Maple syrup: about trees Part 1

Trees are extraordinary plants that keep us alive. They give us many nutritional products including fruits, nuts. Some trees have edible bark and leaves. We can also harvest sap from several kinds of trees like birches, heartnuts or  walnuts . 

The most popular trees we take sap from are maple trees. They produce a sugary sap commonly known as maple syrup. It can be produced in large quantities only from two kinds of maple trees: 

- sugar maple (Acer sachharum) 

- black maple (Acer nigrum) 

What’s interesting is that maple tree should be at least 40 years old to have good quality sap that can be base for maple syrup. A single tree can produce up to 100 litres of sap in one season. 

Would you guess how many litres of sap is needed to produce maple syrup? That and other interesting facts about production of maple syrup you will find out in the next part.

Sources:

• https://globaltrees.org/threatened-trees/tree-values/food/?fbclid=IwAR146voVjOwakq9ti4lmRrY5-Wwt5u5VBflYAmrYrSA6WSHSwg4_k-Hgrio
• https://wildfoodism.com/2014/02/04/22-trees-that-can-be-tapped-for-sap-and-syrup/?fbclid=IwAR2aThNsHC2MGp_SYlYHu65rchd8Ruf-YPTGwF0pr3W3lJAruTgYoLHBnDQ
• https://www.permaculturenews.org/2016/08/15/7-perennial-shrubs-trees-edible-leaves/?fbclid=IwAR3g1QRLv_u-5uH9Z19xvKxj4_atSoaKbsyVRpj7HPkPNGYpRN4h81Wylno