It's Almost Syrup Season!
See What's "On Tap" at the Nature Center!
Adopt A Sugar Maple Tree Season Kick-off
Saturday, February 4
11:00 A.M. or 12:30 P.M.
Families, groups or individuals are invited to adopt one of the Nature Center's maple trees for the tapping season. Learn about and actively participate in the maple syrup making process by tapping a tree, collecting the sap and finally enjoying the finished product.
Participants will attend a kick-off event on Saturday, February 4 at 11:00 A.M. or 12:30 P.M. (pre-registration is required) to select your tree and learn how the syruping process works! Families/groups then return 1-3 times a week (on your own schedule) to collect sap, observe how conditions affect production and take part in evening boil downs as we make real maple syrup in our Sugar Shack!
The program concludes with Syrup Celebration Breakfast where each family will receive a bottle of maple syrup produced from New Canaan Nature Center trees.
Members: $65 / Non-Members: Open to NCNC members (Join Now!)
Backyard Syruping Session
Saturday, February 18
11:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M.
A special session for those interested in making syrup from maple trees in their own backyard! The Nature Center Syruping Team will teach how to identify sugar maples, when to tap your trees, pointers for monitoring sap flow and collecting sap, and techniques for the evaporation/boil down process. Learn about the history of this New England tradition, what syrup grades really mean, what causes sap to flow in winter and what commercial syrup grades really mean.
Educators will demonstrate every step of the process so you can go home and get started right away! Each registered group will receive 3 spiles for tree tapping from Tap My Trees (www.tapmytrees.com). Cost per household/family: $30 for NCNC members/$45 for non-members.
Gather 'Round For A Boil Down!
This year we'll be hosting boil downs throughout the season where our naturalists will complete the process of transforming sap into rich maple syrup! This is a wonderful reason to get outdoors in winter and informally gather at the sugar shack to see the process up close. Weather conditions will impact dates/times, so look out for email alerts and Facebook updates regarding when these will take place.
Syrup Saturday & Pancake Breakfast
Saturday, March 17
11:00 A.M. to 2:30 P.M.
Bring the whole family and join us as we celebrate the bounty from this year's syrup season! See the Sugar Shack in action and learn all about this age-old New England tradition. We'll also host a delicious breakfast where you and yours can sample first hand the sweet treat of the sugar maple trees atop a short stack of flapjacks or waffles with your choice of toppings. If that doesn't fill you up, grab a treat at our maple-themed bake sale!
Join our naturalists for a hike down Maple Lane to learn some tree identification tips, watch a tree tapping demo and maple sap boil down, and make a maple-themed craft to take home with you. When those toes start to get numb, warm them up around the campfire and share tall tales of this winter's adventures.
Members: $8/person, Non-members: $12/person
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