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Season Summaries
Season Update #8: Big sugarmakers closing out strong; big U.S. crop forecast
Peter Gregg | April 25, 2022
FAIRFIELD, Vt.—Some sugarmakers are holding on this week for the last drop of sap in what is shaping up to be a big U.S. crop.
“If you got tight vacuum you can make it through this warm weather,” said 110,000-tap sugarmaker Gary Corey on Friday during a tour for The Maple News of his sugarhouse in Fairfield, Vt.
Corey, who sugars with wife Danielle, was expecting to still get sap through the early part of this week.
As of Friday, the pair were at 71,000 gallons of syrup made. [ MORE ]
Season Update #7: Looks to be a big crop in the U.S.
Peter Gregg | April 12, 2022
ISLAND POND, Vt.—The U.S. maple season of 2022 is shaping up to be a whopper.
A two-week charge of sap at the end of March into early April created what for many is full crop and for some far beyond.
“Altogether the U.S. has a much bigger crop than last year. Perhaps 50 percent larger overall,” said Bruce Bascom of Bascom Maple Farms in Alstead, N.H. and one of the premier bulk syrup buyers in the U.S.
Bascom said the dominant color grade this season Amber.
In most of the northern areas of the Maple Belt, producers were enjoying big sap runs.
“As of now sir I can tell you that this year has topped the last close to five or maybe even better,” said Brent Bagwell, a woods manager for the massive SapJack operation in Island Pond, Vt. who is in charge of a 160,000-tap sugarbush there. [ MORE ]
Season Update #6: Big runs and low sugar in the Northeast
Peter Gregg | March 28, 2022
BENSON, Vt.—Sugarmakers in the Northeast were happy for a cold weather reset this week, after a six day run.
“I’m hoping we get recharged with a good hard freeze,” said Jeff Disorda of Rocky Ridge Sugarworks in Benson, Vt. on Sunday.
Temperatures were dipping into the teens and a dusting of snow coated sugar bushes early Monday.
Disorda said he had surpassed last year’s production, making 600 gallons so far off his 1,500 taps.
But his sugar content was dropping to low levels, as low as 1.2 percent sugar this weekend, after a season of low test sap.
“The best we had this season was 1.8,” Disorda said.
[ MORE ]
Season Update #5: Midwest states shutting down; New York ramping up
Peter Gregg | March 18, 2022
ORWELL, Ohio—Areas of the southern Maple Belt are almost done, and done early.
“It doesn’t look good here,” said Ray Gingerich of Orwell, Ohio. “We’re only on our second week of boiling and now it looks like it’s over.”
Gingerich said sugarmakers in his area of Northeast Ohio were already pulling taps or were about to, as temperatures hit the 70s and no freezes in sight for 10 days.
“People with buckets are hanging them up.”
He said most sugarmakers are only at about half of a crop or maybe a little better, which would amount to a disaster if it stopped now, given how little syrup there is in the marketplace and how high demand is, Gingerich said.
Over in Pennsylvania, producers were also about halfway, but more optimistic.
[ MORE ]
Season Update #3: Big week expected ahead in New England and Northeast
Peter Gregg | March 4, 2022
NEW BRAINTREE, Mass.—Sugarmakers in New England are hoping for the first big run of the season this coming week.
“Get ready, it’s gonna be big,” said Howard Boyden, a sugarmaker from Conway, Mass. and president of the North American Maple Syrup Council.
Boyden was on hand for the annual tree tapping ceremony on Friday for the Massachusetts Maple Producers Association, held at Grand Maple Farms in New Braintree.
“I think this week is, yes going to be be good unless Mother Nature has another idea. It is farming after all,” said Paul Schur, who runs the operation with son, Justin.
“We’ve had three runs and out of that two good ones,” Schur said, regarding his 900-tap operation on vacuum. ‘We’ve made 40 gallons so far.”
[ MORE ]
Season Update #2: Scramble to catch first big run of the season
Peter Gregg | February 10, 2022
DANBY, Vt.—Sugarmakers were racing to capture the first big sap run of the season.
A sap run late this week got many sugarmakers scrambling to drill taps and check leaks.
“It’s a nightmare,” said Ryan White of Danby, Vt.
White said sap that came in Wednesday had “nice flow” but he was bringing his sap to a neighbor because he wasn’t ready to boil yet.
“We still have 5,000 to put in.”
It was a race against the clock this week. [ MORE ]
Season Update #1: Early tappers making syrup already
Peter Gregg | January 14, 2022
RANDOLPH, Vt.—The early tappers are at it again, getting a jumpstart on the 2022 season.
“We have made a little over 100 gallons so far off 1700 taps we put in the second week of December,” said Cody Armstrong of Randolph, Vt. who has earned a reputation for routinely getting out early with the drill.
Armstrong said his first boil was on Jan. 3, after collecting upwards of 10,000 gallons of sap during the thaws between Christmas and New Year’s.
Higher up in Vermont, Gary Corey of Corey’s Maple Orchard in Fairfield, Vt. also got out early.
With 105,000 taps to put in at the 3,000 acre farm, getting out early is necessary to keep up with the season.
Corey said he was boiling on Dec. 17. [ MORE ]
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