New! Hubbell Award and
Young Sugarmaker of the Year Award Announced

Read the Hubbell Award announcement

Commissioner Patrick Hooker, left,
and Steve Childs, recipient of Hubbell award
& Cornell University Maple Specialist, on right. 

Oliver Oswald, recipient of the
Young Sugarmaker of the Year award.

New! Read the June 10, 2008 story "NY Maple Syrup Production Up 44%" (14KB PDF) from the USDA NASS NY Field Office.

2008 New York State Maple Queen and Princess Crowned

The Maple Queen and Princess pageants were held at the American Maple Museum in Croghan, where the event has been held continuously since 1980.

Katie Peck, on left, was crowned Queen and Chelsea Green, on right, was crowned Princess. Katie and Chelsea are both Sophomores at V.V.S. and members of the FFA.

Katie is from Vernon Center and lives on her family's cash crop farm and custom farm services business. She is currently the V.V.S. FFA Historian.

Chelsea is from Vernon and has worked on many projects at school including the FFA's maple program.

Two days after being crowned both girls were interviewed by BUG Country
99 radio, then the next day traveled to Albany to host a Pancake
Breakfast for the New York Assembly agriculture Committee.

From the Tree to Your Table

As winter grudgingly gives way to spring, New York State maple syrup producers begin the work of making maple syrup. The temperature climbs to the 40’s in the day and eases back below freezing at night. Warm days and cool nights cause the sap to run through the trees. This is known as the “sugaring off” season.

A sugar maple tree is usually 30 years old or more and at least ten inches in diameter before it is tapped. Depending on its size, a tree can have up to four taps, each of which yields an average of ten gallons of sap per season.

A large number of New York’s maple producers have put away their metal spiles and buckets. They save time and collect more sap by connecting their maple trees, collectively known as a sugarbush, with a network of plastic tubing. The sap flows to collecting vats or, in some larger operations, is pumped directly to the sugar house. This is where the sap is transformed into syrup.

When the sap first arrives in the sugarhouse it is mostly water and bears little resemblance to the beautiful amber liquid we eventually use on our pancakes. The sap to syrup conversion happens when most of the water s boiled away. During “sugaring off” season, sap is evaporated continuously until the supply of sap is converted to pure maple syrup. It takes about 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon syrup.

This evaporation process, like the collection of sap from the trees, has been completely modernized. New York State maple producers use sophisticated equipment to control the evaporation process and make the most efficient use of the fuel used for this process.

Open Sugar Houses Many sugar houses are open to the public during maple season and at other times of the year. Look for these signs like these along highways or on sugar houses. New York’s maple producers are very proud of what they do and are always willing to share their interest and knowledge.

Visit the American Maple Museum in Croghan, New York. Exhibits depict the history of maple syrup and sugar making techniques ranging from those used by the Native Americans to plastic tubing and stainless steel evaporators in use today. Audio tapes explain many of the exhibits. The Museum was founded in 1977 to preserve the history and evolution of the North American maple syrup industry. Admission charged. Call ahead for Museum hours (315) 346-1107. More >>>

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Last updated August 13, 2008