If you’ve ever tasted pure maple syrup, you know that nothing compares to its rich, sweet flavor drizzled over pancakes or waffles. But have you ever wondered about the journey of that syrup from tree to table?
The art of making maple syrup in our area dates back to the Iroquois, who discovered how to tap sugar maple trees and turn their sap into syrup by boiling it over open fires. The region, known for its cold winters and warm springs, has historically been home to sugar maple trees, and local producers have been tapping into this resource for generations, passing down their knowledge through families.
Firefly Fields Farm —A Family Affair
At Firefly Fields Farm, Ravena, Elijah Done and his wife Kristen continue this tradition. Elijah’s inspiration for the business was the fun he had helping on a friend’s family’s maple farm as a kid. Firefly Fields got its start a few years ago when he used a handful of buckets to collect sap which he and his daughters boiled in a turkey fryer as an experiment. The experiment quickly escalated and within the next year they started building a sap house and acquired a wood-fired evaporator and reverse osmosis machine.
According to Elijah, “Not being able to do anything halfway, I built the sap house from the ground up using my own sawmill. And to give credit where it’s due, my father-in-law was a great help with all of this. Plus, he would never let me live it down if I didn’t at least mention him. We handpicked the trees on our property, dragged them through the woods, and milled them on our personal sawmill. It was truly a labor of love.”
Elijah’s long-term goal is to make Firefly Fields a true family business where his children can partner with him and Kristen.
Producing Syrup and Other Maple Goodies
The Dones collect sap with buckets (and some lines, as they really help cut down on time in the
woods). Then, it’s run through a reverse osmosis (RO) machine, which removes some of the water from the sap to speed up the boiling process. “After that,” Elijah said, “we put the sap that comes out of the RO into our wood-fired evaporator and boil until the sugar content tells us we’ve hit maple syrup gold!”
Now it’s ready to bottle and sell locally to customers and businesses. Once the hectic sap season is over and bottling is done, the Dones can concentrate on making all the other maple goodies. One item that has been becoming more popular is maple sugar. It can be used as an ingredient for so many different things: cinnamon maple sugar, a replacement for white sugar in virtually anything, a tasty BBQ rub, and so on. Keep an eye out. Firefly Fields hopes to be introducing more maple products this year.
And there’s no rest for the weary as that after maple sugaring is done, it’s honey season. The Dones are looking forward to a spring thaw and happy busy bees!
A “Bird Friendly Sugarbush”
An exciting development for Firefly Field this past year is that Audubon New York certified it as a “bird-friendly sugarbush.” The woods were audited to determine if they support a diverse group of birds. Audubon looked for factors such as a variety of tree species and ages, some dead trees, and a range of vegetation and tree canopy sizes. It’s not uncommon for maple producers to minimize tree diversity to increase profit or remove dead trees to protect their investments, such as sap lines. Proudly, Firefly Fields was one of only 20 maple farms in the state to receive this approval.
Elijah and Kristen recently searched for alternative packaging for their syrup, with an eye toward ecological sustainability. They discovered NuCan tins, which not only block out all light, extending the shelf life of the syrup, but can also be reused for personal use or recycled. One of their favorite options, however, is the glass bottles they can personalize with bird imagery to promote their Audubon partnership.
Indulging
Firefly Fields Farm offers maple syrup and honey in various grades and sizes, as well as teas. You can order them for delivery or pickup. Maple sugar candy has a shorter shelf life, so Elijah and Kristen typically only make it before events they’re attending, on holidays, or upon request.
As you can see on the farm’s website (https://www.firefly-fields-farm.com/), several maple products are currently out of stock. However, maple syrup season is about to begin, so you won’t have to wait long for them to be available again.
Author: Jean Gordon
A semi-retired tax and financial writer/planner and former romance author, Jean keeps busy volunteering in the RCA area (see you at the Grace UMC Book Nook) and spending time with her family.
