What is it Wednesday: March 17, 2021

 

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

March 17, 2021. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

This is a maple syrup filter, and the residue filtered out of the syrup. 

Filtering is the final step in the process of making maple syrup.When the sap is boiled to concentrate the sugar, making it into syrup, other components in the sap are also concentrated and precipitate out of the syrup. This collects as a gritty residue in the syrup known as maple sand or nitre. 

Maple sand isn’t harmful, but filtering it out removes the gritty sediment so it doesn’t collect at the bottom of the syrup bottles, where it could get stirred up and re-introduced into the syrup when it is poured out.

Maple sand is made up of some of the minerals and nutrients trees bring in through their roots, along with small sugar crystals. The main components are calcium and malic acid (combined into calcium malate), and small amounts of potassium, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, iron and other organic acids. As the syrup passed through the filter on its way into a glass jug, the maple sand collects in the filter and it is washed down the drain when the filter is cleaned. This filter is shown after straining about one gallon of syrup.

Maple sugaring season is finishing up at Lutherlyn, but if you missed it don’t worry! Every year our Maple Sugaring Saturday Safari is the first Saturday in March – maybe we’ll see you at it next year! 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!