Tapping Sycamore Trees

[Ashley Cawley]

Would love to hear your experiences RE tapping Sycamore Trees.

I tapped a Sycamore tree by accident yesterday! I was paying Matt a visit & whilst I waited for him to return home I wandered into a wood, thought I'd see what flora was about & perhaps whittle a spoon.

I found a Sycamore tree on hedge-row with a stream beneath, as I cut a small piece growing horizontally I wasn't thinking about tapping a tree for it's sap at all. As soon as I started cutting it I could tell it was very wet and knew it was the sap as it is rising in everything at the moment.

It continued to drip quite fast, I was surprised, it must have been helped by the strong sun & stream beneath it.

I remember reading in a Bushcraft magazine that it's possible to tap Sycamore (as they are part of the Maple family) however the writer reported he himself had no luck across numerous years of trying.

Well I can say I drank from the Sycamore tree for the first time :o and would recommend to those who might try - look for one beside a stream!

[IBrown]

I see Sycamore tree's when I am fishing streams. Can you or have you a video or step by step on how to tap a tree, that would be interesting to try.
Cheers
Ian

[luresalive]

Sycamore syrup sounds just as good as Maple syrup, now that would be worth a try!

[Ashley Cawley]

I see Sycamore tree's when I am fishing streams. Can you or have you a video or step by step on how to tap a tree, that would be interesting to try.
Cheers
Ian
Hi Ian,

I'm guessing you Tap a Sycamore tree much like you would a Birch at this time of year. I've done a written guide to my low impact method of harvesting which is back on the main website, here's a link: http://www.naturalbushcraft.co.uk/wild-food/tapping-the-birch-tree-for-sap-in-march-collecting-birch-sap-a-clean-sugar-rich-water.html

I also did a video how-to a couple of years ago, here it is:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RuLlECSPfM

[IBrown]

Thanks Ash

[OKBushcraft]

That is cool. We don't have many maples in my area but loads of sycamore. That is great info, thanks.

[MikeWilkinson]

Cheers buddy, I reckon at the right time of year you could probably tap young oaks and such as well, as long as the tree is not too old and the bark layer thin enough.

[Ashley Cawley]

I'm just off out to Tap a couple of Birch now :)

[Ashley Cawley]

Apologies for the quality, was taken on my iPoood..
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_dzoenG8Svds/TYjoJvNHwvI/AAAAAAABLR4/Rn7ooBC0heY/s640/IMG_0075.JPG

[kINGPIN]

I finally got round to writing a birch tapping guide in my blog yesterday with a few pics. I like the twig method for simplicity but it didnt seem to produce enough when I did it. I use a hand auger now but it is hard work at the start and a bit more hard work repairing it.

Big thanks to you Ashley as your video was one of the first I saw that got me into it. Although as I mention in my guide, an opinel wasnt the best knife for the job (a piece of it is unfortunatly still in the tree)...you live and learn.

[Lone Wolf]

the sycamore tree is a maple (acer psudoplatanus) and the main maple tree to tap for sap is sugar maple (acer saccharum) so it makes sense that it produces sap the stream will have helped alot glad i found this though as i plan to try and tap maple next spring :)

[Martin]

Interesting resource here:

http://tapmytrees.com/

Hope it helps

Martin

[john scrivy]

hornbeam is also tapable and very nice

[JonnyP]

Hello John.. Long time no see..

We have had a big sycamore reduced in height here. I was up in it today reducing the height some more.. I noticed that one of the cut limbs had foam over it. Me being a messy oik managed to get it on my trousers and its gone off like glue and made the patch on my trousers stiff.

[Matt]

Me being a messy oik managed to get it on my trousers and its gone off like glue and made the patch on my trousers stiff.

Oo er, just shows how things can be taken out of context :p :off-topic:

I'll get me coat.

[Martin]

Oo er, just shows how things can be taken out of context :p :off-topic:

I'll get me coat.

Yeah, but I bet we were all thinking the same thing!! :D

Martin

[JonnyP]

oops.. :ashamed:

[jus_young]

Yeah, but I bet we were all thinking the same thing!! :D

Martin

Yep :D

[john scrivy]

Yep had the same thought as every one else Best avoid sycamore sap on the zip of my strides LOL
Hello John.. Long time no see..

We have had a big sycamore reduced in height here. I was up in it today reducing the height some more.. I noticed that one of the cut limbs had foam over it. Me being a messy oik managed to get it on my trousers and its gone off like glue and made the patch on my trousers stiff.

[Dan XF]

I was thinking about tapping birch this spring. I have had an idea for the actual tap, cut the end off of a bic biro lid. Now put the narrow end of the lid in to the little cut slot on the tree. It would give you a little distance from the tree and an actual tap to collect the sap. Right, off to rummage through the kitchen drawer.

[ocean1975]

Here is my birch tapping kit if your looking for ideas.
http://i966.photobucket.com/albums/ae147/ocean1975/Birchtappingkit.jpg

[john scrivy]

Ocean1975 -- nice set up keeps every thing clean of bugs

[paulthefish2009]

Sorry if i sound stupid guys, but whats the score with this tapping? Is it legal for me to walk up to a birch on my local common and tap it? would really likesome advice on his,seen ray do it on tv and fancy trying it but need some advice.do you have to plug the wound with birch and how much is safe to take without harming the tree? sorry if this is a bit bone but thought it best to ask. cheers paul

[AdrianRose]

Sorry if i sound stupid guys, but whats the score with this tapping? Is it legal for me to walk up to a birch on my local common and tap it? would really likesome advice on his,seen ray do it on tv and fancy trying it but need some advice.do you have to plug the wound with birch and how much is safe to take without harming the tree? sorry if this is a bit bone but thought it best to ask. cheers paul

Fantastic question!! And one that is so often over-looked i.e the legalities of foraging. Wild food foraging is my number one passion and the reason i got into bushcraft in the first place 18 years ago.

There are a number of factors that one needs to consider when foraging in any form. Firstly,the Theft Act 1968, for England and Wales, states that:

"A person who picks mushrooms growing wild on any land, or who picks flowers, fruit or foliage from a plant growing wild on any land, does not (although not in possession of the land) steal what he picks, unless he does it for reward or for sale or other commercial purpose."

So the key factor here is that it has to be for "personal use", if you gather blackberries for instance from private land and make jam with it, then sell the jam for gain or profit, then you are breaking the law.

However, there are other laws that also need to be taken into account when foraging, for instance under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, it is an offence to uproot any wild plant without the land owner's permission, or to forage on a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Therefore, whilst it is legal to pick a blackberry, you cannot uproot a pignut or burdock root growing next to the blackberry bush.

With regard to the tapping of tree's, I think that one would have to be careful not to breach any laws regarding the damaging of someone's property. By definition, if you drill a hole or puncture the tree in anyway, you may be guilty of willful damage.

To summarise, I would always advocate that you seek the permission of the land owner first, secondly take time to get to know the owner. Engage them in what you are doing, offer to take them out with you. Give them samples of what you have tapped, foraged or gathered.

Hope that this helps in some way.

Ade.

[AdrianRose]

Sorry I forgot to say that the law is slightly different in Scotland.

Ade

[AdrianRose]

Was the above helpful at all? It seems that the conversation thread had abruptly died.

Didn't mean to kill it, sorry, just thought that I would clarify the law a little with regard to foraging.

Ade.

[jus_young]

Na, you just gave folks a bit to think about! Thats a pretty important chunk of info you gave there, thanks for taking the time.

[rossbird]

Na, you just gave folks a bit to think about! Thats a pretty important chunk of info you gave there, thanks for taking the time.

+1 Ade
Pleased you brought up the issue of uprooting plants.....not everyone takes note or is aware of this.
Can potentially be very damaging to certain species.

[AdrianRose]

Thanks guys. I thought for one horrible moment I had upset someone. Really didn't want to do that.

The other thing that's worth noting when gathering fungi is the "tap and take" method. i.e before you take the mushroom give it a couple of gentle taps. This may help it to shed a few of its spores so that it will allow the continuation of growth in the future.

Ade.

[Wham666]

Good tip that Ade. I'll remember to "tap and take" next time I'm picking shrooms :)

[AdrianRose]

No problem Mandy. Another tip with fungi is to not just pull them out of the ground, this ultimately damages the host mycellium.

The best way to remove most fungi is to grip the stipe (posh name for shaft/stem) and gently rotate until it comes away in your hand. This way you will ensure that little or no damage is done to the main organism and will promote further growth.

Cheers
Ade


Good tip that Ade. I'll remember to "tap and take" next time I'm picking shrooms :)

[betts.samuel]

Hi, going back to the legal issues of birch tapping. My Mother said I may only do it if I have permission, but I would do it in a large public forest, with no owners. Would I have permission to do it?
Thanks

[Martin]

Hi, going back to the legal issues of birch tapping. My Mother said I may only do it if I have permission, but I would do it in a large public forest, with no owners. Would I have permission to do it?
Thanks

All forests have owners I'm afraid. Your mother was right.

Martin

[rossbird]

All forests have owners I'm afraid. Your mother was right.

Martin

Mum's are always right.....even when their wrong:confused2:

[betts.samuel]

True, mums are always right! :blabla:. Thanks for the quick reply. I guess I'll have to search for a contact. Do you all have permission from land owners when you tap trees or do you do it on your own land?

[AdrianRose]

I don't own any land, but I am very fortunate that I have met a lot of people along the way that do own land. They allow me to do what i want because I have spent years building a reputation and they know that I won't wreck their land by having huge fires and leaving beer bottles/cans everywhere.

Most landowners are the same, talk to them about what your doing, engage with them and even ask them to come with you for the day. Chances are that they never knew you could tap trees and therefore you could involve them in the process and gain their trust and friendship.

Ade.