Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1878-03-27

The maple sugar interest OF Vermont is
one of its most important ones and from
thousands of sunny hill sides, and their
tens of thousands of sugar houses the
steam wreaths ascend from the bubbling
pans, over roaring fires, where the sweet
ness of exquisite flavor is made for tine
millions of appreciatve palates. We al
ways liked sugaring. The work has
flavor of wild camp life, which has fas-
cination so powerful that when it has once
possessed man it never leaves him. How
much this feeling is increased when one
has to boil nights" and the freight
brings out the shadows from the surround
ing darkness of the grand old woods, and
makes little circle of light and home
feeling in the great outsi lie darkness.
Another cause for the satisfaction in
sugaring is that the reward comes so soon.
When your day /" boil > is done, then you
have the result in the delicious amber
syrup. No waiting and watching, which
require so much Of faith, and steady per-
severance and tixedness of purpose, but
your days work is done, and you have
your pay in hand. And Sach pay. Such
shining golden color, such full, such deli
cate flavor, such exquisite satisfying sweet
ness. We remember how in distant cities
we used to "prevail" on the waiter to
bring us some maple syrup for our morn
ing cakes, and how it brought back to our
hearts the memories of our early sugar
camp life, and the rounds and sights and
scents of the fastening spring. But it
was not of the poetcal, but of the practi-
cal part of sugaring we started to speak
about.
Mr.. 7. Wheeler Of Washington county,
Vermont, has an artical in the Ohio Farm
or which we clip, and it strikes us that he
asks good many conundrums, which, as
Dundreary says, no fellah can find out
counsellors there is safety" so in much ex-
perience there is wisdom, and could we
bring it together, arrange and classify it,
it would become science. Who will send
us answers to any one or more of his
questions? And it seems as if Mr.. L.
Wheeler was likely to prove n true pro-
phet in this year of our Lord for " first
class sap season. and we shall hope soon
to hear how he gets at his guess:
THOUGHTS FOR SUGAR MAKERS.
Questions for the consideration of others,
vet settled in my own mind:
Freezes. and thlws, and storms have
more influence on sap flow early in the
season than later; why? The lower down,
The sweelcr is the sap; why? Where does
the sap obtain its sweetness? Trees that
have been tapped the longest and that
stand in open land, isolated, will run the
most and sweetest sap; why? Occasion
ally Enough rare; 1876 was an illustration)
sap weather lasts longer than sap flow
why? The top of a tree has n much
greater per cent of water than the body,
yet we get the most sap from the body;
why? Where does the sap come from
Does it come from the roots? If so, by
what power-osmose capillary attraction,
or what? Does sap circulate transversely?
Why is sap more plentiful and swecter
some years than others? Where is there
more nilre some years than others? Where
does the nitro come FROM Is it in the
sap beforeboiling? Do we get more nitre
Just before II storm and less after IL storm ?
Questions unsettled in my own mimi:
l. High up in tree we can get no sap
from the body, yet II broken twg will leak
sap; why? 3. How does sap circulate
What is the process? 3. Where does sap
obtain its sweetness? 4. A snow atmos-
phere gives us sap; what constitutes this
changer 5. We get more carbonate of
lime or nitre now than formerly; whyP
6. A south wind stops the flow of sap;
how does it do it? Who will explain it?
Z. Do we get more and sweeter sap from
dark banked naples than from others? If
so, whyP
For some twenty years have been deep
ly interested in the subject of sap flow and
non-how its ways. whereforos and causes,
and all its associated phenomena. If | see
any effect | wish to understand its cause.
have thought, studied, talked, and cor
responded with many sugar makers on this
subject | would like to hear from others.
| lttSc Sltllc lttlo pucHOluGut YOU
have witnessed and experiments that you
have made. Help me to Solve some of the
unsolved points in this article. Criticise
the article more or less.
The one point to which | am driving is
to become able to foretel 1.-TWO or three
months in advance) the nature OF the com
ing sap season, yearly. am perfectly sat-
istied that it can be done with but trifiing
failures. Three years ago | struck npon IA
system which time and observation are
testing Since then my rule has been to
write down in my diary on the first day of
January what kind of Il sugar season we
were to have, whether q good or poor one.
) In 1875, on January LIST, wrote in my di-
airy, First class sugar season." The fol-
lowing spring | made more sugar than l
ever made before from the same trees.
The next january | wrote, Good sugar
season, though not the best" which would
amount to II second class season. Well. ii
proved one of the most uneven seasons
that | ever knew, some making very little,
while others made rs much us they ever
did; so, on an average, it proved us said.
| lien the next January. which was 1877,
wrote down Second-class sugar season. "
Well, it proved just that. Now this last
January have written, First class sap
season. and few weeks more will decide
as to its correctness or incorrectness.
have not as yet divulged my idea of sap
circulation except what may be guessed
from the above article, neither have dis
closed the system by which predermine
sap flow; am waiting for time and sbser-
walton TO settle its correctness.
1t is quite evident to my mind that if the
question of sap flow can be predetermined
Two or three months in advance, that il
will be of much practical importance TO Il
very large class Of sugar makers. Calcu-
ations may be made accordingly. Extra
help, apparatus, wood, etc, etc, can be
procured or not, as the season is to be.
Also, contracts and sales can be sought
and closed, us the case may be.
T. WHEELER.
i Washington Co., Vt.