Site Discussions

My family operated at least one tannery during the mid - 1800’s on property that is now known as Peck’s Lake, near Gloversville. The remains of a fairly large tannery remain along the bank of the stream exiting the Lake that flows into the Garoga Creek. Do you have any information?

Thank you.

Not true. When syrup is boiling in the evaporator, sugarmakers use a defoaming agent to keep the bubbles from getting too high. Organic producers use a certified organic canola oil. Conventional producers use regular canola oil, or a dairy-based product. That’s the only tangible difference between organic and conventional syrup. There’s been research done on fertilizing a sugarbush with calcium, but i’ve never seen this done outside of academia—it’s cost prohibitive. As is spraying, except in extreme cases. My family has been sugaring for 60 plus years and we’ve sprayed once, during a forest tent caterpillar outbreak. We used Bt, which is an organic pesticide. But again, this was a once-in-a-generation thing. Nobody sprays regularly; there’s no need.

Need help on a question. My son in law believes that maple syrup that is not labeled organic comes from trees that have been fertilized and sprayed. True or not?

Yeah me too, I never really thought about it until I saw a moth in my home when it was snowing. Great, interesting info.

Hi Anthony,

Nice to hear from you—and keep the faith! The long range forecast has it getting warmer by the end of the week, and we still may get a season yet.

Great to hear you’re carrying on the sugaring tradition. Stick with it.

I have to wonder about the wisdom of this approach. I can see why it would be appealing to farmers, but what about the health of the forests? Would people begin clear cutting so that they could grow these plantations instead of maintaining the health of the forest for the entire ecosystem and not just our human needs?

I’m a student. I tap trees at home and we do some tapping at school. I do about forty trees and my school does about twenty.

I like your writing. I have enjoyed reading your two blogs with my teacher this season. (he’s typing this for me)
Our season is slow, too, but I have boiled three pints and sold one of them. This is disappointing because I was really geared up for the first time to do a lot of sapping!  I built my own barrel stove and cut my own firewood and was ready to go. If like you said April 1st is the average end of a season, this is going to be a wasted one! 
I’d really like to hear from you. Hope things get better.

Anthony

Thank you. I’ve been curious about this and you answered my questions about ferns in winter very well.

It’s also interesting to look inside the emerging plant. There is a spider species which awakens and is there to catch the insects which are attracted to the flower.

Y does water leak from from this particular tree?

Thank you for this well written and informative article. Trees are truly amazing.

This came in as a Letter to the Editor:

Dear Friends,

Just a note to tell you how much I enjoyed the winter edition, especially the six page article by my grandson Ross Caron. It was kind of Ross to mention me a few times. The piece was well written and the photos were excellent. I would grade it as an “A.”

Sincerely,

Donald Enman
Berlin, NH

March 16th and we haven’t even sweetened our pans yet. Tapped out slowly, like Dave, though we only have 250 taps total, all gravity. Cold week ahead… Hoping to have enough to be boiling for next weekend’s open house.

Very interesting and informative article as well as an entertaining read!

My guess is that with the increase and spread of human populations, most predators become less picky and will settle for scavenging when live prey can’t be found. So is the “playing possum” behavior an example of a trait that hasn’t caught up with present circumstances?

Very nice, I noticed just last week before the recent snow, the buds are waiting patiently to burst forth.  They tempt my curiosity to want to watch everyday until I see them open.  Your words inspire me to do just that.  Thank you!

I love clay babies! I went hunting for them in Newbury, VT a number of years ago with a friend and we had the best time! It was like digging for buried treasure. I still have my clay babies and have always wanted to go again so maybe this summer. Now, if I can only remember just where that great spot was… it does sound like their are many other possible locations. Loved the info!

Ross and Todd Caron are my nephews, and we are very proud of the work they did on the cabin!  We visited NH in the spring of 2013 and were able to hike to the cabin.  It was great! The article in Northern Woodlands by Ross was sent to us by my sister, and we thoroughly enjoyed reading all about the process and seeing the wonderful photos!  The reference to my dad, “Grandpa Enman”, was especially meaningful! Keep up the good work, guys!

Great article with good info.  We can tend to think, with their vocalizations being somewhat complex, that they can inform one another of what and who is/has been in their territory as well as what the “intruder” is/was up to. I have jumped them from beds(during the day)  and they left without vocalizing (at least no sounds that a human could hear).

As crazy as it might sound, I’m enjoying the blizzard Western New York is getting today. Maybe it will give me a few more outings on my cross-country skis and it certainly is a bonus to work on my on-line course and not be drawn outside to sunshine.

This is a great article about a critically important and interesting group of animals that need our support.  It’s perfect for kids and adults alike!

Thanks for sharing,

Greg