430 THE AMERICAN FARMER. 



will freeze in the buckets before being gathered. Freezing injures the quality of the syrup 

 or sugar; besides, the trees, buckets, spouts, etc., are also liable to be injured. 



The largest trees are the best for sugar production, those from twenty-five to thirty years 

 old giving the best yield. Trees a foot in diameter may be made to yield something, but 

 they should never have their sap extracted before attaining that size. 



The usual method of tapping trees is to bore holes a half or three-quarters of an inch in 

 diameter on the sunny side of the tree, fifteen or eighteen inches from the ground and about 

 five or six inches apart. These holes should never be more than three at a time, and fre 

 quently but two in number, according to the size of the tree. Care should be used not to 

 bore too far into the alburnum, or white bark, and never through it, the entire depth of the 

 hole not often much exceeding an inch. The boring should incline downward slightly, in 

 order to permit the sap to pass off readily. Wooden spouts are sometimes inserted in these 

 holes to conduct the sap into buckets placed to receive it. These may be placed upon the 

 ground or hung upon the spouts. These spouts are usually made of elder or sumach, and 

 are eight or ten inches in length. Another method is to drive galvanized-iron or tin spouts 

 into the bark below the hole to collect and conduct the sap to the buckets. 



&quot;What is called &quot;boxing&quot; the trees is practiced in some localities, which consists of cut 

 ting a narrow channel three or four inches in length, slanting upward, and about an inch 

 deep, and inserting an iron spout into the bark below to collect the sap. This method is, 

 however, not to be recommended, as it injures the tree. Whatever the method of extracting 

 the sap, care should be used not to make the incision too deep, or the opening large. Taking 

 out large pieces of the bark and wood with an axe is, as has been justly termed, a barbarous 

 and slovenly practice, and will soon result in killing the trees. Mr. W. J. Chamberlain 

 recommends the galvanized-iron spout for obtaining sap. His suggestions on maple-sugar- 

 making are highly valuable, which we quote, as follows: 



&quot; By repeated and continued trial of the galvanized-iron spout, side by side with various 

 wooden and tin spouts, I am fully convinced that it sours the sap least of any, and gives the 

 largest yield. The first merit is more important than the other, for sour sap will never 

 make good syrup. The buckets should always be tin, soldered inside and out at every seam. 

 They will not rust inside in many years, and should never be painted there, as that makes 

 them more rough and more liable to sour. Painting the outside, however, will help preserve 

 the bucket. For our Ohio climate (and I am inclined to think it true as a rule everywhere), 

 the buckets should invariably be covered tight. A hole just below the wire rim slips over 

 the notch of the spout, and a board a foot square is laid on top, and excludes rain, snow, dirt, 

 and insects, and prevents the sap freezing except in extreme cold, or souring by the sun s 

 heat, except in very warm weather. I know of no one thing more essential to the production 

 of the best grade of syrup than covers. They should be planed and painted, and it is a 

 great help in gathering to have one side painted, say, red and the other white. All are 

 placed red side up, for instance, in tapping, and then all are reversed at each gathering. If 

 a tree is missed, the color of the cover shows it at a long distance. So none need be missed, 

 and two trips need never be taken to the same tree in doubt whether its sap has been gath 

 ered. 



The gathering should begin as soon as the tapping is done. The former should be fin 

 ished by noon if possible. Otherwise one force of hands should continue this, and another 

 force should begin soon enough to overtake before dark the force that is tapping. Sap 

 should never stand over night in the buckets, if it can be avoided, but should be gathered as 

 late as possible before dark, and boiled as soon and as rapidly as possible. It begins to 

 deteriorate almost as soon as it leaves the tree, especially if it is very warm, or, on the other 

 hand, if it freezes and thaws. 



The following gathering-cask seems best adapted of anything for the work to be done. It 



