Sustainable Tapping
How to tap trees for long-term forest health and sustainable production.
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Sweet Talk: All Things Maple
The Cornell Maple Program presents Sweet Talk, with hosts, co-directors of CMP, Aaron Wightman and Adam Wild. Your hosts will present the latest research, news, and trends in the maple industry, with various guests including other maple researchers, industry experts, and local sugarmakers.
Taking Care of the Woods
Tips on how to achieve higher sap yields.
Taphole Staining and Sap Yields
The compartmentalization (walling off) process in maple trees and how it affects how to tap for maple syrup production.
Tapholes in Sugar Maples: What Happens in the Tree
Maple syrup production starts by drilling a taphole in the tree. This process injures the wood, which may become discolored or decayed as a result. If trees are to be tapped, every effort must be made to minimize injury while obtaining the desired amount of sap. Information about tapholes is given here for the benefit of the producer. Some important points discussed are: how trees compartmentalize discolored and decayed wood associated with tapholes, how some tapping procedures lead to cambial dieback around the hole, the problem of overtapping related to increased use of mechanical tappers, and new information on the use of para formaldehyde pills, which can lead to more decay in trees.
Tapholes: Straight or Slanted?
Is there any difference in sap yield when tapping at a slight angle (the historical recommendation) or tapping straight in (the current recommendation)? While there might be other considerations suggesting that tapping straight in is advantageous, from a syrup yield perspective, there is no apparent difference.
Tapping Below the Lateral Line for High Maple Sap Yield
Maple producers sometimes have a difficult time locating areas on the tree that will produce unstained wood and good sap yields. This video suggests approaches maple producers using vacuum can take to counter this problem.
Tapping Depth & Sap Quantity
Accepted tapping practices for 7/16 inch spouts with no vacuum called for tap holes to be drilled 2-2.5 inches deep. Later practices for 5/16 inch spouts under vacuum, call for drilling the tree to a depth of 1.5 inches. The reason for the reduction in depth, was to reduce the occurrence of drilling into dead wood, especially on trees with a long history of tapping. This can lead to reduced sap yield. When the 2018 season left us with an unusually low sap yield, the question arose: does tap depth matter when the system is under vacuum?
Tapping guidelines for current sap collection practices
Research into whether existing tapping guidelines are appropriate to use with ‘high yield’ sap collection practices which remove a much greater amount of a tree’s sap than older systems.
Tapping into Sappy Non-Timber Forest Products for Fun and Profit
What I am proposing in this article is that woodland owners consider sap and syrup production as a way to increase the financial benefits derived from their forest resource by tapping their trees, and increase the fun in owning a woodlot with a good “sugarin off” party.