Watching spring approach II

This week's warm days and moderate night time temperatures are sure to start the sap running, as it carries stored sugars from the roots of sugar maples up to the tips of branches to nourish swelling buds. On the way, maple taps and collection buckets catch a few gallons in sugar stands, and lucky Maine residents can enjoy the first crop of the new season: maple syrup. Maine Maple Sunday, with its delicious pancake breakfasts, will be held March 26 this year.

Real plant geeks can observe the rising of the sap at the University of Vermont Proctor Maple Research Center web site, which tracks temperature in the soil, air, and tree core and branches, as well as sap pressure, in monitored trees. Very, very cool.