Hundreds of pails. Black maples and birches thriving streamside share their sweet bounty as their sap rises from winter dormancy. Image: Steve Lunde
Another reason for Amish to welcome spring
TAYLOR, Wis. – The Amish in Jackson County have waited all winter for spring temperatures to be fluctuating above and below freezing. That’s when the sap flows in the black maples and birches in wetlands in the Trempealeau River headwaters. Amish collect the colorless sap in plastic pails, boil it down, and lather it over pancakes.Being entrepreneurial, they also sell it. A pint typically retail roadside, in shops and online $7 to $8.