Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-02-27
Correspondence of THE HERALI
Maplo Sugar Making.

COu1Q UtCOulc q )dIG OI the 1luLldOC
WEEKLY HERALD. Iallude to that part sc
interesting and instructive to all farmer,
who desire to become more proficient ii
the science of successful farning-tht
columns of Extracts and Replies"
which is made SO by an exchange Of
ideas between brother farmers, and The
truthful results of scientific investiga
ton. That this feature could become
an interesting and profitable one in TIL
HERALD to all farmers who take it (by
the editors permission is evident from
the fact that large per cent. of the let
tiers published in that paper are writer
for it by Vermont farmers who, per
haps, could be induced to patronize thai
prince of local papers, the time honore(
HERALD. That this paper is steadily
gaining both friends and subscribers il
this part of Vermont is a fact which is
plainly evident to observing persons, anC
with this preface l propose to give your
readers few facts in regard to
MAPLE SUGAR MAKING.
am called by some, the leading sugar
maker of Cavendish, and perhaps have
made as many pounds of sugar as any
one since came here to live, yet know
that mine is not the largest nor best
sugar orchard in town, and believing
that my success is largely due to the art
of tapping properly, and d, have often
been asked by my friends in regard tC
setting up a sugar orchard I will give
my experience in that line for the benefit
of the readers of THE HERALD.
There is a vast difference in the opin.
ion of men in regard to tapping, some
believe in shallow tapping, some in deep;
some use a large size bit, while others
prefer a much smaller one. The prac-
tico of putting in two spOuts to one
bucket seems almost universal. This
has been my practice, as | wished to
make all the sugar | could, and supposed
of course, that | should get more sap
from two spouts than | could from one
but in this | now know | was mistaken,
and am convinced that one spout will
afford as much sap as two holes will
three or four inches apart. provided that
they be bored of a uniform depth. Now
this is an important question with far
mers, involving loss of time and the
rapid destruction Of our naples. There
is yet one old man in Rutland who still
cling tenaciously to an idea advanced by
his father, that 4" the three outside grains
were worth all the rest of the tree for
sap" | have worked for him by the
month and have been ordered to tap
from one half TO three fOurths of an
inch deep at first, and when | bored
over t. sink the holes to one inch in
depth: now by this method | know that
he does not get Onc-half as much sap as
he would u tap from two to three inches
deep and use but one spout to a tree.
have large number of what is known
as the white rock maple in my sugar
orchard, and this Kind of naples are
full of sap to the heart. Some may say
if one spout is as good as two what is
the use of deep tapping? My opinion is
that sap circulates around the tree, and
not from the bark towards the heart, or
in other words, ! believe the sap cannot
pass freely through the dark circles be-
tween the grains of wood, as | have al
ways found the sap run more cOpiously
the deeper | bored. One man said to me
''sOme folks tap tree ON the back as
quick as anywhere, but they do not get
any sap :" | showed him that his the
DRY was wrong in part; that is, if a
tree is tapped on the under or leaning
side it is worse than folly to tap it again
on the back as some men do, as about
all the sap will be found in the bucket
hanging on the under side but tap
them only ON the back and a tree
will afford about as much sap as it
would on the opposite side. Trees about
here generally lean to the south or east.
My rule is this: If sugaring does not
come till late in the spring, | tap mostly
on the north and west sides, and rica
UerSa.
l wish to relate to you what l OBJ
served in cutting down large, slightly
leaning maple when sap run quite well,
and you can understand what | mean
about tapping. 1t was in the month of
November that two of us were engaged
in cutting logs. One day, as we felt
the need of water, and none being near,
and being long way from Center
Street." we hewed out a box on the
back of leaning maple and it filled
rapidly with sap. After quenching our
thirst, | commenced to cut the tree
down, opening the under side to the
heart It was a large tree, and as |
turned to cut the remaining half, what
what was my surprise to find that our
supplies had ceased to flow, and not a
drop was left in the box, while the sap
run off the stump in streams from the
under side. This showed me the folly
of using two spouts to one bucket. 1t a
large tree stands perpendicular, hang
two buckets to it, on opposite sides,
with one spout to bucket, and you will
get all the sap from it that the tree ought
to spare Use one-half inch bit, and
use no patent spouts of any kind, as the
best spout in the world is made from
Sumac and Pine. Whittle the spout
tapering and smooth, even off the rough
bark in tapering SO the spout will
tighten in the bark and not in the wood
I am decidedly against the use Of tin
buckets, as they not only cause the sap
to sour mofe quickly than any other
bucket in use, (if they are thoroughly
cleansed, but their use imparts de-
cidedly unpleasant tinny taste to the
syrup. The same can be said of ar
tight tin cans used for preserving maple
syrup.
The best, as well as most duruble sap
bucket in use are the eight quart pine
buckets, painted red outside and white
inside, the only objection being their
small size. Farmers in this county,
where the snow is apt to be deep in
March and April, delay tapping for the
snow to settle, and thus lose by far the
best part of the sugar; as no frost is in
the ground when snow is deep, and as
soon as mercury stands at from 46 to so
degrees above zero, in the shade, for a
sho time, sap commences to run freely.
/ have made 600 lbs. of sugar some
springs ere a pound would be made in
any adjoining sugar lot, the proprietors
claiming that it was not sugar weather.
I throw out these few suggestions for
the benefit Of all classes, for when farm
ers are prosperous, all kinds of business
$1,000 cnaoaccflI anH | will