Periodical: Maple Syrup Digest

Showing 171 – 180 of 209 resources

Should Lateral Lines Be Vented?

A great deal has changed since the 1960s and 1970s in terms of maple production and recommended practices, especially given the introduction of the new polyethylene tubing formulations and new types of spouts. Consequently, we are occasionally asked whether lateral lines in gravity tubing installations should be vented. As a result of these questions, we compared sap yield from standard non vented (closed) 5/16″ lateral lines alongside a vented 5/16″ installation under gravity conditions.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
October 1, 2006

Relating Spectrophotometer Readings to Visual Grading of Maple Syrup

Color grading of maple syrup is based on placing syrup samples within four or more categories based either on visual comparison to color references or measurement of light transmission with a spectrophotometer. With a spectrophotometer, specific transmission values are used as break points to divide syrup samples into color grades. The purpose of this report is to describe the lack of agreement between existing light transmission break points and visual grading and how this problem can be addressed.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
June 1, 2006

Temperatures in the Sugarbush

One major limitation to the sap-run forecasting ability of many producers is that measurement of air temperature in one location does not capture the wide variation in air temperature throughout the sugarbush; nor does it accurately reflect the temperature of the diverse parts of trees, or of the soil. A study of the range of temperatures in the forest during sugaring time is helpful in understanding some of the influences of weather on sap flow. This article briefly summarizes a large set of data collected over the past years which includes many sugarbush temperatures, and will give a few examples of the sometimes unexpected variation in temperatures which occur during the spring.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
June 1, 2006

Climate Change and the New England Forest

In the next one hundred years New England’s cooler regions may no longer promote the growth of sugar maples, which are well adapted to the region’s current climate. The change in climate will support species that now grow to the south of New England and in lower elevations, especially oaks and southern pines. Additionally, there will be the threat of non-native species, both insect pests and invasive plant species which may take over the forests.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
February 1, 2006

Proctor Maple Research Center Update: Investigating the Effects of Sap Processing Equipment and Techniques on Maple Syrup Chemistry & Quality

A new research facility designed and dedicated to the study of the effects of sap processing equipment and techniques on the chemistry and quality of maple syrup is being constructed at the UVM Proctor Maple Research Center. This facility will allow researchers to evaluate the differences in maple syrup due to changes in sap processing equipment, including reverse osmosis, evaporators, and other evaporation equipment (steam-away, air injection units, etc.).

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
February 1, 2006

Controlling Microbial Population in Sap Systems

Over the course of one maple sap season in Western New York that started approximately March 8, 2005 and ended April 9, 2005, four maple sap locations were sampled to determine the levels and diversity of microbial populations contained in the different sap samples.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
February 1, 2006

Making Maple Syrup in a Land of Funnel Cakes and Pulled Pork

Making maple syrup in the mild climate of southern Illinois is lesspredictable and more work. The sap seasons are longer, there is an almost certain need to freshen the tap holes, and the freeze-thaw cycles are less predictable.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
December 1, 2005

A History of the Gooseneck: The Brower Sap Piping System and the Cary Maple Sugar Company

The initial application of plastic tubing for gathering maple sap in the 1950s was indisputably one of the most significant technological developments of the maple industry in the twentieth century. However, the first viable tubing system was introduced over forty years earlier as a gravity drawn system made completely of metal.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
October 1, 2005

New Tapping Guidelines

Here I explain why maple producers should know the growth rate of trees in addition to diameter to determine the number of tapholes per tree.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
October 1, 2005

Evaluation of Alternative Sap Ladders: Summary of 2002-2003 Research Project

This research project was established in the spring of 2002 to study the technique of lifting sap with simple “sap ladder” tubing structures. It was conducted during the production seasons of 2002 and 2003 in an operational setting at Wheelers Maple Products in Lanark County, Ontario.

Publication:
Maple Syrup Digest
Date:
February 1, 2005