Damage control; Ice storm `devastating' to maple syrup industry.

Byline: Bradford L. Miner

NORTH BROOKFIELD - Impact from the ice storm of Dec. 11 and 12 continues to ripple across the Massachusetts economy, and painfully so in the maple sugar industry.

From the Berkshires to the Blue Hills, maple producers are clearing debris, re-establishing pipeline, and getting ready to fire up evaporators.

Tree damage notwithstanding, weather will be the key to whether the coming sugar season is profitable for the state's maple producers, who together account for production that in a good year can be valued at more than $2 million.

Dale R. Wentworth and his family operate the Warren Farm and Sugarhouse at 31 Warren St., and over the course of the two-day ice storm lost 40 percent of the sugar maples they would ordinarily tap.

A destination for many school field trips and other groups, the Warren Sugarhouse is "all about education," according to Mr. Wentworth, and giving youngsters and adults alike a hands-on look at how the sweet sap is transformed into maple syrup.

"For that reason, a couple of heavily damaged maples close to the sugarhouse will be left as they are. It will be something else that will be a key part of what we talk about on our tours this year," he said.

Tom McCrumm of Ashfield, executive director of the Massachusetts Maple Producers Association, described the economic impact of the ice storm as "devastating" to many of the association's larger producers - there are more than 350 maple producers in the state - but quickly added that like the resilient sugar maple capable of bouncing back from moderate wind and ice damage, the event was not the death knell for the state's maple sugar industry.

Paul F. Catanzaro, forestry specialist with the Extension Service at the University of Massachusetts - Amherst, said fire is the most common natural disturbance for forests across much of the country. In New England, it's been wind and ice that periodically change the forest landscape.

"Over thousands of years, our forests have evolved to deal with these disturbances," Mr. Catanzaro said.

Since the storm, the forester said he's heard several people remark, "My woods are ruined."

"Yes, there may well be some immediate aesthetic impact, and possibly an economic impact, but I'm encouraging people to look at the bigger picture," he said. "The damage from the storm has greatly enhanced wildlife habitat, the standing dead trees, or downed limbs and logs provide nesting opportunities and wildlife cover respectively."

Mr. Catanzaro said maple producers should be encouraged by the results of a study of damage and recovery from a destructive 1998 ice storm across eastern Canada and northern New England.

"More sugar maples survived than expected," he said.

Based on that research, Mr. Catanzaro said he would advise maple producers to either not tap or place fewer taps this year on ice-damaged trees, allowing at least one growing season for the tree to recover.

Horticulturist Paul E. Rogers of Charlton said that because the damage occurred while the sugar maples were dormant, the stored energy of carbohydrates and sugars in the roots and the trunk will be available in the coming weeks to help the tree bounce back during the next growing season.

"The natural flow of sap from sugar maples is something that's been observed for centuries and occurs naturally. This bleeding of sap in and of itself is not harmful to the tree, but in sugar maples, one concern is that the sugary sap is an excellent food source for any number of insect pests and diseases."

Mr. Rogers said the sugar maples would naturally begin a healing process to stem the flow of sap; he compared the process of new cell growth to waterproof hatches that seal off compartments in a submarine.

"Trees are already building layers of cells that will decrease both the duration and the extent of sap loss," he said.

Mark D. Ewen of Lunenburg has been tapping sugar maples for 40 years, and operates the family's hobby business - Sleepy Hollow Sugarhouse.

With many trees in the path of the December ice storm, he said he'll be tapping fewer maples this spring. He estimated 30 percent to 50 percent of his maples sustained some degree of storm damage.

Mr. Ewen cited tree damage as just one part of the equation, and said the overall economic impact wouldn't be fully evident until the end of the season.

"As is the case every year, the success of a sugaring season is entirely dependent on having the right weather conditions," he said.

Mr. Ewen said he had just finished making the rounds, preparing taps and tubing when the ice storm hit, bringing much of the collection system down, pinning it to the ground with broken limbs and then burying it under repeated snowfalls.

Since then he's had to repeat the process, rebuilding his pipeline system that gathers the sap.

"I usually put out about 1,700 taps, but I'm guessing there will be a third fewer this season." he said

"We usually make 250 gallons of syrup each year. We're shooting for 200 gallons this year, but we won't know until the season is over," Mr. Ewen said.

Mr. McCrumm, who operates the South Face Farm in Ashfield, said while maple producers in the Berkshire hill towns were particularly hard hit, researchers have found that if less than 75 percent of the tree's crown has been damaged, there's a strong likelihood the tree will survive.

Based on what he's been told by other producers, Mr. McCrumm said it's possible that up to 20 percent of the sugar maples will be lost permanently.

"On the up side, as maple producers, we should be managing our sugarbush and that means thinning. That can be done with either a chainsaw or - in this instance - an ice storm. Although there will be some tree loss, it's possible the stronger surviving trees will grow faster and be healthier," Mr. McCrumm said.

While this storm represents a major financial setback, given the costs of the cleanup and repair of pipeline and the loss of production, he said many producers would be applying for disaster relief to the Farm Services Agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.Mr. McCrumm said the overall supply and demand for maple products would have as much of an impact on maple product prices this year as the December storm.

"Massachusetts had a decent crop last year for the first time in several years, but the rest of the maple-producing regions did not. Canada produces three-quarters of the world's maple syrup and that pretty much dictates what happens for the rest of the industry," he said.

Last year, Massachusetts production totaled 55,000 gallons, according to the federal government, up from 40,000 gallons in 2007.

Canada's two poor crop years have driven up the price significantly, said Mr. McCrumm. "It used to be the case that you could buy pure maple syrup cheaper in a grocery store than at a sugarhouse but that's no longer the case. Most sugarhouses are selling syrup from $18 to $20 a quart and most supermarkets are getting between $20 and $24 a quart."

"For the first time ever, the wholesale maple syrup packers from Quebec are coming into the United States looking to buy syrup because they can't find it anywhere else," he added.

Mr. Wentworth said his sugar maples are scattered and he has to travel to collect sap.

"The biggest blow came in the damage to my furthest sugarbush in the Holden area. The loss there was devastating with the majority of trees on the ground, never to be tapped again," he said.

"For the few remaining undamaged trees, it just doesn't make any sense to drive the 22 miles," Mr. Wentworth said.

As with other maple producers, Mr. Wentworth said he's "optimistic and pretty good with rolling with changes."

"Sure, the December storm was a serious setback. We can only hope we have the right conditions for a productive sugaring season ahead of us," he said.

Contact Bradford L. Miner by e-mail at [e-mail].

ART: PHOTOS; GRAPHS; CHART

CUTLINE: (1) Mark D. Ewen of Lunenburg, who operates the family-owned Sleepy Hollow Sugarhouse, stands by a heavily damaged sugar maple in a neighbor's yard. Mr. Ewen, who has tapped the 200-year-old tree with four buckets for the past 35 years, said he won't tap the tree this season because of damage it sustained in the December ice storm. (2) Dale R. Wentworth, co-owner of the Warren Farm and Sugarhouse in North Brookfield, said the December ice storm damaged 40 percent of the sugar maples it would ordinarily tap. (GRAPHS) Maple syrup and the Massachusetts economy (CHART) Other Massachusetts ample facts

PHOTOG: (1) T&G Staff/PAUL KAPTEYN (2) RICH DUGAS (GRAPHS, CHART) T&G Staff/DON LANDGREN JR.