![]() You can also buy spiles specially made to interface with a bag or tubing collection system. Aluminum is also available, but the stainless steel is higher quality. I stick with the classic 7/16 in.ch stainless steel spout variety. There are a few different sizes and styles. Spiles: These are the taps that you hammer into the tree. You can also just carry a hammer, but if you have to carry something, a small axe or hatchet is more utilitarian in the woods. Hatchet: Useful for clearing brush and pounding in spiles. Bit size will vary depending on the size of your spiles. These are little more cumbersome and time consuming, but they don’t need to be charged. You can either use an electric drill or pick up an old-timey brace drill, which is what I use. Here’s an overview of some of the materials you can expect to need for learning how to make maple syrup:ĭrill: You’ll need a drill for tapping the trees. If you are going to invest any significant amount of money in supplies I would just recommend making sure they are built to last and that you are committed to using them year after year. For me, half the fun of home-scale syrup production is figuring out how to do it on a budget. ![]() If I can avoid paying for materials, I do. The initial investment is also softened when you consider it will be used to make what would be an otherwise expensive product. Some supplies will most likely need to be purchased, but with a little creativity, many of the materials can be gathered for free or fabricated. ![]() Learning how to make maple syrup (or sugaring for short) is a materials-intensive project and you’ll need to get a few things in order before you can start. I generally start drilling test holes in mid-November and set my taps when I am getting good sap flow.īigleaf maple is a tough tree and tapping has little effect on its overall health. Sap will run inconsistently across individual trees and locations throughout the course of the season. Peak season is dependent on weather and varies somewhat from year to year. The season for tapping bigleaf maple runs from November through February. Look for fallen leaves and samaras to quickly identify productive groves. Branching pattern, buds, growth structure, and bark can all be used in conjunction. Because you will need to be able to identify them with leaves down, pay attention to subtle identification cues. Identification is relatively simple once you get an eye for these trees. Seeds, referred to as samaras, paired with 1-2.5 in. Flowers small, greenish-yellow, numerous, on hanging raceme. Young trees with smooth reddish brown to gray bark older trees with furrowed grayish bark, often with heavy load of moss and ferns. Large tree, often with multiple, branching trunks. If you are unfamiliar with bigleaf maple I suggest supplementing this description with local field guides.Īcer macrophyllum. How to Make Maple Syrup: Identifying Bigleaf Maple Treesīefore you do anything you need to be able to identify the bigleaf maple tree. Some folks find the prospect daunting, but with a little direction and a few materials, the process of how to make maple syrup is fun and productive, and enlivens the short, wet days of winter. Add to that the pleasure of self-sufficiency and you have a fine recipe. The taste is, if possible, even more delicate and refined. ![]() We don’t have sugar maple here in the rain-forests of the Pacific Northwest, but our native bigleaf maple can be tapped for a syrup that is of perhaps even greater quality. The familiar amber liquid we buy in the store is made from the sap of sugar maples found in the eastern woodlands of North America. The taste is evocative of serene winter mornings in the warmth of a cabin. Nothing seems to capture the essence of country living quite like pure maple syrup. How to Make Maple Syrup from Bigleaf Maple Trees
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