Which trees can you tap in New Jersey?

Sugar maple (Acer saccharum, native): Northern and central counties (Sussex, Warren, Morris, Hunterdon); 'extremely rare' in South Jersey where any present were probably planted Red maple (Acer rubrum, native): Statewide; 'plentiful in the forested swamps of South Jersey' and the Pine Barrens — the tree Stockton taps (400 trees in Galloway Township) Silver maple (Acer saccharinum, native): River floodplains (Delaware, Raritan, Passaic) and widely planted Boxelder (Acer negundo, native): Riparian and disturbed sites statewide; FEIS range starts 'from New Jersey and central New York' Norway maple (Acer platanoides, introduced): Street and yard tree throughout the state; escaped in the northeast Black walnut (Juglans nigra, native): Statewide on rich soils

New Jersey · beyond the maple belt

Can you make maple syrup in New Jersey?

YesYes: sugar maple is native in the north and centre and 'many small farms tap trees for syrup'; in South Jersey, where sugar maple is nearly absent, Stockton University's USDA-funded Maple Project has shown red maple can be sugared with vacuum and reverse osmosis.

Local timing guidance

Event listing: 'From early February until mid-March, the maple sugaring season is at its peak in New Jersey.' Stockton began tapping its tubing system in the last week of December 2020 after partners reported sap, and sampled red maples in February 2021. A search summary attributed 'usually begin their season around President's Day' to Lusscroft Farm (Sussex County) via a 2015 NJ Dept. of Agriculture release — that page returned 404, so it is RECALL only.

Source: The Montclair Girl 2023 (PRACTITIONER); Stockton University 2020/2021 (VERIFIED); NJDA 2015 (RECALL)

Trees

Tappable trees in New Jersey

Tappable tree species in New Jersey
Species	Status	Where
Sugar mapleAcer saccharum	native	Northern and central counties (Sussex, Warren, Morris, Hunterdon); 'extremely rare' in South Jersey where any present were probably plantedUSFS FEIS (NJ in STATES list); NJ Conservation Foundation 2023
Red mapleAcer rubrum	native	Statewide; 'plentiful in the forested swamps of South Jersey' and the Pine Barrens — the tree Stockton taps (400 trees in Galloway Township)USFS FEIS (NJ in STATES list); NJ Conservation Foundation 2023; Stockton University
Silver mapleAcer saccharinum	native	River floodplains (Delaware, Raritan, Passaic) and widely plantedUSFS FEIS (NJ in STATES list)
BoxelderAcer negundo	native	Riparian and disturbed sites statewide; FEIS range starts 'from New Jersey and central New York'USFS FEIS
Norway mapleAcer platanoides	introduced	Street and yard tree throughout the state; escaped in the northeastUSFS FEIS (escaped 'from New Brunswick ... west to Minnesota and south to Tennessee and North Carolina')
Black walnutJuglans nigra	native	Statewide on rich soilsUSFS FEIS (NJ in STATES list)

Who already does it

Sugaring in New Jersey, documented

Stockton University Maple Project (Galloway Township, Atlantic County): three 3-year USDA grants; 'Initial sample tapping began in February 2021 on red maples'; community outreach gives residents with red maples ≥10 in DBH equipment and training in exchange for yield records
Stockton University (project page) · VERIFIED
'Early in 2020, the university received a $410,000 three-year United States Agriculture Department grant'; ~20 private property owners joined; just under 100 red maples on tubing in Dec 2020
Stockton University news, 30 Dec 2020 · VERIFIED
'native sugar maple trees grow in our state's north and central counties and many small farms tap trees for syrup'; Stockton's 400 tapped red maples made 25 gallons of syrup in 2022; grants totalling over $900,000
New Jersey Conservation Foundation ('The State We're In', 2 Feb 2023) · PRACTITIONER
Public sugaring programs across North/Central Jersey: Howell Living History Farm (Hopewell Twp, every Saturday in February), Great Swamp OEC (Chatham), Schiff Nature Center (Mendham), Tenafly Nature Center (Sundays Feb–mid-March), Reeves-Reed Arboretum (Summit)
The Montclair Girl, 24 Feb 2023 (event listing) · PRACTITIONER

Cautions

What local sources warn about

Red maple sap is roughly half as sweet: 'The rule of thumb for red maples is it takes about 50 to 60 gallons of sap to make a gallon of syrup' (Stockton's Judy Vogel). Stockton relies on vacuum and reverse osmosis to make it pay. (NJ Conservation Foundation 2023 (PRACTITIONER quoting Stockton))
South Jersey's problem is climate as much as trees: sugaring 'never developed in South Jersey due to the relative rarity of sugar maple trees ... and shorter duration of freeze-thaw cycling'. (Stockton University project page (VERIFIED))
Stop when buds swell: sap 'develops a bitter aftertaste once maple trees begin to bud'. (NJ Conservation Foundation 2023 (PRACTITIONER))

Where to look

Likely sugaring country

Galloway Township (Atlantic County)
Stockton University's 1,600-acre campus red-maple sugarbush — the South Jersey test case
Wantage / Sussex County
Sussex County has the most maple farms in NJ per USDA (RECALL from search summary); Lusscroft Farm's heritage sugarbush
Hopewell Township (Mercer County)
Howell Living History Farm runs February sugaring every Saturday — central Jersey anchor

Autosuggest priority place ('when to tap maple trees in nj'). NJDA 2015 and 2022 press releases (Lusscroft Farm; '30 farms in eight counties') returned 404/empty — those figures are RECALL. No Rutgers Cooperative Extension maple publication located.

FAQ

Sugaring in New Jersey: questions

Can you tap maple trees in New Jersey?: Yes. Yes: sugar maple is native in the north and centre and 'many small farms tap trees for syrup'; in South Jersey, where sugar maple is nearly absent, Stockton University's USDA-funded Maple Project has shown red maple can be sugared with vacuum and reverse osmosis.
When do you tap maple trees in New Jersey?: Event listing: 'From early February until mid-March, the maple sugaring season is at its peak in New Jersey.' Stockton began tapping its tubing system in the last week of December 2020 after partners reported sap, and sampled red maples in February 2021. A search summary attributed 'usually begin their season around President's Day' to Lusscroft Farm (Sussex County) via a 2015 NJ Dept. of Agriculture release — that page returned 404, so it is RECALL only. (The Montclair Girl 2023 (PRACTITIONER); Stockton University 2020/2021 (VERIFIED); NJDA 2015 (RECALL))
Which trees can you tap in New Jersey?: Sugar maple (Acer saccharum, native): Northern and central counties (Sussex, Warren, Morris, Hunterdon); 'extremely rare' in South Jersey where any present were probably planted Red maple (Acer rubrum, native): Statewide; 'plentiful in the forested swamps of South Jersey' and the Pine Barrens — the tree Stockton taps (400 trees in Galloway Township) Silver maple (Acer saccharinum, native): River floodplains (Delaware, Raritan, Passaic) and widely planted Boxelder (Acer negundo, native): Riparian and disturbed sites statewide; FEIS range starts 'from New Jersey and central New York' Norway maple (Acer platanoides, introduced): Street and yard tree throughout the state; escaped in the northeast Black walnut (Juglans nigra, native): Statewide on rich soils

Nearby

Other places beyond the belt

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