Pure, natural, maple syrup is something we've been producing here since we bought the property. Last year, though, we didn't tap our trees, thinking we had enough from the previous year to get us through the season. A mistake, because we ran out, and had to buy some (gasp).
So this year we once again tapped a few of our sugar maple trees. Ideal conditions are when the temperatures in late winter will exceed 40 degrees F during the day, and dropping below freezing at night. Looking ahead to the forecast, we set out four taps on February 14. We had a couple of days like that, but it started to cool down faster than we anticipated, which shut down the flow for awhile. It warmed up again, so we've been collecting and boiling for a few weeks now.
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| Tap and bucket in a sugar maple tree |
The Kitchen Goddess's goal was to produce 4 quarts of finished product. The typical ratio is one gallon of product from 40 gallons of sap. This can vary based on the sugar content of the sap--2% is typical, but for some reason the trees exceeded that this year. I don't have a precise figure of the sap gathered, but by March 8th we had boiled enough of it to get our desired quantity.
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| "Estate-Grown" maple syrup |
She will pour this into smaller jars and can them. We will be well-supplied for the near future. But this is a "swan song," for the reasons I will set off below, which speaks to the major lifestyle change that is imminent.
We taking the steps to sell Eight Gate Farm, to move to a nearby "retirement community" (what they call a 55+ around here). It's a new construction, energy efficient, "smart" home that is being built as I write this. Should close in late May.
Naturally this is causing anxiety, though we are pleased with the decision. One thing is going from 4+ acres to essentially 0 acres. But that's precisely the point. We have grown weary of the maintenance involved keeping this property. No more mowing! No more leaves to pick up! No more shoveling snow!
What will we do with our time? Well, the clubhouse has a nice gym, there is a walking/biking trail, and I guess I'll have to learn to play pickleball and bocce.
We have essentially no neighbors here now, so that will be a big adjustment. Suppose we don't like anybody? These are our thoughts.
The big question is what about gardening? It has been my life ever since we moved here. But despite scaling down over the years, we still way overproduce. What's the point of that? Do we really need bushels of apples?
The HOA will allow us to have a 10'x10' in-ground garden in our back yard, and don't have any restrictions on containers (no raised beds allowed, though). I've pledged myself to really get good at container growing.
Also, I get plenty of gardening time at the Master Gardeners' demonstration vegetable garden, where I volunteer.
Some things I will miss. Ever since we installed our solar tracking array 10 years ago we have paid nothing for electricity. So getting a big monthly bill will hurt.
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| Our 6.2 kW solar system - bye bye |
And we'll miss entering our vegetables and canned goods in The Deerfield Fair, where I won "Best of Show" in 2024. Here's what I call our Wall of Respect (in the laundry room).
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| Deerfield Fair prize ribbons--no more |
We're sure we will miss the comfort and coziness of the wood stove, but not the cleaning, log cutting, log splitting, and endless hauling and stacking/restacking. The new place has a gas fireplace, which will be nice for ambiance but won't heat the house much.
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| Farewell to heating with wood |
So this will probably be my last blog post. If you've followed me in the past, thank you so much for reading and commenting.
