Page 5 - MARCH 2025

March 2025
NEWFOUNDLAKELIFE.COM
Page 5
Community
more to be found, depending on how far someone wants to travel. To find an associate maple producer in New Hampshire,, people can visit nhmaplepro- ducers.com. The site includes upcoming events, as well as the
names, locations, and maps of all its members. By clicking on the name of each producer, you will find more information about them and some of the products they will have available on Maple Weekend. It also offers recipes made with delicious NH maple syrup, educational posters, and even coloring sheets that can be printed out for children to not only enjoy but also learn from in a fun way.
And suppose you want to enjoy a delicious taste of New Hampshire syrup one morning. In that case, breakfast locations such as Benton’s Sugar Shack in Thornton and Heritage Farm Pancake House in rural San- bornton will be happy to serve you. Please check their website for hours of operation.
By Donna rhoDes
The New Hampshire Maple Producers Association currently has more than 350 members from all throughout the state, and the Year 2025 marks its 80th year in operation as a non-profit trade association. As they celebrate, NHMPA is pleased to announce that Maple Madness is now un- derway here in the state, where all four weekends of the month of March will be filled with ways to celebrate the gifts of the sap collected from maple trees in late winter/early spring each year.
Perhaps the highlight of the month, however, is Maple Week- end. During that time, the doors of the sugar shacks are opened and visitors can experience an educational to learn all that goes into the art of taking the sap of a maple tree from the forest to the breakfast table. And, of course, they will all have syrup for sale!
This year’s Maple Sugar Weekend is scheduled for March 15-16. While smaller producers may simply open their doors to let people see how syrup is made, larger operations might top their tours off with music and some fun activities. No doubt about it, though- all will have bottles and
March Maple Madness 2025
jugs of fresh syrup available. Each maple producer has their own specialties, and for some that is dedicating their time to boiling sap and producing jugs filled with syrup for year-round sales or more. Others though, also take maple syrup to the next level by using their product to create all types of delicious goodies. Things such as maple cotton candy, lollipops, granu- lated sugar, maple mustard (great
for dipping pretzels), all types of baked goods, and the ever-popu- lar maple candies can be found in various locations. It all de- pends on the “sugar shack” one visits, but perhaps it can be more fun and rewarding to visit a few to see what they have to offer.
Northern New Hampshire falls within the “Coniferous (cone-bearing) Zone,” meaning the area has an abundance of pine and spruce trees growing in the region. From Central New Hampshire south, however, there is more of a mix. While there are plenty of coniferous trees, there are also more hardwoods, such as maples, found in what is known to be more of a “Deciduous (leafy tree) Zone.”
There, people will find more
Grandpa's Sugar Barn in Danbury is one of more than 350 sugar houses that will soon have woodsmoke and steam rising from their chimneys as the maple sugaring season gets underway for “March Maple Madness” in New Hampshire. Photo by Donna Rhodes
“sugar bushes”- areas populated by groups of maple trees that can be easily tapped for their sap flow in the spring. That is why one doesn’t have to travel far in the lower regions of the state in March to find a “sugar shack,” also known as a building where sap is boiled down to make syrup.
Locally, there is Benton’s Sugar Shack in Thornton; Buck- lin’s Sugar House in Alexandria;
Brox Farm in Rumney; Brookside Maple in Ashland; Bridgewater Mtn in Plymouth; Grandpa’s Sugar House in New Hamp- ton; Grandpa’s Sugar Barn in Danbury; Grass Sugarhouse in Rumney; Owl Brook Maple LLC in Holderness; Torsey’s Hillcrest Maple Farm in New Hampton; and Walker’s Sugar House in Bristol. All are members of the NHMPA but there are many
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