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Results for: 'Times They are A'Changin''

0:41

The First Sugarmakers

By: uvmext

Who were the first sugar makers? Many believe native Americans were the first to collect sugar from maple trees in North America. In fact, it was probably squirrels. Squirrels have been observed collecting encrusted sugar from the end twigs they n...

2:08

Tapping

By: uvmext

Winter is almost over and spring is almost here; it's time to make maple syrup. Each season sugar makers have to drill a new hole if they want to collect sap. The reason for this has to do with how trees respond to wounds. When a hole is drilled i...

1:35

Thrips

By: uvmext

Pear thrips is a species of insect that while native to Europe and Eurasia has been present in the United States for over 100 years. This insect is slender and brown as an adult and just over one mm long with delicately fringed wings. Thrips were ...

1:14

USDA Numbers

By: uvmext

The USDA released the estimates for the 2019 Vermont maple crop. The numbers show that Vermont produced just over 2 million gallons of syrup in 2019. This represents a nearly 50% of all the syrup produced in the US and just under 7% increase from ...

1:55

Diatomaceous Earth (DE) Filtering

By: uvmext

Just as the sugars found in sap become concentrated during boiling, so too are the naturally occurring minerals found in sap. As the concentration of minerals increases in the sap, it approaches, then exceeds the point of saturation. When that hap...

1:37

Shade Tolerance 1

By: uvmext

All green plants, which includes trees, need sunlight to produce energy for survival. Some trees can satisfy their basic needs with less light than others. Sugar and red maples are two examples of such trees. They are both considered shade-toleran...

1:32

Sugar Maple Seeds

By: uvmext

Sugar makers and community members alike have noticed a large number of sugar maple seedlings this spring. These first year trees were the result of a large seed year in 2019. Sugar maples begin producing seed when they are about 40 years old or 8...

1:49

2020 Crop Update #2

By: uvmext

The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service or NASS has released the crop totals for the 2020 maple season. Vermont let the US in total taps with 6.15 million statewide. New York had the next highest number of taps with 2.8 million. Combined...

2:08

Saddled Prominent

By: uvmext

Maple trees managed for sap production remain part of a forest ecosystem. Forest ecosystems are complex communities of plants, animals and microbes all interacting with their physical environment and climate. Forests are especially competitive env...