Signs of Spring in the White Mountains
One of my favorite signs of spring in New Hampshire and Maine is seeing the sap buckets on the maple trees. The days are starting to get longer, the sap rises and the buckets appear, seemingly overnight. My drive to work every day takes me through Fryeburg and East Conway where there are dozens of big, beautiful, old maples that all have buckets nailed to them, with rubber hoses running along from tree to tree. Cold nights and warm days are needed in order to induce sap flows. The change in temperature from above to below freezing causes water uptake from the soil, and temperatures above freezing cause a stem pressure to develop, which, along with gravity, causes sap to flow out of tapholes or other wounds in the stem or branches. To collect the sap, holes are bored into the maple trees and spouts are inserted.
Each year, the Sugar Houses in Maine host “Maine Maple Sunday” on the last Sunday in March. Some years, it is snowing and some years we have a beautiful, warm, sunny day. I always make it a point not to miss Maine Maple Sunday at Weston’s Farm in Fryeburg. Weston’s is a family-owned farm that has been in their family for generations. The beautiful old homestead sits on a knoll overlooking the Saco River and acres of farm fields. The Sugar House is across the street. You can see the steam rising from the evaporators, and as you walk into the Sugar House, the aroma of steaming maple sap strikes you immediately. The Westons welcome everyone to their farm on Maine Maple Sunday with a scoop of vanilla ice cream covered in fresh maple syrup. You can watch the sap flow through the wood-fired evaporator as it gets boiled down into wonderful, yummy fresh Maine Maple Syrup. There is nothing better!
Suzie Laskin
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