When to tap maple trees in Ontario
Maple season in Ontario usually opens February (southwest) to March (north) and winds down early April. Here's the long-run pattern, the year-by-year record, and what the forecast says right now.
- Opens
- February (southwest) to March (north)
- Closes
- early April
Forecast for Lanark
Updated Sep 26, 9:10 AM EDT
No freeze-thaw days in the forecast
Blue = below 32°F · Amber = thaw · dashed line = freezing
- SunSep 27No freeze, no run21°high11°low
- MonSep 28No freeze, no run20°high12°low
- TueSep 29No freeze, no run20°high9°low
- WedSep 30No freeze, no run23°high10°low
- ThuOct 1No freeze, no run19°high14°low
- FriOct 2No freeze, no run19°high14°low
Data: Environment and Climate Change Canada. Verdicts use freeze-thaw thresholds from maple field research; your woods may run a little differently.
Sap runs on a temperature swing, not a date. A night below freezing loads the tree; a day above freezing pushes sap out of the taphole. Field research treats a low under about 30°F followed by a high over about 37°F as a real freeze-thaw day, and big runs almost always come on days like that.
So watch the 10-day forecast. When you see a string of nights in the 20s and afternoons in the 40s, get your taps in a day or two ahead. Tap south-facing slopes first — they warm and run earlier.
No multi-year published dates were found. OMAFRA: good sap flow can occur any time after early February in southwestern Ontario, and the earliest areas tap 2–3 weeks ahead of northern and northeastern Ontario. The Ontario Maple Syrup Producers' Association describes a typical season stretching from late March to early April (CBC, 2025).
Seasons are shifting. In New England and New York, the sugaring season now begins about 8 days earlier and ends about 11 days earlier than it did 40 years earlier, leaving it roughly 3 days (about 10%) shorter, according to UVM Proctor Maple Research Center survey records analyzed in 2007.
Plan your season
Sources
- How to Time Tapping — Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food (ONmaplesyrup)
- Maple syrup producers hoping for 'normal' season after last year's early start — CBC News
- Celebrate maple syrup season in Ontario — Destination Ontario
- Statement of Timothy D. Perkins, Ph.D., Director, UVM Proctor Maple Research Center — Global Warming Mountaintop 'Summit': Economic Impacts on New England (June 4, 2007) — U.S. House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming
Common questions
- When is maple syrup season in Ontario?
- Usually from February (southwest) to March (north) to early April. The exact start moves by weeks from year to year with the weather.
- When should I tap my trees in Ontario?
- Tap just before the first good run: when the forecast shows nights below freezing and days climbing to around 40°F. Tapholes dry up within 6 to 10 weeks, so tapping far too early can cost you the late runs.
- What weather makes sap run?
- Freezing nights and thawing days. Field research counts a freeze-thaw day as a low under about 30°F and a high over about 37°F; nights in the 20s and days in the 40s are the classic sap days.
Get a heads-up when Ontario's sap will run
LuckySap checks the forecast for your trees and can ping you the night before a strong sap day — then keeps every collection and boil in one season log. Free on iPhone.
