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No More Pancake Syrup? Climate Change Could Bring an End To Sugar Maples (sciencemag.org)
An anonymous reader shares a research report: Savor that sticky, slightly nutty sweetness drenching your Sunday morning pancakes now. The trees that make maple syrup will struggle to survive climate change, a new study reveals. Researchers had thought that pollution from cars, factories, and agriculture might buffer sugar maples against an increasingly warm and dry climate by supplying soils with fertilizing nitrogen. But the new analysis, which examined 20 years of tree and soil data in four Michigan locations, finds that extra boost of nitrogen won't be enough. Instead, the researchers report today in Ecology, a lack of water will stunt the trees' growth.
For the love of God, won't somebody please think of the pancakes?!?
Let's be clear on terminology. "Pancake syrup" contains little or no maple. Maybe distilled smoke extract from a tiny amount of maple wood, but probably not even that. It's high fructose corn syrup & caramel color.
Only 100% pure maple syrup is made from actual tree sap. As a New Yorker living on the Vermont border, I can assure you there's a difference between the good stuff and that crap they put in the clear plastic bottles.
I make maple syrup on a *very* small scale in a major city. This "scientific" article is all bunk. 1) First, large scale maple producers already know that watering the trees while tapping helps production. If global warming from politicians hot air continues towards long term winter droughts,, Maple bushes can be irrigated. 2) There are over 3000 variety of maples right now and the sugar industry is growing out hybrids that can produce close to a 10% sugar content sap ( normal is 2%) Nature will provide drought tolerant if needed. 3) no-one uses pails. Maple syrup production is hi-tech: reverse osmosis is amazing 4) North America has an over-abundance of maple trees and syrup production 5) What is not mentioned that is serious potential for maple blight like oak wilt to destroy a lot trees 6) Canada 's political socialized maple syrup production does more harm to producers that climate change ever will Sure I only make about 7 gallons a year but I know more than these blowhards
Stop being reasonable. You're completely missing the point of the click-bait headlines.
Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.
That's why I use High Fructose Bee Vomit.
I do like chemicals. All kinds of chemicals. I ingest them all the time. What do you have against chemicals?
Pro-tip, stay away from dihydrogen monoxide. It's a real killer! Nasty stuff.
That's why I use High Fructose Bee Vomit.
Same problem, manufactured sugar with some coloring.
A whole YEAR??!!?!?! You clearly aren't Canadian. That's aboot a weeks worth in my house.
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
And how long will it take for those Maples to grow in Northern Ontario? Is the soil suitable? Here, maples prefer rich bottom land soil. Are there other tree species that can move north faster and/or adapt faster? Here, Alders are the primary pioneer species, not surprisingly as they can fix their own nitrogen.
There's also the question of whether warming will cause more or less rainfall. The Maples around here love rain.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_totalitarianism
Reminds me of the Himalayan pink rock salt labeled as 'non-gmo'. It was even the 'verified non-gmo project' label too!
Truly, informative labels for the informed consumer.
wtf?
Ontario and Quebec are literally covered in maple trees. Maple syrup productions is practically a cultural tradition in Quebec. The whole Canada/Maple Syrup thing is one of the stereotypes which is actually true.
How are you seriously wondering if CANADA, the country with a maple leaf on it's flag, will be able to grow maple trees??
The main problem with syrup in Canada is surpluses. . They have production quotas to prevent overproduction and support higher wholesale prices.
The world is not going to run out of pancake syrup, and stupid alarmist articles like this are counter-productive at getting people to take climate change seriously.
Fair enough, and I wouldn't have been surprised by your comment if someone had suggested that Canada could pick up the slack on Banana production, but come on ... Maple Syrup? If there's one thing I expect people to know about us it's that we're all a bunch of maple syrup swilling lumberjacks.