LITTLETON, Maine – Participants in the Boys & Girls Club of Maliseets gained first-hand knowledge on how to identify sap producing maple trees during a chilly afternoon field trip Monday, March 23.
Gathering at the Natural Resources building, the youth first learned how the sap harvest marks the end of winter and the beginning of a new cycle of life. Many tribes hold ceremonies and offer tobacco to the trees before tapping, acknowledging the tree’s role in providing sustenance.
Held one day after the 43rd annual Maine Maple Weekend, the youth embarked on a short hike to a nearby patch of trees to determine which ones were maple, and whether they were large enough to be tapped for syrup by hugging the trunk of the tree.
Steven Phillips, natural resources specialist, said maple sap typically only runs when the temperature rises above freezing in early spring, during what some tribes call the “sugar moon.” This year has been particularly difficult in sap collection, according to Phillips, as there have been days of very warm spring temperatures only to be followed by extremely cold conditions.
The gathering of syrup from maple trees in the woodlands of Maine is an ancient practice that had helped sustain Indigenous peoples for thousands of years. Historically, Indigenous people used maple syrup to cure meats, as a sweetener for bitter medicines and as an anesthetic. Maple sugar also contains nutritious minerals, including phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, iron and calcium. Maple syrup was also used as a trade item in the form of dried, portable sugar slabs.
