It is March 2 and the forecast is set for the next two weeks.  I do not see any hurry for the bag and bucket crews get out and tap. Granted,  silver maples tend to run earlier than the sugar maple,  but the forecast all next week for the St. Croix Valley is below 32 during the day and low teens to single digit low temps at night.  I am waiting until at least March 15 to begin tapping. Historically the best sap runs in the last 20 years have been during the last week of March and the first week of April.

Hopefully we will continue to have a slow warm up with a late March early April snow storm which will result in a normal to above normal sap season.

It time to get ready now though, clean your pans, check your evaporator, get your firewood ready..  The season is on the door step.

Don

Early tapping this year seems unlikely given the subzero weather forecasted for the last week of February.  Frost is down 4 -5 ft in some places according to reports i have received.

This cold weather has made it difficult to even get sugar shacks set up and ready to go.   Hopefully there will be a couple of 30 degree days in the first week of March to get out and set up evaporators, RO’s, sap tanks, and feed lines.

I do carry a full inventory of, refractory supplies for your evaporator, filters, membranes, wash solutions, for your Reverse Osmosis units, and currently have an ample supply of

Quart, Pint, 12oz, and 8oz glass available.

Don

Everyone is knows about supply chain issues and shortages and the Maple industry is no different.  Glass, anything made of plastic and anything made in China has been a struggle to obtain this year.   I have been purchasing maple supply inventory all year long and so has Roth Sugar Bush company.  Current inventory looks really good,  but that can change in a hurry because when we run out of a product it could take 6 weeks to 6 months to restock.   Bottom line is to order and purchase early and to purchase what you need.  There is not one item that I can think of that has not had a price increase.  The largest has been plastic.  Tubing, fittings, sap bags have increase because Canada has approved the addition of millions of new taps in their country which is all on tubing systems thus the demand this year has been tremendous.

Anyway we will all get through it, be patient on orders of items that we do not have in stock and the price increases.  Many times we do not know the price until the vendor has actually dropped the freight off at the warehouse in Cadott, WI.

Be safe out there..

Don