The USU Extension – Carbon County is looking for individuals interested in Maple Tapping. Castle County Radio was able to sit down with Extension Assistant Professor, Steven Price to discuss all the details.
The maple that USU Extension is looking to experiment with isn’t your typical Sugar Maple that you find back east. Those types of trees can not thrive in our alkaline soil but we do have some native trees that could produce some syrup. “We do have other maples that grow fairly well here. Things like Big Leaf Maple, Norway Maple is very commonly planted in urban settings. Then of course we have our native Ash Leaf Maple or as we call it here Box Elder,” explained Price.
Because Sugar Maple’s don’t thrive in our area the syrup that could be found in our local trees may be different. “Now with our trees the syrup is going to be a little bit different then what they produce back east, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Like a lot of specialty products, we’re seeing more and more people making very niche products and maple syrup is no different in that respect. A lot of people are looking for more local foods, things that may be a little bit different than you might be able to grab off the shelf at your local grocery store,” stated Price.
The USU Extension is looking for individuals who have these types of trees on their property to run some science experiments for them. “If you’re willing to collect some data for us, looking for sap flow over the course of the next couple of months, we will come train you, give you equipment, and teach you how to do everything. In exchange we get some data sheets back that we can use for our research. If you just want to learn more about Maple Tapping in general, we also have a workshop coming up in February,” said Price. This event will take place on Saturday, February 19 at 1:00 pm at the USU Extension Classroom at 751 East 100 North, Suite 1700 in Price.
If you would like further information about Maple Tapping or are interested in tapping your trees call the USU Extension – Carbon County Office at (435) 636-3233.