Lakeshore, Ont., maple producer taps trees earlier than ever
Rob Nadeau has tapped his maple trees earlier than ever in hopes of catching the sweet stuff often.
Despite the early haul, Nadeau and other area maple producers need to play a waiting game, in hopes Mother Nature has a sweet tooth.
"It's on. We're giving it our best shot," said Nadeau, who owns and operates Ruscom Maple Farm in Lakeshore, Ont. "These trees were tapped at 2 p.m. yesterday [Tuesday] afternoon. Every single one [bucket] is overloading, which is out of this world for this time of year."
Nadeau said traditionally they tap on Feb. 14 or 15. He attributes the change in climate to the early start.
"It's obvious that things are changing with the weather. And it's going to affect us," Nadeau said. "It's already affecting us. We're trying to get ahead of that loop and catch the first sap run now. Even if it doesn't stay cold for the next couple of days, the trees shouldn't be budding this early. There's always a possibility of budding. And that is not so good for us."
So Nadeau is paying close attention to the long-range forecast, while taking advantage of the early start.
"It's supposed to be really cold at night coming up," Nadeau said. "After this week, next week and early into next Monday, Tuesday, we should have steady runs all the way through and continue with this success."
He hopes.
Maple syrup producers need the cold, too
The concern for maple producers is if it stays too warm too fast.
"If you don't have that cold at night, you don't get that shock in the tree you need," Nadeau said. "You need that shock of -5 C to 5 C. Once it's 5 C and it starts thawing out, the wound created by tapping creates so much pressure in there, it has to find a way out.
"The fear is that we won't get as much sap," he said. "If it stays too warm and you don't have that shock, all of the sudden the tree will start budding. And as the tree buds, the sap is no longer good. It just doesn't have the sweetness. It's milky. When it gets cloudy, you know when to end the season."
Nadeau hopes that isn't the case.
"It won't be pretty," Nadeau said. "I've definitely never seen a winter like this before. This is our sixth year of tapping these trees here. This weather is unheard of. It's not maple weather at all. But if we stay like this, hopefully in the next two weeks we'll know."
Finding the sweet spot
John Williams, executive director of the Ontario Maple Syrup Producers' Association, said it's a tough decision whether or not to tap early, especially under these circumstances.
"Over the last 20 years or more we've seen the seasons start earlier and earlier," Williams said."This year it just seems more exaggerated. That makes us all worried in the maple world. Picking the timing of when we put the taps in is a bit tricky. Pardon the pun, but it really is about finding that sweet spot."
