The sap flow continues and continues this morning, February 11th, though diminished considerably by the absence of a freeze over the last couple of days. The flavor of the syrup changes each day as the season progresses with hints of butterscotch, caramel, and vanilla starting to show up as the syrup darkens to a deep red hue. This last week has seen many days of temps above freezing, with nights dropping below. Any amount of freezing is enough to spur a sap run, but the longer and deeper the freezes get, the bigger the sap run that follows. Thus there are only a couple hundred gallons of sap in the tanks this morning, compared with our larger sap runs which can yield around 1,000 gallons in a 24 hour period when temperatures climb after a hard, deep freeze. We take it as it comes! With the weather forecast continuing to hold in a similar pattern over the next week with frosty nights and mild to balmy days we hope that our season continues to roll along.

Last year at this time the red maple flower buds were beginning to swell with warm temperatures, but this year they are laying low- a very good sign. But Mother Nature is a fickle friend. This morning on the farm there was a rude harbinger of spring. With temps holding in the 50s, a wood frog ventured out of the pond to lay it’s eggs, only to be eaten by a trout.

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