How Many Taps Will Kill A Maple Tree??

It is time to get out and tap some trees for maple syrup! This year I will be doing a little experiment to see if we can push the limits of how many taps a tree can take.
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#mapletree #maplesyrup #Michigan

[@TrinityRidge1959]

New subscriber. My new hobby and your dead right. Everything hits at once. I might be small and the only one here but it will get done in small portions..need to get things rolling. Sap, seeds and garden. . I am loving your channel. A real homestead channel without fluff. God bless

[@MrRWNTOOL]

I just watched through your other maple sap videos from the past 2 years. Its nice to find a kindred spirit, as I made alot of the same mistakes you did when starting out. You are so lucky to have such a great property with trees! I can't believe you collected in kayaks, that is EPIC. I have about 15 taps out now, and will be working on my CMU evaporator tomorrow to get ready. Its really fun to watch your videos, I hope to expand my small homestead in the next few years to do some goats and sheep as well. Keep up the good work!

[@SheepyHollowCanada]

Get a magic marker to match the lids to the bucket... number them then...

[@PaulaJoDavis]

Great minds think alike! LOL! Shalom and Blessings!

[@amberfrommichigan4444]

I was thinking the same ☺

[@FOOKYOUTUBENUMBERS]

Or colour code the same types..

[@TrinityRidge1959]

Good idea. Nice❤

[@Yutani_Crayven]

You riding in on that vehicle is the funniest intro bit in a while. The hat elevates it to perfection.

[@SSLFamilyDad]

lol, I aim to please

[@Yutani_Crayven]

@@SSLFamilyDad It's functional and comfy, that's plenty by itself

[@neildriedger637]

Great video,loved it Todd! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

[@chaddesantis4191]

That little pre-gator looks right at home on the ice! Glad to see it's running good for ya.

[@starspangledwinner]

Be kind. Talk to the trees and thank them with words and thoughts for the gifts they share with you. They are living beings. Don't just take to profit. Give back too. Believe it trees and all living things have the spirit of creation in them.

[@lightningxx]

Already producing here in SE Indiana! Your channel helped inspire us to do so.

[@dereksmith1726]

Yes! I was patiently waiting for your maple videos again

[@abetownneufeld6057]

Love the verse at the end brother. Keep it going

[@vamp1982]

Heya Todd...glad to see you getting some good use out of that EZ Spout I sent ya....the homestead is looking good!

[@SSLFamilyDad]

Thanks for those! I broke my other one and have been using yours and like it alot, thanks again!

[@ryanbrockley7463]

Always look forward to syrup season on your channel!

[@YoungbloodFamilyFarm]

Good work, tree lives on, I always tap a few undersized trees that I plan to thin out the following year. I tap tomorrow

[@TheMindfulHomestead]

You just reminded me I need to clean out our buckets. Almost time to tap here in NH. Some already have.

[@nyannyan123456]

I just tapped 64 reds. 72 gallons in two days here in northern Ohio.

[@TheMindfulHomestead]

nyannyan123456 Wow, good run! I guess I know what I’m doing this weekend!

[@edieboudreau9637]

I remember watching 1 older family member using a hand auger to drill holes for the taps. He only did enough each year for family. Gave as gifts.

[@anywhy30]

Holy cow it's that time of year again.

[@asliceofheavenhomestead3559]

Sweeeeeeet 😂😉! What a great operation you have going.

[@MrRWNTOOL]

i just tapped in my 15 taps here in Western NY. What a fun hobby, I have been messing around for a 3 years now, and have always been curious about the overtapping!! My guess is that it will not affect the tree much this year, but if you tapped it that way for 5 years straight you might see some effect. Looking forward to your evaporator build!

[@GunGuy258]

Did you put 15 in 1 tree? If so, how did the tree do afterwards. I put 12 small plastic taps in mine, not realizing that was too many. I hope I'm not going to kill my tree.

[@willymags123]

I always enjoy learning something new. Thank you. Now I know how to tap a maple. 🍁🌼💛 till next time, God bless. 🍁

[@carlboehm3858]

Ha Ha ... Always run outta gas when I am farthest away from the shed ... Keep thinking I should put a little bit in a bottle for those times ... and I still haven't ... I have a friend who works at a Nursing home kitchen and I get a lot of buckets from him ... Bad thing is they are most plastic handles. I am putting some Baleing wire handles on to try out. Nice Video ... God Bless ... PS - I say the Super Tapped tree lives

[@mikewest3300]

Can you tap trees in Jan. If the temp is good

[@andrewsarles3520]

My taps are in got very little Sunday and Monday! Still need better fire box anyway! Used propane last year. Lost a lot of sleep last year was dragging at work. When I was messing around with wood boiling I notice I saved a lot of burn time with fruit wood and oak if you can get your hands on some? Oak slabs from a sawmill green 25 a pickup load!

[@FLPhotoCatcher]

I have those black spiles, and found that if I pound them into the trees so deep, it blocks some of the sap, and I don't get as much. Maybe a slightly smaller drill bit, otherwise, just put them in less deep.

[@PaulaJoDavis]

Maybe if you number your bucket and lid, you'll be able to match them up easier when you need them? Sharpies Rule! Shalom and Blessings!

[@SSLFamilyDad]

That is a very good idea

[@PaulaJoDavis]

@@SSLFamilyDad Glad I could help! Shalom!

[@capnjimmy7357]

Looking forward to the maple syrup videos. And hopefully a good harvest.

[@SSLFamilyDad]

Yeah man, you'll have to stop out sometime in spring and grab a bottle

[@capnjimmy7357]

@@SSLFamilyDad sounds great

[@greensnapper1602]

SSL Daddy, Cant wait to see the Sap Run this year ... Let;s See if you get More Each Season !! Keep Lid with its Bucket Mark them or Tie the lid to it Bucket lol Will SAVE you Time.... Been wanting to Ask how far are you from Lansing ? Thanks SSL Dad ..

[@superiordirk]

I am not sure where you store your buckets, but the best place would be anywhere in, or near to, complete darkness. Sunlight will degrade the plastic quicker than anything.

[@aministratorgeneral.9298]

The sunlight degrades the plastic and turns it brittle.........

[@DEVUNK88]

I saw a photo from a farm in vermont where they tapped trees from a kayak in a maple swamp lol. they had tubing to collect but they had to paddle out there and put the taps in....I thought I had it rough carrying a ladder around for some of my higher taps

[@Zippppy21]

wish me luck in Wa State, put some taps in my sugar maple and have a little sap running. got a little over a pint. Last year was to warm. and I started a little later.

[@edemup44]

The life blood of your farm is pallets. 😂😂😂

[@heatherlovesdeuteronomy]

So many tapped trees, do you sometimes find some you missed taking off the trees after sap season?

[@user-pj3yd2po9j]

Hello mate I'm from the Pacific Northwest I have 2 huge silver maples but watching your videos do your maples grow in a marshy area? and are most your maples of the silver variety? thanks!

[@RVBob]

My trees here in Pa are pouring sap! I'm very curious to see the 8 tap tree this Spring. I expect it will produce leaves just like normal. A tree has enough reserve to completely skip a sap year and survive.

[@dixsigns1717]

Where do you sell your syrup?

[@mio.giardino]

Has the drainage you put in last fall helped that area at all?

[@Quarry4x4]

I used to work with the guy that designed the square buckets.

[@TK-qu1ht]

Sweet! 😋

[@valleyinthebluffs9960]

Wasn’t aware silver maples could be used for syrup, we’ve got some of those. One in particular dropped helicopters all over one of the gardens last year, was thinking about cutting it down after that :( maybe I should just sap it to death! 😂 I’m looking forward to seeing if we can get enough sap out of our trees to make it worthwhile overall. I have no idea what I’m doing yet.

[@charlieadams1313]

You can eat the seeds from the maple helicopters. Nutritious.

[@brockwinchester4578]

I wonder how fast that bucket will fill up with 8 taps in it...could be an interesting way to kill a tree in spring, let it dry out a little during summer, and harvest it in fall.

[@jimputnam2044]

Could you set up a vacuum line in the swamp?, If so it would not madder if it warmed up and the ice melted you would still be getting sap.

[@lechatbotte.]

jim putnam maybe a trash pump, run when he needs to

[@TheSmagzilla]

better to not kill off your south side of the tree. tap all sides. best to go 4-6" over from your previous years. The north side will give you just as much sap late season as the south side running sooner due to sunlight hitting it. if you go for roots, you'll likely run out of places to tap very soon and start hitting old dead columns of wood from previous taps you cant see anymore. if youre tired of washing buckets and mismanaged lids, those bag hangers can be built out of PVC pipe for pennies compared to the 2-3 dollar metal hangers. just drill a hole for the tap, and cut a groove 1" from the bottom for a ziptie. bags do fill about 4 gallons. you'll soon find out that bags dont hold up well due to rubbing on trees, animals biting holes in them ect. but they are like 25-30 cents a peice and you dont need to clean them, just toss or recycle them. Sorry for the novel, ive just been thru it all and actually read the textbooks you referred to. Seminars are awesome to sit thru too.

[@productrev3984]

Number the lids to the buckets with a sharpie

[@carfvallrightsreservedwith6649]

It's not how many taps will kill a tree but rather how much sap is collected. Can't remember off the cuff but do know so much volume of sap per tree trunk diameter. Protect/respect your resource.

[@Submanca]

I have a question. You know I am in Canada and it is much colder up here. My question is can you tap to early? We have a warm snap coming up and I don't know if it will stick or not. So I thought I better tap now.

[@SSLFamilyDad]

From my limited experience I do not think you can tap too early. I tapped 2 weeks before the first run last year and it was fine

[@brentderksen]

Shoot, Puppy lost his stick! What now?

[@tenthdimension9836]

Those look like silver maples. Not a lot of sugar in those but they still work.

[@dylanmcdonald7765]

Is there a way for you to run lines/hoses to 1 large tank somewhere on your farm? Maybe put it inside the greenhouse? Maybe use a vacuum pump and or gravity to a lower point on the farm. Would cost be the only thing keeping you from this type of setup?

[@SSLFamilyDad]

That would be a dream to have a pump house with a vacuum system into a large tank that I could just go to and pump into an evaporator. Would be thousands of dollars though and I am not ready to make that kind of investment yet

[@bloominginplace4791]

Go Green!

[@DEVUNK88]

if you let that tree grow and made lumber out of it 20 years from now you would have some some pretty cool tap stained maple boards

[@augustreil]

Nice, Did the electric start on the Honda take a nose dive ? Thumbs up always !!

[@SSLFamilyDad]

It was working them stopped, I think there is an issue still with a loose wire or the switch possibly

[@augustreil]

@@SSLFamilyDad, Thanks, I figured it was in the switch or wires.

[@zachmoerman4165]

Follow up video?

[@IanHanson1986]

Let's say I looked real real hard and couldn't find the followup video...how did that tree do?

[@baba-booey3232]

Apparently fine according to the response comment below

[@bills3851]

How do you wash all of those tubes?

[@SSLFamilyDad]

rinsed and we have also soaked them in bleach water in the past also. If any have mold in them they get tossed

[@jacobadkins4674]

Did that kill the tree???

[@bartrosegaar5582]

How much sap did you got so far?

[@SSLFamilyDad]

40 gallons, running today though!

[@KingBiscuit-iw9mu]

Is it hard to get the taps out of the trees, are they reusable?

[@SSLFamilyDad]

They just pop right out with a claw hammer or pry-bar and I reuse them each year

[@edieboudreau9637]

King Biscuit2112 some Mainers leave them in & just cap them

[@bbt305]

Ok??? So whats the answer? I wasted time on the video to not have a conclusion?

[@tristanculpepper5627]

Can I buy your maple syrup ?

[@flemingsburgfarmscommunity6390]

i don't think it will kill the tree but it will not grow well this year

[@lawtoncustom8582]

So did the 8 taps kill the maple?

[@SSLFamilyDad]

Nope

[@selador11]

If you paint those buckets they'll last longer.

[@4lifejeph]

How do you know when it's time to put the taps in?

[@SSLFamilyDad]

Normally in February when temps start to get into 30s and 40s during the night and 20s at night

[@prtlydedlyice7400]

You need a son to help you haha!

[@j.vonjohnson4138]

+1 on needing an answer how the over tap worked. Wasted too much time for now answer.

[@phxtonash]

No way that tree dies with only eight taps between the woodpecker's and me my trees survive a heavy bleeding every year

[@SSLFamilyDad]

So you are saying I need to add more taps....got it:)

[@zeshanasif1465]

You're literally sucking the life outta that tree

[@kellyp9593]

I would think you would have more respect for the life of trees. Sad.

[@blu_flies]

You don't answer the question. Just not a good video. Misleading.