The State Inspectorate for the Protection of Fauna and Flora under the President of the Republic of Belarus informs

The collection of tree sap from the forest fund of the Republic of Belarus is regulated by the Rules for the collection of secondary forest resources and the implementation of subsidiary forest use, approved by the Resolution of the Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of Belarus dated 20.03.2001 No. 4.

The State Inspectorate for the Protection of Animal and Plant Life under the President of the Republic of Belarus informs:

Sap collection may also be carried out in areas designated for other felling and intermediate use felling in the year of felling, from birch trees designated for felling.

For sap tapping, healthy stands of quality classes I and II with a density of at least 0.4 are selected.

Trees with a diameter of twenty centimetres and more at breast height, undamaged and with a well-developed crown, are designated for sap tapping.

In the butt part of the trees selected for sap tapping, at a height of thirty-five to fifty centimetres from the root collar, the location and number of tapping holes are marked depending on the diameter of the tree:

for a diameter of 20 - 26 centimetres - one hole;
for a diameter of 27 - 34 centimetres - two holes;
for a diameter of 35 - 40 centimetres - three holes;
for a diameter of over 40 centimetres - four holes.

Citizens, to meet their own needs, have the right to collect tree sap in forest fund areas designated for these purposes by legal entities engaged in forestry. To do this, you need to contact the institution engaged in forestry (leskhoz, lesnichestvo).

Before drilling the channel, the rough bark is removed with a scraper or axe without damaging the bast layer.

Channels are drilled with an auger immediately after the start of sap flow, determined by pricking the trunk of the tree with an awl. The channels are drilled with a slight downward slope for better sap flow. The diameter of the channel is one centimetre, the depth is two to three centimetres, excluding the bark thickness.

A spout, made of stainless metal or other material permitted for use in accordance with technical regulatory legal acts, shall be inserted into the prepared hole for sap drainage. Sap collectors (glass or enamelled containers, polyethylene bags, etc.) shall be placed under the spouts.

In the second half of the sap flow season, the fatty fungus, which forms near the boreholes as a white or pink foam, should be removed with a wooden spatula.

In the following sap flow season, a new hole shall be drilled at a distance of at least twenty centimetres from the old hole.

Sap shall be collected as sap collectors fill up, but not less than once a day.

After the end of the sap flow season, the spouts shall be removed, and the holes shall be plugged with wooden stoppers. The holes and cuts shall be sealed with pitch, garden salve, clay with lime, or resin containing fifteen to twenty percent charcoal to prevent tree diseases.

In the following sap flow season, the new cut or hole shall be located at a distance of at least 20 centimetres from the old cut or hole.

According to Part 1 of Article 15.22 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the Republic of Belarus, the collection or harvesting of mushrooms, other wild plants or their parts (fruits, berries, seeds, etc.), or tree sap in areas where such harvesting or collection is prohibited, or their harvesting or collection without a permit document when its issuance is mandatory, or not in accordance with it – shall entail a warning or a fine of up to twenty base units, for an individual entrepreneur – up to one hundred base units, for a legal entity – up to five hundred base units.

Violation of the established terms, use of prohibited means or methods for collecting or harvesting mushrooms, other wild plants or their parts, or tree sap, or other violation of the rules for collection or harvesting –

Shall entail a warning or a fine of up to twenty base units, for an individual entrepreneur – up to one hundred base units, and for a legal entity – up to five hundred base units.