Electronic Highways
March’s maple madness
March—noted for the madness of the NCAA basketball tournament, kite flying, migrating birds and steelhead trout, the filling of vernal pools and Ides—has another madness: the annual maple sap runs yielding that sticky and tasty treat of real 100 percent maple syrup.
This year’s abundance of cold and snowy weather has left much of the northern tier of states in the U.S. and Canada’s maritime provinces, Ontario and Quebec with potential for a good harvest. Science librarians Fred Stoss and Dave Bertuca created a special guide, Tapping into Spring: The Art & Science of Maple Sugaring. Since 2005, the Library of Congress Science Reference Section has listed their site among its Science Reference Guides.
Before sugar maple buds open, the tree needs nutrients found in sap. An abundance of freshwater (this year’s abundant snow pack will produce much); below-freezing nights; and sunny, warm (40 degrees F) days provide optimal conditions for sap to start moving up the tree. Farmers will “tap” the trees in their sugar bush by draining sap into a bucket or through a network of tubes to a sugarhouse, where it is evaporated over roaring fires and transformed into maple sugar, the regional delicacy sought round the world.
“Tapping into Spring” provides an historical background of maple sugaring and a multidisciplinary scientific perspective on the process (chemistry, plant physiology, physics and nutrition). This compilation includes an inventory of regional sugar bushes (large tracts or stands of maple trees). The real action is in nearby “sugar shacks,” a small cabin or shanty where sap collected from sugar maple trees is boiled into maple syrup.
It is almost mandatory that you carve out some time, especially during the weekends of March 19-20 and March 26-27, to take full advantage of the festivities and foods of New York’s annual Maple Weekend. The farmers who operate these facilities open their doors and provide free tours of their sugar bushes and shacks, provide free or minimal-cost samples of pancakes and maple syrup—some have much more elaborate full breakfasts filling the spring air with scents of bacon, pancakes, butter and maple syrup. A list of participating farms across all of New York is available at the Maple Weekend website.
Be sure to check out the recipes in "Tapping into Spring," including Yvonne Ehmke’s absolutely stunning, homemade maple pecan ice cream.
RoundTheBend’s Online Travel Guide, a virtual treasure chest of tourism for those traveling about New York state. Sites for maple sugaring include Chautauqua/Allegheny Region, Greater Niagara Region and the Finger Lakes Region.
Among other sites worth exploring are
- Journey North’s Maple Sugaring Study, featuring maps, timetable, links, etc.
- University of Vermont Libraries’ Maple Syrup site.
—Fred Stoss and David Bertuca, Arts and Sciences Libraries
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