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helwenYup, hard as it might be to believe with snow coming down on us while walking the pipelines up on the hill, spring is indeed coming.
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fitzw and nephew Luke are doing most of that work, making sure the lines are usable, replacing damaged line, etc. They're working on the slopes that will get warmer sooner, gradually making it over to the ones in the shadier areas. The pipelines will eventually be connected to the trees and go from smaller pipes into a few larger ones, which go into sap tanks. We still use buckets along the road. Technically, we could use pipeline there too, I guess, but the buckets are so much nicer looking. On the hillside the guys are grateful for the pipelines as it saves a lot of time and effort in gathering (and cuts down on risk of injury as well).
The next phase is tapping. Each year new holes have to be drilled for the taps, because the trees naturally heal over a 6-7 week period of time. Just like people, trees have bacteria in their systems, and the purpose of some of those bacteria is to heal wounds and injuries to the tree, like for instance when a branch gets broken off during a storm. Or some pesky farmer comes along and asks for a share of the sap ;)
In the old days, formaldehyde used to be used to keep the holes open for longer, but fortunately that practice was abandoned, as it isn't good for the trees. There are also rules on how many taps you should put on a tree, and of course a minimum diameter of tree trunk, so that you aren't asking for more than a tree can safely give, or taking from a tree that's too young. We'd like our trees to be around for as long as possible!
***
Sugaring is a spring-time activity because that is when the sap is at its sweetest and also when the weather is just right for being able to collect the sap. What we're preparing for right now is when the temps will be below freezing at night, and in the 40s (F) during the day, for at least 3 days running.
The relatively extreme swings in temperature between day and night creates a pumping action that helps move the sap up into the branches. The maples need this in order to get nourishment to the buds, which will then open and you get the flowers and leaves for summertime.
Once the trees bud out, we pull the taps, even if the 6-7 week period isn't up. All the sugar's going to nourishing the leaves and to creating seeds. So as you can see, every year farmers have to figure out when to start tapping in order to get the maximum season. Too early, and you miss out on the end of the season, too late, and you miss out on the beginning.
When we had the restaurant people used to ask how the season was -- our answer? We'll let you know when the season's done. Because even if you get the timing right for the beginning, you could have a really cold spring, or a really warm early spring. If there was a drought the year before, that can affect things. Farming is risky business. If you've ever thought about taking up gambling, this is probably one of the biggest games in town.
***
Well, assuming all goes well, the trees provide lots of sap, which goes into the sap tanks and buckets. These get collected from and brought to the sugarhouse, where the boiling will happen. We have a lot more technology than folks had 100 years ago, but mostly it's to take some water out (reverse osmosis) before the sap goes into the evaporator, and various filtering systems. We do our best to use as little fuel/energy as possible, and provide pure maple syrup.
The ratio for making syrup is roughly 40 gallons of sap to 1 gallon of syrup. I do remember a few years where the sugar content was pretty low, more like 50-to-1. Hopefully this won't be one of those years.
So, it's quite a bit of work to make maple syrup, but the end product is worth it, I think. We make candy, maple cream, powdered sugar, and of course syrup. Diabetics like the powdered sugar, actually -- mind you, it's still sugar! But it's sweeter than cane sugar, so you don't need to use as much of it.
It does have different properties from cane sugar in another way -- it doesn't floss -- this means you can't make cotton candy with it, unless you do it the wayfitzw does -- 10 parts cane to 1 part maple, so the cane flosses and the maple flavors it.
***
Once we're up and running, I'll be sure to post updates. That way anyone who wants to see the boiling can come up, get a tour, and a lovely whiff of maple in the air.
fitzw and nephew Luke are doing most of that work, making sure the lines are usable, replacing damaged line, etc. They're working on the slopes that will get warmer sooner, gradually making it over to the ones in the shadier areas. The pipelines will eventually be connected to the trees and go from smaller pipes into a few larger ones, which go into sap tanks. We still use buckets along the road. Technically, we could use pipeline there too, I guess, but the buckets are so much nicer looking. On the hillside the guys are grateful for the pipelines as it saves a lot of time and effort in gathering (and cuts down on risk of injury as well).The next phase is tapping. Each year new holes have to be drilled for the taps, because the trees naturally heal over a 6-7 week period of time. Just like people, trees have bacteria in their systems, and the purpose of some of those bacteria is to heal wounds and injuries to the tree, like for instance when a branch gets broken off during a storm. Or some pesky farmer comes along and asks for a share of the sap ;)
In the old days, formaldehyde used to be used to keep the holes open for longer, but fortunately that practice was abandoned, as it isn't good for the trees. There are also rules on how many taps you should put on a tree, and of course a minimum diameter of tree trunk, so that you aren't asking for more than a tree can safely give, or taking from a tree that's too young. We'd like our trees to be around for as long as possible!
***
Sugaring is a spring-time activity because that is when the sap is at its sweetest and also when the weather is just right for being able to collect the sap. What we're preparing for right now is when the temps will be below freezing at night, and in the 40s (F) during the day, for at least 3 days running.
The relatively extreme swings in temperature between day and night creates a pumping action that helps move the sap up into the branches. The maples need this in order to get nourishment to the buds, which will then open and you get the flowers and leaves for summertime.
Once the trees bud out, we pull the taps, even if the 6-7 week period isn't up. All the sugar's going to nourishing the leaves and to creating seeds. So as you can see, every year farmers have to figure out when to start tapping in order to get the maximum season. Too early, and you miss out on the end of the season, too late, and you miss out on the beginning.
When we had the restaurant people used to ask how the season was -- our answer? We'll let you know when the season's done. Because even if you get the timing right for the beginning, you could have a really cold spring, or a really warm early spring. If there was a drought the year before, that can affect things. Farming is risky business. If you've ever thought about taking up gambling, this is probably one of the biggest games in town.
***
Well, assuming all goes well, the trees provide lots of sap, which goes into the sap tanks and buckets. These get collected from and brought to the sugarhouse, where the boiling will happen. We have a lot more technology than folks had 100 years ago, but mostly it's to take some water out (reverse osmosis) before the sap goes into the evaporator, and various filtering systems. We do our best to use as little fuel/energy as possible, and provide pure maple syrup.
The ratio for making syrup is roughly 40 gallons of sap to 1 gallon of syrup. I do remember a few years where the sugar content was pretty low, more like 50-to-1. Hopefully this won't be one of those years.
So, it's quite a bit of work to make maple syrup, but the end product is worth it, I think. We make candy, maple cream, powdered sugar, and of course syrup. Diabetics like the powdered sugar, actually -- mind you, it's still sugar! But it's sweeter than cane sugar, so you don't need to use as much of it.
It does have different properties from cane sugar in another way -- it doesn't floss -- this means you can't make cotton candy with it, unless you do it the way
fitzw does -- 10 parts cane to 1 part maple, so the cane flosses and the maple flavors it.***
Once we're up and running, I'll be sure to post updates. That way anyone who wants to see the boiling can come up, get a tour, and a lovely whiff of maple in the air.
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no subject
Date: 2008-02-27 04:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-02-27 05:33 pm (UTC)Over the course of the entire season.
During the best run period (which doesn't usually last very long, just a matter of a few days), you might get more than a gallon a day per tap.
no subject
Date: 2008-02-27 05:45 pm (UTC)