Stella's Social Club

[robhuncor]

Lilacs are in bloom!

What a beautiful sight! It will be months before we see them here! - at least that's what it feels like now. I love the smell of lilacs wafting around the yard.

 

[robhuncor]

That looks so yummy for breakfast!

 

[1muttsfan]

Here too, Rob. Good news is that the sap is running, tapped 7 maples yesterday and got over 2 gallons of sap

 

[robhuncor]

Here too, Rob. Good news is that the sap is running, tapped 7 maples yesterday and got over 2 gallons of sap

Oooh - that sounds yummy too!

 

[Happy Chooks]

Michael's daughter's dog ate the chocolate stout cake!

I said, "Chocolate can kill a dog" and they got their hopes up!

Apparently he has stolen it before without harm. I guess he is a pain in the butt.

Michael picked up my veggie box while he was up in Grass Valley. I got a huge bunch of fresh asparagus again this week. I think I'll make a quiche, with Eggland's best organic brown eggs!

Thanks to old hens and broody pullets!

Oh no on the dog.

Ummmm, I have like 15 dozen eggs in my fridge. (not an exaggeration) We can meet for coffee and I can bring you some.

Lilacs are in bloom!

Beautiful! I look at the lilacs around here and think of my happy bees!

Hilarious!

Here too, Rob. Good news is that the sap is running, tapped 7 maples yesterday and got over 2 gallons of sap

I would so love to see this process from start to finish. CA isn't exactly maple habitat. What variety of maple do you get sap from?

 

[drumstick diva]

I was wondering if only certain kinds of Maple produce edible sap.

 

[The Sheriff]

Ummmm, I have like 15 dozen eggs in my fridge. (not an exaggeration) We can meet for coffee and I can bring you some.

Beautiful! I look at the lilacs around here and think of my happy bees!

My lilacs are full of butterflies and the bees are still thick in the rosemary. I might take you up on the eggs. Can't do it today though. My broody added two more eggs to her nest and Lukka is back on, sitting on three.

 

[1muttsfan]

Is that dog's name Diva?

Maple syrup comes from Sugar Maples. Other trees may have sweet sap, but not nearly as much sugar or as good a flavor as the Sugars. I think in Europe they may collect birch sap, birch trees here in the US do not have the right kind of sap.

Things I have learned so far:
- Wear taller boots (snow is deep in the woods!)
- Sap forms icicles at night
- You get a LOT of sap from one tree - tapped 6 and had 2 1/2 gallons of sap in about 4 hours
- It takes a LOT of sap to make syrup - around 100 gallons for 1 gallon of syrup, depending on the sugar concentration

Sugarcicle:

 

[Happy Chooks]

That is a cool picture of the frozen sap! Thanks for explaining it! I'm assuming it has to be cold out to collect the sap? When the trees are dormant? And wow, 100 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup, that's crazy.

 

[The Sheriff]

That would explain the price of good pure maple syrup!