34 



The sooner the sap is turned into syrup or sugar the better will be 

 the product. Sap deteriorates very quickly after it leaves the tree. For 

 this reason gathering should commence as soon as there is a quart or 

 two in the buckets. 



Gathering pails for carrying the sap from the trees to the tank are 

 frequently of wood, but heavy tin is better because it is more easily 

 kept clean. For convenience in carrying sap these pails should have 

 wide bottoms and narrower tops. 



Fig. 23. THE HAND SLED AND MILK CAN USED IN GATHERING SAP 



The tank for hauling the sap to the sugar house is mounted on a 

 wooden shod sled. A rectangular hauling tank is not to be recom- 

 mended because the sap dashing from end to end while driving over 

 rough ground soon racks it to pieces. For this reason it should be cir- 

 cular in form and made of heavy tin or galvanized iron, with a reinforced 

 wooden bottom. A tank holding from 75 to 100 gallons is a convenient 

 size for a 1,000 tree grove. 



The outlet at the bottom should be from two to three inches in 

 diameter, so as to let the sap out quickly. A length of cotton hose or 

 piece of pipe a little longer than the height of the tank should be fitted 



