COLUMBUS, Ohio — The transition from winter to spring is typically the season that you will notice taps on maple trees due to the prime weather conditions.
Cold nights, below freezing, with mild days, above freezing, are preferred as the temperature swing as it allows the sap to flow and creates pressure within the tree to move the sap.
The weather can also play a role in how the maple syrup ends up tasting.
If these trees are under stress due to certain weather conditions, we could see more or less sugar content in the sap for the following year.
"That starts to push new growth and starts to open flower buds and once flower buds start to open then sugar content dwindles and you start to get less sweet sap," Peter Lowe, Senior Coordinator for Horticulture Education at Dawes Arboretum, said.
Warmer and extended winter seasons will likely cause this “sap season” to shift and shorten.
“If we have a milder climate with more rainfall even through the summer going into the fall, there is a longer extended period of life for the trees before they start to shut down and drop their leaves," Lowe said.
A shortening in season or a maple tree exposed to these unusual conditions has a higher chance to see a higher or lower sugar content.
If you want more information on the maple syrup process, you can do so at Camp Lazarus in Delaware Co. More information here: https://skcscouts.org/event/2022-maple-fest/. More information on Sugar Maple trees: https://bygl.osu.edu/index.php/node/1926.