Although we are starting to enter the depths of winter, March is just around the corner. Drivers through the Driftless Area will start to notice blue tubing snaking through the woods and pails hanging from trees. Maple syrup season will be here soon. Posts are starting to appear more frequently on the Wisconsin Maple Syrup Producers Facebook page. Hobbyists and professionals alike are counting down the days.
Earlier in the week, a catalog from Roth Sugar Bush arrived in the mail. Flipping through the pages, I was surprised at the high-tech equipment available for producing something as simple as maple syrup. After all, it just requires collecting sap and boiling off the excess water. Some producers tap hundreds of trees and boil sample continually over the season, which can run several weeks. Reverse osmosis and powered ventilation speed the process up, but I like the simple approach.
The catalog was a reminder that I planned to double the number of trees we are tapping, from 6 to 12 this year. Anxious to avoid finding supplies out of stock - see last year's gardening season and canning season - I placed an order for taps and tubing. I plan to use the six tree-hung buckets from last year, and this year add six taps that flow to buckets on the ground. The tree-hung buckets are 3 gallons, but the ground buckets will be 5 gallons, providing some storage capacity if I am late to collect sap. Roth is quick - my order arrived in 2 days.
My newly constructed barrel stove is waiting in the garage. With a more efficient setup and a year's experience, I am hopeful I can produce more syrup. My goal this year is to increase syrup production from 1 gallon to 4 gallons. Although I am only doubling the number of taps, last year I pulled taps after just a couple of weeks as there was other work to be done.
The wood is stacked, and the stove is ready. Soon I will be watching the weather reports closely, looking for the days when it is above freezing during the day and below freezing at night. The blue tubing and pails will then appear in our woods.
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