Friday, March 4, 2011

Changing weather brings out the sap!

It's the stuff we like to pour over hot pancakes or waffles usually at the morning's breakfast. Maple syrup, or the main ingredient it's made from, begins flowing this time of the year.
   All around Michigan, maple trees are being tapped to capture that delicious, sweet sap that's boiled down to make syrup.
   It's a practice that has been going on for years and hasn't changed too much. Other than large, commercial syrup manufactures utilizing plastic pipe in an intricate system reminiscent of an irrigation system to collect sap from lots of trees, it still comes down to tapping at the correct time.
   Here in southeast Michigan, Huron-Clinton Metroparks offers programs on sap collection and demonstrations on how sap is converted into syrup. Throughout Michigan, farms and other sap-producing facilities have similar programs.
   Now, plan your outing to see maple syrup production, take the family and bring your camera. All you need is a destination. For information on the Metroparks, visit http://www.metroparks.com/.
   Watch for my story about maple syrup in this Sunday's Oakland Press.

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