After a weeklong stretch of temperatures below freezing at night and above freezing during the daytime, I felt the time was right for the sap to start to run. And I was right!
I have been tapping trees and collecting sap to make maple syrup with my students and my own children for several years now. Each year I am learning more and more, and I am becoming more mindful of the conditions that produce this pocket season, which I look forward to near the end of our long dark winters here in northern Minnesota.
I think this season, just may be a good one. The buds are tight on the trees and the extended forecast looks favorable. Time will tell, but I am happy to have started the process, sharing this annual experience with my children. I also look forward to sharing this experience with my students at school next week.
If you are interested here's some links to my experiences in the last couple of years:
the buckets are up
Backyard Sugaring
kindergarten pancake party
And here is a post that I wrote for mothering.com about the process and my experiences with small scale spring sugaring as a family:
http://www.mothering.com/articles/family-fun-with-small-scale-spring-sugaring/