The History of Maple Syrup
No one is really sure just how long people have been practicing the art and science of making this wonderful product from the sap of a tree. We do know that Native Americans were already using maple sap to flavor their food long before European settlers discovered its sweetness.
Indian Legends and Lore
There are many stories that form the history and legends of the beginnings of maple syrup. Click here or see below for a couple of legends we thought you would enjoy.
Early Methods
- Celebrated the return of spring with a “maple moon” festival, known today as “sugar-off time”
- Reduced sap to syrup by repeatedly freezing it, discarding the ice, and starting again
- Used birch bark containers that held about 20-30 lbs of maple sugar for storage
- Preferred sugar over salt and used maple on meat and fish
Legends and Lore
NenawBozhoo
The Chippewas and Ottawas of Michigan tell a story of the god NenawBozhoo, who cast a spell on the sugar maple tree many moons ago, turning the near pure syrup into what is now called sap. He did this because he loved his people and feared they would become indolent and destroy themselves if nature’s gifts were given too freely. This legend can be found almost universally throughout the Eastern Woodland Indian tribes making it unique and unusual for cultures that did not have a written history.
Moqua
Perhaps a more believable story, recounted in the April 1896 issue of The Atlantic Monthly by Vermonter Rowland E. Robinson, is that of the Indian woman named Moqua. The story goes that Moqua was cooking a prime cut of moose for her husband, the hunter Woksis. Moqua became preoccupied with her quill-work and let the pot boil dry. Realizing she did not have time to melt snow, she instead used some maple sap she had been saving for a beverage. Woksis was so impressed with the meal that he broke the pot so he could lick the last of the “goo” from the shards.
Ojibways, Wyandots, and Indians at Pidgeon Lake
These tribes all processed maple sap in a similar fashion. As the sap began to rise, the women and their families migrated in family groups to the maple groves (“sugar bushes”) where they erected a camp and lived in wigwams made of bark. They prepared troughs, collected sap, and brought it to the fire where the most experienced women regulated the heat. Sometimes the sap was made to boil by placing hot stones in the mixture. Freshly heated stones were constantly added, while the cooler ones were fished out and reheated. It was fairly typical for each woman to have her own sugar shack.
Making Maple Syrup
When you hear “maple,” do you know what that means?
Maple is the sap from the sugar maple tree (acer saccharum). Although sap can be obtained from other species of maple trees, maple producers are largely focused on the sugar maple.
Maple production can be classified as one of nature’s wonders. Did you know…?
- Maple sap cannot be collected at just any time of the year.
- Alternating episodes of freezing and thawing cause sap to move (flow) within a sugar maple tree.
- This ‘flow’ only happens for a few weeks in the spring and fall.
- Spring is when most maple syrup is produced, because weather conditions are generally more favorable for sap flow. Some limited studies of autumn maple production have been done to determine if more economical use can be made of our maple forests.
What makes the sap flow?
- Weather must warm to above freezing temperatures for sap to flow.
- A very rapid rise in temperature (from 25°F to 45°F) will enhance sap flow considerably.
- While temperatures remain above freezing, sap will flow at a steadily declining rate for approximately 8 to 15 hours.
- When it refreezes at night and thaws again the next day, the sap flow will resume at the peak rate and slowly diminish to nearly no flow by the end of the 8 to 15 hour period.
- Intermittent flow periods will continue for as long as the freeze/thaw cycle lasts.
- Once the weather stays above freezing and trees begin to bud, the sap flow changes composition and is no longer usable. This signals the end of maple production for the season.
How does sap become maple syrup?
Although timing and techniques may differ, the concept is the same:
- Sap must be of the correct chemical composition to be collected.
- Once collected, water must be removed until the desired concentration of sugar remains.
What makes maple syrup production a success?
- Preparation – know your maple trees and where they are; have the necessary equipment prepped and ready to go
- Collection – collect sap daily as conditions permit; keep it clean and cool
- Processing – process sap by boiling and reverse osmosis (RO) methods daily or as needed; filter and bottle the finished product
- Cleanup – once the season ends, clean collection systems and processing equipment to prepare for the next sugaring season