Recent mild spell leads to sweet start of the maple syrup season
Take it as a sweet sign of Canadian tradition flowing smoothly, as volunteers at the Kinsmen Fanshawe Sugar Bush tap into a promising maple syrup season.
"Last year, we were boiling on the 13th of February. This year, we've started quiet a bit earlier. This is our fourth day of boiling right now,” said Kinsmen Fanshawe Sugar Bush chair Darryl Van Moorsel.
Kinsmen is the only not-for-profit sugar bush in Canada. It harvests sap from about 1,300 taps. Each one produces approximately one litre of sap, depending on the season.
"Because it's been so warm, the trees were giving a lot of sap and now they've actually really slowed down. Right now, we have hardly any sap coming in because it has been so warm,"explained Van Moorsel.
He’s now in his seventh year of boiling maple syrup – and calls it's a science.
Kinsmen Fanshawe Sugar Bush as seen on Feb. 12, 2024. (Reta Ismail/CTV News London) With fluctuating temperatures, it’s become difficult to predict the length of the production season.
"As long as we keep getting those minuses at night … and plus ten during the day, this season will go on for quite a while,” Van Moorsel added.
The maple syrup season historically began in late March or early April. Over the years, however, a change in climate patterns has slowly pushed back the start date into February.
"Mother Nature is Mother Nature and we can't do anything about it. All we can do is hope for a good season and I’m pretty sure we'll still get one,” he said.
Kinsmen will officially open for public tours this upcoming Family Day weekend, serving breakfast and offering educational guided tours.
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