. Having a new skill is always a good thing and any way a person can increase their consumption of "Natural" foods instead of the synthetic protein based, artificially infused, beta prostate frosted garbage that has ingredients with 30 letters or more IMO is also a good thing.

 

[luvcatchingbass]

This looks like quite the interesting process.

 

[SDMF]

filtered maple at right, unfiltered box elder left.

the “white sand” at bottom of box elder is dissolved minerals that are forced to drop out of solution as water is removed.

The flavor of this “early” flow syrup is bizzare. Vanilla cotton candy or some such.

Maple forums say this is not too unusual. As season progresses it’s supposed to start tasting more like classic maple.

Fascinating stuff. Many producers keep this early stuff for themselves.

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the brix of saps using hydrometer

maple sap at top

boxelder at bottom

I think I might have a couple stud sugar maples!

What do the slip-bobber looking thingys do?

 

[guywhofishes]

basically the denser the fluid (higher sugar content) the more strongly it pushes against and displaces something dropped in it
(the higher the bobber floats)

if you put one in water they sink to the zero mark

factory calibrated at 38F, a temperature that is consistent with sap gathering temps
(because fluid density is very temperature sensitive)

Kinda funny - it's just a coiled piece of printed paper slid into the stem - they must drop the unit in 38F water, adjust the zero mark by sliding the piece of paper, then lock it in somehow.

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or remove some bottom weight? The darn things are heavy for their size.

 

[NodakBuckeye]

I've often wondered how they made the hydrometers I use to check salinity on produced water; same coiled piece of paper. I assume they adjust said paper and then close the tube with a torch. Comes with a certification and all.

 

[Duckslayer100]

I wonder what brewer's yeast would do to that fresh tapped maple sap. Maple wine? Is that such a thing?

 

[guywhofishes]

sap is finally flowing again

 

[sig357]

Doesn't the crew at Fort Stevenson do this in the winter?:;:huh Maybe contact them or go look at their setup. ;:;boozer

I was actually up there this weekend for the demonstration and got to try some of the syrup from last year. They said the flow was a little behind this year with the cooler weather. But it is sweet, tasted like a cross between honey and butterscotch. If I remember this correctly that about 40 gallons of the tree sap made about 1.6 gallons of syrup. Anyways make sure you boil till it hits about 219 degree Fahrenheit (use a candy hydrometer). The sap from the box elder trees have just 2% sugar and 98% water content. Also need to have a tree that is at least a 10inch diameter. One spout for every 10 inches of tree diameter and make sure you dont drill any deeper then 2 inches. You want to make sure that the spout/tap doesn't recieve any syrup from the inside part of the tree(redish color) as it is not as desirable.

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One more thing. This sap will spoil at the same temps milk will so make sure you keep in the fridge until you are ready to boil off the water.

 

[PrairieGhost]

The sap from the box elder trees have just 2% sugar

All I know is that it is highly variable from one tree to the next. Some trees must be less than 1% and then you hit one that is good. I think the most syrup I have ever got from one tree was a quart. I forget how much sap I got from that tree over a ten day period. Don't get discouraged because you will get trees that will only give you one gallon or less of sap, then you will get others that will yield over 20 gallons. I have not done it enough to know if this was due to temperature affect, time of season, or just the trees.

 

[sig357]

All I know is that it is highly variable from one tree to the next. Some trees must be less than 1% and then you hit one that is good. I think the most syrup I have ever got from one tree was a quart. I forget how much sap I got from that tree over a ten day period. Don't get discouraged because you will get trees that will only give you one gallon or less of sap, then you will get others that will yield over 20 gallons. I have not done it enough to know if this was due to temperature affect, time of season, or just the trees.

I do remember in the demonstration that if it was a dry spring that the trees produced less then normal. The way it was explained was think as the trees having a bunch of straws inside of them and that sap is produce on a vacuum and pressure effect. Basically when it's cold out that the sap is brought up thru the roots in a vacuum and then when the sun warms the tree back up it causes the sap to flow back down to the roots. Pretty interesting stuff.

 

[PrairieGhost]

Sig357 I don't know which direction it's going, but on cold nights you sometimes get nothing, and when the sun hits in the morning it really flows.

 

[sig357]

Sig357 I don't know which direction it's going, but on cold nights you sometimes get nothing, and when the sun hits in the morning it really flows.

Ya let me explain it a little better...
When the temp is decreases(colder), the colder weather creates a negative pressure inside of the tree. This causes the tree to draw the sap up from the roots. This is probably not the most optimal time for sap to flow into you bucket. But when the sun/temp comes up/rises the tree develops a positive pressure inside of it. This causes the sap to flow back to the roots and your sap colleting points due to the positive pressure. So basically cold night equals no or very little flow and warmer days equal good sap flow. good luck on your collecting. I probably won't do any tapping this year but next year I would like too.

 

[guywhofishes]

http://blog-yard-garden-news.extension.umn.edu/2009/04/the-mystery-of-maple-sap-flow.html?m=1it’s actually somewhat of a mystery

 

[PrairieGhost]

Sig357 I learn something every day. I thought I was catching upward flow. I was thinking xylem on the inside phloem on the outside. It's been a lot of years so I maybe not only butchered the spelling, but turned around how I remembered it in the past.

 

[( deleted account )]

No experience with box elders, but years ago we tried tapping birch trees to try ferment into wine. Not enough sugar there to even start fermenting, so checked the specific gravity and it was 1.0,as close as could be measured back then. Basically though we got gallons of flow it was basically water, almost no sugar content.
Box elders may be different, I don’t know.

 

[guywhofishes]

so we ended up with a couple gallons of syrup

very fun/easy

we will definitely do it every year - especially with a couple insanely sugary 5-6% sugar sap maples

box elders flowed a LOT - with 1.5% or so - we’ll tap them again too

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never ended up with maple flavor - stayed a crazy marshmallowy cotton candy flavor which is fine with us

 

[tikkalover]

So you’re new name is guywhoisasapsucher! ;:;rofl

 

[BDub]

Maple syrup is addictive. I have close to a half gallon of syrup from Wisconsin. Put it on pancakes, ice cream and hot cereal.

 

[NodakBuckeye]

Might make a fine glaze for a properly smoked thunder chicken.

 

[LBrandt]

Maple syrup is addictive. I have close to a half gallon of syrup from Wisconsin. Put it on pancakes, ice cream and hot cereal.

Hot cereal sounds good. Might have to make the last of the oatmeal for breakfast.