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Originally Posted By: sprkplug
Yep, box elders are often considered members of the maple family, and make great syrup. Are you thinking about tapping this year, Bill?



Not this year. Travel commits for work will have me away from home. Definitely on my list for next year. One site I was looking at said 40 gallons of box elder sap per gallon of syrup. Before I put a lot of effort into it I would like to make just a quart or so the first year to see if we like it. About how many trees do you think I would need to tap to get 10 gallons of sap? My trees are 1.5 to 2.5 feet in diameter.

Last edited by Bill D.; 01/19/15 06:40 PM.

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Well, there's usually another part to the equation: elapsed time. Weather plays the biggest role in determining how much sap will run over a 24 hour period, AND there's a huge difference in the trees themselves.

As an example, we gathered 48 gallons of sap this evening from 55 taps. But, some trees gave up just a cup or so, while others yielded almost 2 gallons. Learning which trees are heavy producers overall is part of being a good sugarmaster.

The other, and arguably more important factor, is learning which trees give the highest quality sap....that with the highest sugar content. Just like ponds, trees are highly variable, and...you guessed it, "it depends".

Roadside trees with huge crowns are favored as being good sap producers....which is one reason you often see big maples along roadways. They very well may have been placed there purposefully, years ago when the road was first established....roadside sap pickup is much easier than trudging through a foot of snow in the sugarbush.

More to point, if you allow a week to collect sap, and boil on the following weekend, under favorable weather conditions, I would say 4-5 trees would be plenty. As the saying goes, "better to have extra than not enough....you can always dump excess sap".


"Forget pounds and ounces, I'm figuring displacement!"

If we accept that: MBG(+)FGSF(=)HBG(F1)
And we surmise that: BG(>)HBG(F1) while GSF(<)HBG(F1)
Would it hold true that: HBG(F1)(+)AM500(x)q.d.(=)1.5lbGRWT?
PB answer: It depends.
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This is one of the most interesting threads on the forum.

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You guys are making me hungry for pancakes, sausage, and scrambled eggs!


If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.






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Sugarmaster; never heard of that one.

Last edited by Dave Davidson1; 01/20/15 06:27 AM.

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I'll have to talk to the Amish family that makes the syrup that I buy. They might have it done before I leave for the conference. Even if they don't I still have some I can bring down for someone to sample if they haven't ever had the real thing.


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Is the real thing different from that sold at Wal-Mart?

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Originally Posted By: Dudley Landry
Is the real thing different from that sold at Wal-Mart?


You can get 100% REAL Maple Syrup in stores, and Walmart carries their own brand, plus sells some stuff from Vermont. Haven't tried any from there.

Only ever had the 100% stuff from MI and NY, and this ain't no artificially flavored fructose corn syrup, with 20 other ingredients to fill bottle space.

It depends on the taste you like tho, and that depends on whose minding the process, and how well they are working it.

I guess you can classify really good Maple Syrup, in the same ranks as really good Bacon, Honey and Butter that makes everything taste so darn good!

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Tony,

What kind of GBS do you have to go thru to actually sell this to someone else?

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I've seen real maple syrup at Walmart, along with the artificial stuff. As far as it being as good, well it depends. A lot of variables can influence the finished product, such as time of year, (early or late season), production method, (batch or continuous), blended or not, age of sap before being processed, etc.

The retail market usually wants light colored syrup. Individuals tend to prefer a darker, stronger flavored product. Syrup is graded by color. Type A or B, light, medium, or dark amber for table syrup, and heavier, darker types and grades suitable for cooking, or further processing.

That's why bottling in glass is the ultimate show off for a sugarmaker...the product has to be perfect. Glass won't hide anything, while plastic will. You won't see the niter,(sugarsand), or cloudy syrup in a plastic bottle, but it's readily apparent in glass.

Of course plastic is often cheaper and more practical for bottling larger quantities, such as gallon containers, so just because your syrup comes in plastic doesn't mean it's inferior. But then again, how would you know if it was? wink


"Forget pounds and ounces, I'm figuring displacement!"

If we accept that: MBG(+)FGSF(=)HBG(F1)
And we surmise that: BG(>)HBG(F1) while GSF(<)HBG(F1)
Would it hold true that: HBG(F1)(+)AM500(x)q.d.(=)1.5lbGRWT?
PB answer: It depends.
JKB #398245 01/20/15 08:39 PM
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Originally Posted By: JKB
Tony,

What kind of GBS do you have to go thru to actually sell this to someone else?


Indiana isn't too bad, with the guidelines making note that syrup is produced in the woods, and the regs reflect that.

You can find a link to the guidelines (Indiana) here: http://www.indianamaplesyrup.org/news/finalguide.html


"Forget pounds and ounces, I'm figuring displacement!"

If we accept that: MBG(+)FGSF(=)HBG(F1)
And we surmise that: BG(>)HBG(F1) while GSF(<)HBG(F1)
Would it hold true that: HBG(F1)(+)AM500(x)q.d.(=)1.5lbGRWT?
PB answer: It depends.
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Illinois just passed a new law allowing people to make and sell stuff prepared in their home kitchens. The news report said the product must clearly state it is Homemade and you can't have sales exceeding $1000 per month.


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Got up this morning and made a last second decision not to open the shop, but spent the day in the woods instead. Definitely the right choice.

View at the sugarhouse, looking east.



Steam rising from the cupola, framed against the dawn sky.



"Forget pounds and ounces, I'm figuring displacement!"

If we accept that: MBG(+)FGSF(=)HBG(F1)
And we surmise that: BG(>)HBG(F1) while GSF(<)HBG(F1)
Would it hold true that: HBG(F1)(+)AM500(x)q.d.(=)1.5lbGRWT?
PB answer: It depends.
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Just got back from Wally World in Grand Haven, MI with glass 12.5oz of their house blend grade A Amber, and the same from the place in VT. A buck difference in price, with the VT stuff being more, but what a difference in flavor!

I guess I wasted money on one of them wink

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So okay JKB I'll bite, which one tasted better to you?


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I often read threads like this and wonder to myself why can't people like Tony live closer to me.. Then I return to normal thinking and thank God for his sake he doesn't... laugh

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Originally Posted By: Bill Cody
So okay JKB I'll bite, which one tasted better to you?


Well Bill, we all know that taste is subjective to the taster. The stuff from VT had a richer maple flavor, while the other stuff tasted more like eating a teaspoon of sugar that was slightly flavored.

Personally, I really didn't like either one, but one was much better than the other.

I'm sure Tony's stuff rocks!, so if you can find a small producer like him that puts the passion and care that they do, that will be the best stuff.

My BIL use to get his from a neighbor he grew up with in NY, and that was really good.

Someone ought to start a pickle thread this season. I know, I know, everyone makes the best wink

Last edited by JKB; 01/22/15 04:46 PM.
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Well done......thanks for the story!!!

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Originally Posted By: outdoorlivin247
I often read threads like this and wonder to myself why can't people like Tony live closer to me.. Then I return to normal thinking and thank God for his sake he doesn't... laugh


Spark is really no different from anyone else that enjoys life.

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Originally Posted By: outdoorlivin247
I often read threads like this and wonder to myself why can't people like Tony live closer to me.. Then I return to normal thinking and thank God for his sake he doesn't... laugh


I've seen photos of your place Sean. Why on earth would you want a maple syrup making, chainsaw revving, ginseng growing, HBG loving, outrageous contraption building, ice fishing maniac moving into such a nice neighborhood? Think of the property values man. Some areas of the country are just now starting to recover after the most recent housing fiasco.

Come to think of it though, I believe I've seen you running a warmed over saw? Maybe there IS room for me in Illinois. Unfortunately, I promised Yolk Sac that were I ever to depart Indiana longterm, I would make every effort to secure property in his immediate vicinity. Sorry man.

Maple syrup, REAL maple syrup, is somewhat of an acquired taste. If you are used to Mrs. Butterworth's on your pancakes, you may be surprised by the taste. My own sister doesn't care for the real stuff. Silly girl. Fortunately many, most perhaps, try it and never go back to flavored corn syrup.


"Forget pounds and ounces, I'm figuring displacement!"

If we accept that: MBG(+)FGSF(=)HBG(F1)
And we surmise that: BG(>)HBG(F1) while GSF(<)HBG(F1)
Would it hold true that: HBG(F1)(+)AM500(x)q.d.(=)1.5lbGRWT?
PB answer: It depends.
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Sometimes I feel I might be chasing something that is not real. Living the dream , they say!!!

Nice material things are not living the dream.. Getting back to nature is what I consider living the dream.. Wish I had more time not tied to a paycheck to get out and teach my boys things they can take with them for life.. Don't get me wrong, I am very fortunate and we have nice things that are all payed for.. We don't live outside our means and I do take my boys with me every chance I get to the woods.. But sometimes we loose track of what is really important and get lazy... Pulling the oh we'll do it next year turns into, wow, where did time go?..

Now back to syrup, don't eat any of it.. The last batch I helped collect and make years ago I used to brine a turkey we smoked at deer camp.. My wife and boys on the other hand could eat pancakes and waffles every morning..

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Originally Posted By: outdoorlivin247
Sometimes I feel I might be chasing something that is not real. Living the dream , they say!!!

Nice material things are not living the dream.. Getting back to nature is what I consider living the dream.. Wish I had more time not tied to a paycheck to get out and teach my boys things they can take with them for life.. Don't get me wrong, I am very fortunate and we have nice things that are all payed for.. We don't live outside our means and I do take my boys with me every chance I get to the woods.. But sometimes we loose track of what is really important and get lazy... Pulling the oh we'll do it next year turns into, wow, where did time go?..



I know exactly what you mean. In 74 I left the farm to go to college to be an engineer. I have traveled the world. I have been to and lived in alot of those places they write about in the magazines in the dentist's office waiting room. I have worked with lasers, electron beams and other really cool stuff. I spent weeks working on the first B-2 bombers out in CA. I ate White Castle hamburgers on a picnic table under the wing of the first F-15E fighter....But still something was missing.

Finally! I married a farm girl from Thailand and brought her back to the US. Bought a small little chunk of land and built a small little puddle of a pond. Great wife and two great boys. Life is now good!

Unfortunately still have to get a paycheck. Heading for Singapore in February for a few weeks. My wife is very understanding about me having to travel. She just says "Your job puts rice in our rice bowls!"

Dang life is good!


Last edited by Bill D.; 01/22/15 11:04 PM.

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Originally Posted By: sprkplug
[quote=outdoorlivin247]
Maple syrup, REAL maple syrup, is somewhat of an acquired taste. If you are used to Mrs. Butterworth's on your pancakes, you may be surprised by the taste. My own sister doesn't care for the real stuff. Silly girl. Fortunately many, most perhaps, try it and never go back to flavored corn syrup.


The first steak I ate in Australia tasted very different than the steak here stateside. Welcome to the factory farming of USA wherein it is pork 'em out ASAP, and separately, FAT is king here. The steak in Australia I ate was so lean it was vastly different in taste.

Your post regarding syrup reminded me of food differences.

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Both Dave Davidson and roadwarriorsvt have tasted the real stuff. Maybe they'll weigh in on how it tasted.


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Yep, it's in a class all by itself. I thought of the honey from my own bees many years ago.


It's not about the fish. It's about the pond. Take care of the pond and the fish will be fine. PB subscriber since before it was in color.

Without a sense of urgency, Nothing ever gets done.

Boy, if I say "sic em", you'd better look for something to bite. Sam Shelley Rancher and Farmer Muleshoe Texas 1892-1985 RIP
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