Extension News: Forest resources Archives

New Hampshire's first rite of spring

March is maple sugaring time in New Hampshire. This uniquely North American natural phenomenon Nature is not restricted to the calendar like school vacations, holidays or town meeting day, but is dictated solely by day-night weather changes. Cold nights in the 20's followed by warm days when the temperatures go up into the 40's, absent a chilling wind, are the requirements for the sap to run.

Our sugaring season can begin in late February and run into early April and even stop in between. Although sugaring season does coincide with mud season, no one knows how long the season is going to be until after it's over.

Tapping the trees
Although many maple producers still use the traditional bucket-with-spout-and-cover system for tapping their trees, others use high technology plastic tubing and pipeline systems, some of which include vacuum extraction to increase the amount of sap collected. This doesn't hurt trees and keeps the sap-lines empty which helps produce a higher quality sap for high quality maple syrup.

Today's maple producers are also using "health spouts" to lessen the impact of tree-tapping. With the new spouts, trees now heal over in less than one growing season. Regardless of the method of gathering sap, it must be collected after each "run" and boiled as soon and as fast as possible to make the best quality maple syrup.

Note: "Maple producer" is the modern name for what used to be called a "sugarmaker" in the days before containers became commonplace and most syrup was boiled down to the hard sugar for long storage.

"Boiling down"
Sap is "boiled down" in an evaporator, a special pan with flues in it to increase the surface area and speed evaporation. Boiling down has and continues to be the challenge of maple producers everywhere. Before the evaporator was invented, sap was boiled in a series of open kettles, and before then in hollowed out logs with hot rocks dropped in to evaporate the sap.

While some maple producers continue to use open evaporators similar to those that made their debut in the 1880's, others have embraced new technology. Peering inside a modern sugarhouse, a visitor will see an array of sap-processing equipment that may include evaporators with steam hoods, blowers and pre-heaters, and steam-away pans mounted atop a conventional evaporator, using recaptured steam heat to increase the efficiency of the boiling process. These latter systems look more like large boilers in ships than those traditionally found in the sugarhouse. In larger operations, visitors may encounter reverse-osmosis machines that concentrate the sugar content in the sap for later processing in an evaporator. Steam evaporators are also becoming more commonplace.

Maple sap is about 97.5 percent water, 2.4 percent sugar, and 0.1 percent minerals. Sap is made into maple syrup by boiling off the water and concentrating the sugar and minerals in the presence of heat. During the process of evaporation heat causes chemical reactions in the concentrated sap resulting in the characteristic flavor we know as maple syrup. The color and flavor of maple syrup is determined by the freshness of the sap and the speed of boiling.

Pure maple syrup must have a minimum density of 67° Brix, equivalent to boiling maple sap until it is 7.5°F above the boiling point of water. Proper density is important, not only for taste, but also for stability, preventing the syrup from forming crystals or fermenting.

It takes about one cord of dry wood to make 20 gallons of maple syrup. Oil-fired evaporators are gaining in popularity, as they tend to be more efficient and relieve maple producers of the work of cutting wood. It takes about 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup.

Grading and packaging syrup
Maple syrup is governed by State law with respect to density, color, clarity and flavor. Sap becomes syrup when 33 percent of its water has been removed. During evaporation minerals appear as a sediment known as "sugar sand" or "niter" and are removed by filtering, resulting in a crystal-clear product. Syrup is then packed hot, between 180°F and 190°F, into glass, tinned steel or plastic containers. The hot syrup sterilizes the container to prevent the syrup from spoiling. Whether opened or not, maple syrup should always be kept refrigerated if possible.

Maple syrup is graded by color, flavor, and clarity. All table syrup is Grade A and all syrup must be the same density. Grade A-Light Amber maple syrup is "light" in color with a delicate flavor and requires considerable skill to make. It is usually made from the earlier "runs" when the sugar content is highest and daytime temperatures keep the sap cool. Grade A-Medium Amber has a richer flavor and Dark Amber, popular for cooking, is even stronger. Pure maple syrup contains no additives or preservatives.

Maple syrup is made into several other products by boiling it beyond the syrup stage in conjunction with other procedures (stirring, cooling) to produce taffy, cream, candy and sugar. Nothing is added, the end product is pure maple. These products are usually made from the light- and medium-colored syrups.

Syrup-making: Our first rite of spring
The maple season is an age-old tradition, part of our rural heritage. Stop by a sugar house--the sweet steam coming out the roof vent is your invitation to go in and visit. Even on chilly nights when the sap is being boiled, the evaporator provides warmth with the pleasant aroma of maple syrup in the brisk night air.

To find a sugarhouse to visit or to purchase maple products, contact the New Hampshire Maple Producers Association through their Web site or call the NH Maple Phone at 603-225-3757 for sugarhouse brochures and information about Maple Weekend, Saturday, March 29 and Sunday March 30.

Nominate a young N.H. maple producer for the Felker Award
The Walter A. Felker Memorial Award, promotes and encourages an interest in the production and marketing of high-quality maple products. The competition is open to New Hampshire residents younger than 18 years of age by the June application deadline.

The award winner receives a permanent plaque engraved to recognize their achievement as well as a $100 cash prize. Download the flyer for information about criteria and application for the Felker Award.

By Sumner Dole, Belknap County Extension forest resources educator emeritus

How to make maple syrup
The Basic ABC's of Maple Sugaring
Maple Syrup Quality Control Manual
Hobby Maple Syrup Production
Maple Producers Manual (order form)

Learn more
NH Maple Producers
Visit A Sugarhouse
Learn to make sugar on snow

Audio and Video
Maple Sugaring with writer Lois Shea and NHPR (audio)
Maple Videos (requires RealPlayer)
The How, When, Why of Forest Farming (click on the maple module)

N.H. Maple Events
NH Maple Producer's listings

This spring about 1,000 New Hampshire landowners will slice the newly-defrosted ground to create thousands of welcoming holes for tree and shrub seedlings bought from the State Forest Nursery.

Howie Lewis, nursery forester, calls his nearly 40-acre nursery one of New Hampshire's best- kept secrets. Lewis says the nursery produces a unique product.

"We provide something nobody else does – tree and shrub seedlings native to New Hampshire, with seeds picked from specimens grown right here in the state. When you buy from the state forest nursery, you know the plant is suited to grow here."

A century-old enterprise
In operation in Boscawen since 1910, the nursery grows more than 50 species of trees and shrubs for reforestation, Christmas trees, and wildlife, and sells them at affordable prices. Seedlings, sold on a first come-first served basis, include conifers such as white, red and Scotch pine, Norway, blue, red, and white spruce, concolor, balsam, fraser and douglas fir, and hemlock.

The nursery offers many deciduous species as well, including arrow-wood, crabapple, fragrant sumac, grapes, highbush cranberry, dogwood, rose, nannyberry, beach plum, elderberry, winterberry holly, bayberry, hazelnut, red oak, cedar, sugar maple and white ash.

Special deals
Special "packages," each containing an assortment of 25 shrubs and/or trees, include a Christmas tree sampler, as well as wildlife-and-songbird, wetlands, native species, and winter survival packages.

"This is a very popular program," says Hillsborough County Cooperative Extension Forester Jon Nute. "The seedlings are usually two to four years old, up to 24 inches tall, including the roots, and you can easily hold about a dozen in one hand."

"Some first-time buyers come expecting to pick up large potted landscape-type shrubs and are a little shocked when you hand them a bundle of 50 pine seedlings that can easily fit into a shopping bag," says Nute. "However, these small seedlings are hardy and easy to plant and just great to use in reforestation projects, windbreaks, and Christmas tree plantations."

Ready to order?
Individuals can order seedlings from January 1 through March 30 each year in quantities of 10, 25 or 100 per bundle, with costs ranging from 25 cents to $1.00 per seedling, with the seedlings distributed for planting at the end of April.

"When you're in the nursery business, spring starts a different time each year," says Lewis, "So we ship to a county pickup point in late April or early May, whenever the seedlings can be lifted from the ground. We work throughout the year getting ready for the spring shipment and hope we have many new customers this year." Customers receive a card in the mail announcing the pick-up dates.

Order early! We've just let New Hampshire's best-kept secret out of the bag.

By Karen Bennett, UNH Cooperative Extension Forest Resources Specialist

More information:

• View the State Nursery catalog and order online.


• To receive a catalog, contact the N.H. State Nursery, N.H. Division of
  Forests and Lands, P.O. Box 1856, Concord, NH 03302-1856, or call 603-271-3456.


• Planting and Care of Tree Seedlings


• Establishing the Christmas Tree Plantation

The recent Nor'Easter wreaked havoc in every part of New Hampshire. Not only was there extensive flooding in the southern part of the state, but high winds and heavy rainfall caused extensive damage to the northern forests.

The amount of tree damage in our forests varies greatly. Some forests experienced a few broken limbs; in others, trees were uprooted, leaving the entire tree lying on the ground. Each situation is unique and each may pose potential dangers. Use common sense before entering any property.

• Don't enter your woodlot alone.
• Don't enter the woodlot during high wind conditions.
• Wear a hard hat.
• Watch for hanging limbs and leaning trees.
• Seek professional advice before you attempt any salvage or clean up activities.
• Remember that trees and branches may be unstable and pose considerable risk.

For more information about woodlot damage
UNH Cooperative Extension County Foresters
Directory of Licensed Foresters
Selecting a Forester
Selecting a Logger
Forest Laws
Timber Sale Guidelines
Timber Tax Questions: Frequently Asked About Timber Salvage Cutting Operations

For more information about damage to single trees
County Extension Foresters
Certified Arborists
Selecting an Arborist
Pruning Storm Damaged Trees

Technical information for foresters
Estimating Volume of Downed Trees Using Perpendicular Sampling

For general information about forests and trees, contact your county Extension forest resources educator, or visit the UNH Cooperative Extension Forests & Trees Web pages.

View slide show: After The Storm: Tree Damage in Grafton County

A good forest management plan can help landowners generate more income, enhance wildlife habitat, and leave the forest in better shape for the future

If you're one of the 84,000 people who own a piece of New Hampshire's forest, you're a steward of our clean water, beautiful scenery, abundant wildlife, fresh air, and natural and cultural heritage, not to mention the basis of our forest industry and much of our recreation.

Owning land gives many rewards and, as with most precious things, the more you pay attention to your land and care for it, the greater those rewards.

"It's important to think about what you really want from your land," says Wendy Scribner, UNH Cooperative Extension forest resources educator in Carroll County. "You can grow firewood and timber, create a haven for wildlife, cut trails--the list is endless," she says. Steve Roberge, her colleague in Cheshire County, agrees. "Owning land gives you many options. I'm here to help," he says.

You don't have to go it alone. Start with an Extension forester.
There are Extension forestry educators like Scribner and Roberge in each New Hampshire county. Their job is to help and advise forest landowners. If you don't know your local Extension forester, a call to the UNH Cooperative Extension Forestry Information Center at 1-800-444-8978 will connect you.

In addition to these forestry educators, more than 200 licensed foresters statewide offer a variety of services, including forest stewardship planning, current use assistance, forest inventory and appraisal, buying and selling standing trees, nurturing young trees (weeding and thinning), wildlife habitat management, marking trees to cut for regenerating the next forest, and laying out trails and other recreation improvements.