Enjoying the Taste of Nature

Welcome to our Amish community newsletter! We wish you good health and happiness as we greet the mild beginning of March, which comes in like a lamb.

Our community experienced extraordinary weather contrasts this week. On Tuesday, we enjoyed unseasonably warm temperatures of nearly 70 degrees. However, the low plummeted to a chilly 10 degrees the following morning. Tuesday afternoon brought strong winds as the cold front approached, but the sky remained clear and blue. According to local elders, such weather patterns often indicate the possibility of a drought. We hope their predictions are inaccurate and offer prayers for rainfall.

Several local Amish families have taken up a new hobby this spring, and some have continued from last spring: crafting pure and delicious maple syrup. They have discovered that the sweet taste of the syrup is not the only reward, as they also enjoy nature while collecting the sap.

This is the ideal time of year for syrup production, as the sap flows most freely when the daytime temperatures are warm but the nighttime lows drop below freezing. Approximately 30 or 40 gallons of sap are needed to obtain a single gallon of syrup, so several trees must be tapped to yield enough sap.

The families produce their own maple syrup to save money, improve their health, and gain self-sufficiency. To begin the process, they seek out mature maple trees with a diameter of at least 9 inches. A small hole is drilled in the tree, and a spout is inserted, allowing the sap to flow out. A bucket or bag is suspended below the spout to collect the sap.

Producing syrup is a learning process. Families must be careful when drilling holes to ensure the spouts fit snugly, as oversized holes can cause issues. Monitoring rainfall and dirt accumulation in the collection buckets is important to maintain the syrup's quality. Some families have faced the challenge of sap overflowing their buckets. Most families have switched from buckets to sap collection bags to improve efficiency and convenience.

Following the sap collection, the syrup-making process begins. The sap is cooked down on their wood stoves, attempting to maintain a temperature just below 120 degrees. This task is challenging since the stove's temperature can fluctuate depending on any other cooking or baking that may be while the sap is on the stove.

Every family member contributes to the syrup-making process. Even the little ones enjoy their role as "taste testers," ensuring the syrup meets the desired flavor. Tasks are allocated to all, including tapping the trees to collect the sap, boiling it to thicken into syrup, sealing it into jars, and cleaning up afterward.

All the families say they love homemade pancakes slathered in fresh maple syrup. Beyond breakfast, they use maple syrup for baking, cooking, and even sweetening beverages and ice cream, enhancing the flavors of various recipes.

The families enjoy making the syrup. It brings them closer to God's creation and each other, and they enjoy sharing their syrup with their friends and neighbors.

Besides making baskets, the Amish families who make the items for the AmishBaskets.com website have also been busy with other things this week:

The Mast Family

Despite falling behind schedule, the Mast family finally mailed their seed order for Spring on Monday. Their biggest concern now lies with their fruit trees. The unusually warm weather caused the trees to bud prematurely, leaving them vulnerable to the bitter cold that hit Tuesday night. They are particularly worried about their plum trees, which are known to be sensitive to late frosts. With such weather conditions, the family can't help but wonder how their trees will produce, and they are doubtful they will harvest plums this year.

The Yoder Family

Rebecca Yoder has recovered from a brief sickness that had kept her down for a few days. She is now busy making arrangements for a special guest coming to stay with them—her niece from Southern Minnesota. The whole family is overjoyed to have her visit for a few weeks, and David has already bought his bus ticket to go and fetch her. They can hardly wait to see her; she is a lovely girl and a skilled basketmaker. She will help them with the custom basket orders they have received over the past few weeks.

The Gingerich Family

The Gingerich family enjoyed a great fishing day this week. On Tuesday, it was so warm that they decided to go to a neighbor's farm pond in the afternoon. The fish were hungry because of the big cold front about to arrive. The children came after school, and the family caught nearly 90 fish together. They were mostly big bluegills and one nice bass. The wind blew hard and made keeping their bobbers in place difficult, but they didn't mind because they had so much fun catching fish.

"Don't forget to pray today, because God didn't forget to wake you this morning."

— Amish Wisdom