Abby K. van den Berg

Chapter 4 Maple Syrup—Production, Composition, Chemistry, and Sensory Characteristics

Maple syrup is made from sap exuded from stems of the genus Acer during the springtime. Sap is a dilute solution of primarily water and sucrose, with varying amounts of amino and organic acids and phenolic substances. When concentrated, usually by heating, a series of complex reactions produce a wide variety of flavor compounds that vary due to processing and other management factors, seasonal changes in sap chemistry, and microbial contamination. Color also forms during thermal evaporation. Flavor and color together are the primary factors determining maple syrup grade, and syrup can range from very light-colored and delicate-flavored to very dark-colored and strong-flavored.

Contribution of anthocyanins to the antioxidant capacity of juvenile and senescing sugar maple (Acer saccharum) leaves

Foliar anthocyanins are hypothesised to provide an additional source of photoprotection from photooxidative stress to the leaves in which they occur through their ability to scavenge excess free radical species. Although demonstrated to significantly enhance the antioxidant status of red morphs of fully expanded leaves of some species, the contribution of anthocyanins to the antioxidant capacity of the juvenile and senescing leaves in which they frequently occur has not been examined. Antioxidant activity of extracts from anthocyanic and non-anthocyanic juvenile and senescing sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) leaves from similar light environments was assessed using the stable free radical 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH). Anthocyanin content was significantly correlated with antioxidant activity in extracts of anthocyanic juvenile leaves but only weakly correlated in extracts of anthocyanic senescing leaves. In addition, the antioxidant activity of anthocyanic and non-anthocyanic leaves was equal in both juvenile and senescing leaves. Thus, although anthocyanins may contribute to the antioxidant capacity of anthocyanic juvenile and senescing sugar maple leaves, these results are not consistent with the hypothesis that anthocyanins provide an enhancement to the photoprotection available in either leaf type through free radical scavenging. The results suggest anthocyanins may be part of alternative strategies employed by anthocyanic juvenile and senescing maple leaves to achieve similar levels of antioxidant capacity as their non-anthocyanic counterparts to cope with the same set of environmental challenges.

An instructional guide for leaf color analysis using digital imaging software

Digital color analysis has become an increasingly popular and cost-effective method utilized by resource managers and scientists for evaluating foliar nutrition and health in response to environmental stresses. We developed and tested a new method of digital image analysis that uses Scion Image or NIH image public domain software to quantify leaf color. This publication provides instructions for using this software to measure the percentage green and red in leaves, colors of particular importance for the assessment of plant health. Comparisons of results from digital analyses of 326 scanned images of leaves and concurrent spectrophotometric measures of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and anthocyanins verify that image analysis provides a reliable quantitative measure of leaf color and the relative concentrations of underlying plant pigments.

Anthocyanin influence on light absorption within juvenile and senescing sugar maple leaves - do anthocyanins function as photoprotective visible light screens?

Foliar anthocyanins are hypothesised to function as photoprotective visible light screens, preventing over-excitation of the photosynthetic system, and decreasing the likelihood of photo-oxidative stress by absorbing green light and reducing the amount of light available to be absorbed by chloroplasts in deeper tissue layers. Chlorophyll fluorescence imaging was used to test the hypothesis that anthocyanins in the palisade mesophyll of juvenile and senescing sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) leaves function as visible light screens by assessing their influence on light absorption profiles within leaves. We hypothesised that an effective anthocyanic light screen should reduce light absorption, particularly of green wavelengths, by chloroplasts in the spongy mesophyll. Both anthocyanic juvenile and senescing leaves absorbed greater amounts of green light than corresponding nonanthocyanic leaves. However, profiles of green light absorption by chlorophyll within anthocyanic leaves were not shifted to reflect reduced absorption of green light by spongy mesophyll chloroplasts. Further, the spongy mesophyll of both anthocyanic juvenile and senescing leaves absorbed proportions of green light equal to or greater than the spongy mesophyll of corresponding nonanthocyanic leaves. These results indicate that though they may provide a general source of photoprotection by reducing the total quantity of light available to be absorbed by chlorophyll, the anthocyanins in juvenile and senescing sugar maple leaves do not attenuate light in a manner consistent with that expected for an anthocyanic screen in the palisade mesophyll.

Identifying Sustainable Practices for Tapping and Sap Collection from Birch Trees: Optimum Timing of Tapping Initiation and the Volume of Nonconductive Wood Associated with Taphole Wounds

Experiments were conducted to determine two pieces of information essential to identify practices necessary to ensure tapping trees for birch sap collection is both sustainable and profitable—the selection of the time to initiate tapping birch trees to obtain maximum yields, and the volume of nonconductive wood (NCW) associated with taphole wounds in birch trees. The yields obtained from various timing treatments varied between sapflow seasons, but indicate that using test tapholes to choose the appropriate time to initiate tapping is likely to result in optimum yields from birch trees. The volume of NCW associated with taphole wounds in birch trees was highly variable and generally quite large, averaging 220 times the volume of the taphole drilled, and requiring relatively high radial growth rates to maintain NCW at sustainable levels over the long-term. However, more conservative tapping practices, including reduced taphole depth and increased dropline length, as well as thinning and other stand management practices, can be used to reduce the minimum growth rates required. Producers can use this information to ensure that they use tapping practices that will result in sustainable outcomes and obtain the maximum possible sap yields from their trees.