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Notes on Making Maple Syrup 
This Spring begins my first experience making maple 
sugar and syrup. Is thei’e a law governing making and 
sale of maple products? Will you give instructions for 
making, and what price should I receive per gallon for 
syrup? Does the law prevent me from keeping all I 
need for home use for one year? ii. a. b. 
Gainesville, N, Y. 
AKING A START.—It is a long .story to go 
into all the minute details of making maple 
syrup and maple sugar. In general, however, the 
first operation is to make the roads through the 
orchard. Then the buckets are to be distributed, 
and in doing this paths will be made from the road 
to the trees. There is a difference in opinion, even 
among the best of practical sugar-makers, as to 
how many buckets should be hung upon a tree. but. 
as a rule, it is not believed to be profitable to place 
rhem closer than two feet, so that a tree less than 
foul’ feet in circumference should have but one 
bucket. If four feet in circumference it may have 
two, if six feet, it may have three, and so on. But 
considerable latitude is allowed. 
TAI’ITXfJ.—When tapping, select, first of all, a 
sound, healthy .spot, fully four inches from any 
previous tap-hole. Let the height be that which 
is most convenient for boring, and. as far as prac¬ 
ticable, .select the location where it is most con¬ 
venient of access from the path or road. Location 
according to the points of the comi)ass has no ap¬ 
preciable influence Avhen the whole season is con¬ 
sidered. I'se a sharp, clean bit, and let it be one- 
sixteenth of an inch smaller than the spouts that 
are to be used. Jlost styles of spouts are half an 
inch in diameter, so a seven-sixteenths inch bit will 
be reciuired in order that the spouts may hold firmly 
without leaking. Bore to a dejith of about two 
inche.s, but considerable latitude is 
allowed. It is a gamble with the 
weather man. whether or not it 
is profitiible to use covers for the 
buckets. A man can gather the 
sap from 000 buckets without 
covers, in the time recpiired to 
gather it from HOO buckets with 
covers, .and they may igit be needed 
during the whole season. Another 
season, they may be filled half full 
of rain Avater every other day. This 
Avill not only cause a considerable 
expense in the way of evaporation, 
but it Avill seriously Impair the 
ipiality of the product. 
GARIi OF SAB.—It is possible to 
gather and ev.-iporate the s.ap by the 
(U’lidest methods, and still make a 
sugar of high sweetening powers, 
but a high (luality is attained only 
by carefully following the most 
painstaking methods. IMaple sap is 
as su.sceptible to chemical action 
and bacterial influences as milk, 
and hence in its treatment, cleanliness and celerity 
in evaporating must prevail or a lower grade of 
product Avill result. The sap should be gathered 
every day, strained, and conveyed to the receiving 
tank, Avhere it should flow automatically in a 
steady stream into the evaporator in .iust sufficient 
quantity to supply the loss by evaporation. Boiling 
should never be checked in the least, by the addi¬ 
tion of cold sap, but the hot sap should flow in a 
continuous stream, from one end of the evaporator 
lo the other, becoming a thick syrui) as it reaches 
the last compartment, fare should be t;iken to keep 
the sap as shallow in the evaporator as possilde, 
and avoid danger of burning. The steam escapes, 
in little bubbles, from the bottom of the pan. As 
it is generated, it forms a filiU', similar to the film 
Avhich surrounds a soap bubble, thus leaving the 
bottom of the pan bare until the film bursts. The 
deeper the sap, the stronger will be the film, and 
the longer Avill be the time required to burst it. 
Meantime, particles of sugar inside the bubble ai’e 
])eing changed to caramel Avhich will darken and 
loAA’er the grade of the product. So shallow boiling 
becomes a highly essential factor in making a high- 
grade maple syrup or sugar. 
BOILING FOR SYRUP.—Maple .sai) boils at the 
same temperature as Avater, but. as its den.sity in¬ 
creases, OAving to eA’aporation, its boiling point in¬ 
creases, also, and eA’aporation should be continued 
until the boiling point of that in last compartment 
reaches very closely to 210 degrees, less one degree 
for every ">00 feet of altitude. That is, if the 
boiling .place is located at sea-level, boil to 210 
degrees. If it h:is an elevation of 1.000 feet, boil 
only to 217 degrees. If it is 1,500 feet above the 
level of the sea, boil only to 210 degree.s. Then 
take the syrup from the fire, pour into deep buckets, 
aud allow it to stand 24 hours. At the end of that 
CTAe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
time there Avill be a thick deposit of mineral matter, 
called ‘‘sugar-sand.” Pour the syrup carefully off, 
and re-boil it until its temperature is exactly 210. 
making allowance for elevation, and being careful 
that the thermometer does not touch the metal of 
the pan Avhile taking the temperature. Filter the 
syrup immediately through a clean flannel or felt 
strainer. This will reduce the temperature to about 
160 degrees, and at this temperature the syrup is 
poured into the cans. The cans are then allowed to 
cool. In consequence the syrup shrinks in volume, 
and the cans are then re-filled, the caps put on 
and screwed tightly. There will be a slight over¬ 
flow of syrup Avhich seals the caps. but. to make 
sure, a little aa'ux should also be put around them. 
Syrup may also be canned when cold, and Avill 
keep equally Avell. In fact, many sugar-makers 
prefer this method. But the cans must be sterilized 
Avith hot Avater and thoroughly dried, immediately 
before the .syrup is put into them. More than this, 
they must be stored in a temperature not greatly 
exceeding that of the .syrup Avhen canned. Thus, 
if maple syrup is canned at a temperature of 60 de¬ 
grees, and stored in a room in Avhich the temper¬ 
ature is 00 degrees, or even subjected to that tem¬ 
perature during shipment, the syrup Avill expami 
with the heat, and very likely burst the seams of the 
cans. On account of the scarcity and high price 
of tin. the price of syrup cans the coming season 
will be doul)le the normal price, and Avill be scarce 
and hard to get even at that price, but maple syrup 
may be canned in glass bottles of any size and de¬ 
scription, and Avill keep eciually as Avell, provided 
they are clean, and the corks Avell coA’ered Avith Avax. 
I^IAKTNG SUGAR. — If sugar is desired. ®tlu‘ 
syrup, after having been .settled and separated 
from the sug.-ir-sand, is juit in a deei» pan and 
boiled until the temperature reaches '-'.lO degrees, 
and from that to 250 degrees, according .as a very 
soft, or a very hard sug.-ir is Avaiited. When the 
desired density is reached, the sugar is either put 
into the containers while hot, or it is allowed to jtar- 
tially cool, meanwhile stirring it more or less, ac¬ 
cording as a hard, coar.se grain, or a fine smooth 
grain is desired. If. at any time, the syrup seems 
inclined to boil over, this is prevented by throwing 
in a little sweet milk. A very convenient AAay of 
.‘idding it is to have it corked tightly in ;i bottle, 
but Avith a (pull or small tube through the cork. 
Then. Avhen ueces.sary, a A'ery few drops of milk 
may be shaken from the Ixittle. 
BRK’FS FOR FINE BRODTT’TS.—A very fail- 
grade of mai)le sugar, that Avill be suitable for 
domestic purpo.ses. maybe made at a conqiaratively 
loAV cost, and Avithout previous experience, simply 
by evaporating maple .sap in a pan or kettle of 
any kind, until the residue Avill luirden Avhen cooled. 
But to make a high grade Avhich Avill .sell readily 
for a fancy price, requires long experience and the 
closest attention to detail, and the imiuirer need 
hardly hope to reach perfection the first season. The 
price for AA’hich his iiroduct should .sell Avill depend 
upon the ipiality that he reaches. But it Avill be 
high. Dealers in Vermont are noAV offering to con¬ 
tract for fair qualities at 18 cents a i)Ound, but the 
general impression seems to be that it Avill be 
higher, probably around 20 .cents for the season's 
run. I have received a letter from a man avIio has 
contracted 1,000 pounds for ‘2o cents a luiund. and 
another from one who has contracted 4(M» gallons 
of syrup at ,$2.-50 a gallon. I know of three Avomeii 
Avho make various kinds of maple confectionery, 
.some of Avhich they sell for 80 cents a pound. We 
are just beginning to realize the possibilities of 
441 
the maple sugar business, Avhich are greater this 
year than ever before. Everyone having maple trees 
should Avork them to their fulle.st extent. 
There is no laAA' or ruling of the Food .Vdminis- 
tration that Avill interfere in any Avay Avith a mau 
Avho makes ali the maple sugar that he can make, 
or Avho .sells it for the highest price that he can get, 
or Avho stores all that he can make for future use, 
nor will any such a laAv be enacted during the 
coming year. c. o. ormsbee. 
The Use of Oyster Shell Lime 
What is the A’alue of ground raAv. or unburned oyster 
shells? I hear they are as good as the best of lime 
for land. I heard of one man who hauled the AA-hole 
shells on his land, and said they AA'ere just as good a.s 
lime. Hydrated lime costs, here. $11; burned or quick¬ 
lime -80 cents per bushel, and the expense of hauling 
and spreading. I can buy oyster shells for three ('ent.s 
per bushel, but I do not know hoAV much they Aveigh 
or hoAv much flour they should make. Could I buy a 
machine to make them into flour, and what Avould be 
the cost? Hoav much power Avould it require? I 
think I could haA’e bought 560 tons of shells in our 
market this year from the first of October to the first of 
April. I have 125 acres of land that should have at 
least two tons of good lime per acre. 
Ihdaware. avm. a. bu.s.sell. 
HE oyster shells represent an organic form of 
lime. To understand the difference betAveeu 
oy.ster shells and limestone, consider hOAV the former 
are made. The lime is Avjished out of the .soil and 
carried dOAvn through brooks and rivers to the 
ocean, Avhere there it is utilized by .shellfish, by 
oysters or clams, to build the .shell or house in 
Avhich they Ua’c. The oyster shell thus made is 
liarder than the limestone from Avhich the lime orig¬ 
inally came. When these shells are ground very 
fine, they are just about as eflicient in the soil as 
ground limestone. If they are not 
ground fine, but left in ccxirse 
chunks, they Avill not be a^s availa¬ 
ble as the softer forms of ground 
limestone. This is because of their 
peculiar organic structure. Most 
of ns Avho live on the Atlantic 
slo])e near the coast, h.ave seen 
small pi(*ces of these shells lie in 
the ground for years Avithoiit being 
lu’oken up. Avhile pieces of soft 
limestone of the same size Avould 
gradually disappear. It is. there- 
fon*. entirely a (|uestion‘ of fine 
grinding for the (\vst(‘r shells. Some 
of the Tiim^stoue crushers Avill han¬ 
dle these sludls and give a good 
product, but it Avill be neces.sary to 
handle a large (luantity of the 
shells in order to make such a 
machine pay. It Avould hardly pay 
for a single farmer to attempt to 
Avork this for his own use alone, but 
if a community near the sea coast 
could cmnbiue to crush the shells, 
it might be made a paying iiroposition. 
There is no question about the value of lime of 
any kind, as an application upon .sea-coast hand. 
Through ^taryland and I)elaAvare you Avili find 
many of the roads built of oyster shells, fl'he.se 
shells are slOAvly ci’ushed by passing Avheels and 
they usually make a fine firm road bed. Gonstant 
travel crushes these shells, and the Avind frequently 
blows the fine poAvder over the fields. The result 
is that many grasses and cloA-ers Avhich Avould not 
otherwise thrive on that soil, Avork in and groAV 
Avell. In some cases the seeds of these gras.ses are 
imported in stable manure brought from the North, 
lint these plants do not grow or make a firm foot¬ 
hold in that soil Avithout lime, and this has bemi 
supplied by the dust of the oyster shells bloAvn over 
the field. There are many cases along the sliore 
AA'liere these shells could be utilized to great ad¬ 
vantage for farm inirposes. In some ca.ses they 
are piled and burned like stone lime, but fuel is 
expensiAe, and the crushing Avould be more econo¬ 
mical if it can be done on a large scale. 
Seeding Rye and Buckwheat Together 
I have secu it stated that ry(* and buckAvheat can 
be sown together in .Tune. ’ Is this Winter rye, and 
Avill the rye. if cut Avith the buckAvheat in September, 
produce grain the folloAving sea.son? Hoav much seed 
of each should be sown to the acre? 
INTER rye and buckwheat are often seeded 
together in late June or July. The object 
is to get a fair crop of buckwheat and then let 
the rye come on later to cover the ground through 
the Fall and Winter. .Success depends on a uum- 
l>er of conditions. There must be moisture enough 
to support both crops, and plant food enough to 
make quick groAvth on the buckwheat. Heavy seed- 
Press Illustrating Service 
SJiUcLi)t!i Oysters on Chesfiiteoke Buy. Fiy. 310 
