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How to make old fashioned spruce gum - health benefits

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How to make old fashioned spruce gum - health benefits

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68O-xeF28vo

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How to Make Old-Fashioned Spruce Gum -- Plus History & Health Benefits

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Spruce gum is a chewing material made from the resin of spruce trees. In North America, spruce resin was chewed by Native Americans, and was later introduced to the early American pioneers and was sold commercially by the 19th century, by John B. Curtis amongst others. It has also been used as an a…

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Havesting Spruce Gum for Medicinal Purposes

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Havesting Spruce Gum for Medicinal Purposes

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3PBP9STRr0&list=PLoeHijgNLt7n2yfsS9EtAKDokVI9mPa39

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Harvesting Spruce Gum for Medicinal Purposes

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You're sleeping peacefully when suddenly the sound of pots and pans gets you stirring. You're able to back to sleep for a few minutes, but it's not long before you're pulled into full consciousness by your nose.

As you sit up in bed, you the air and the unmistakable smell of pancakes! Your mouth begins to water as you jump out of bed and head to the kitchen.

It won't be long until you're seated at the table before a of flapjacks, ready to them in that sweet and substance that turns pancakes into a breakfast : syrup!

As you wait for your pancakes to be served, you take some time to WONDER about where that syrup comes from. Like the paper you write on at school, syrup comes from those tall, woody perennials you often take for granted. What are we talking about? Trees, of course!

You can't drill a hole in just any old tree and have syrup pour out. You can, however, tap certain kinds of trees, such as sugar maple trees, and collect gallons of sap at the right time of year.

Syrup makers use tree sap to make syrup. On average, it takes about 40 gallons of sap to make just one of delicious syrup.

Sap inside a tree is a bit like blood inside the human body. Sap flows through a part of the outer tree trunk known as sapwood, delivering water, sugars, and nutrients throughout the tree.

Sap production begins in warm summer months when the process of photosynthesis creates carbohydrates that get stored in the tree as starch. The starch then gets converted to sugar in the form of sucrose that dissolves into the sap, which is stored for the winter.

When spring begins to arrive (often around the month of March), the weather provides just the right conditions to produce sap that can be collected to make syrup. Those special conditions of alternating freeze/thaw cycles in which temperatures drop below freezing at night and rise above freezing during the day.

The rising temperatures during the day create positive pressure within the tree that will force sap out of any holes in the tree. In addition to taps purposefully placed in the tree to collect sap, sap will flow out of broken branches or any other cracks or holes in the tree.

At night when temperatures fall back below freezing, negative pressure develops inside the tree. This creates a that stops the sap from flowing out of the tree. This force also pulls water through the tree's roots to replenish the sap. Experts believe these differences in pressure as a result of temperature fluctuations occur because of the expansion and contraction of carbon dioxide gas within the sapwood.

This cycle continues until temperatures stay above freezing, at which point sap will stop flowing and begin the sap production cycle anew. Scientists believe that the sap's main purpose is to provide nutrients to new leaves as they grow. In turn, those leaves will fuel the process of photosynthesis that starts the sap production process.

You may be WONDERing if drilling holes into trees is damaging. Using proper tapping procedures, trees sustain only minor wounds that are not damaging. Trees repair drill holes and heal in a matter of time.

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You're sleeping peacefully when suddenly the sound of pots and pans gets you stirring. You're able to back to sleep for a few minutes, but it's not long before you're pulled into full consciousness by your nose. As you sit up in bed, you the air and the unmistakable smell of pancakes!

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https://www.gov.mb.ca/forest/pubs/forest_lands/field_guide.pdf

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As food Spruce gum, dzèh kwan’ (G) dzih drinh’ (T), is the hard, older kind of tree sap or pitch, with a red or rose colour. It can be picked year round from the trees with a knife, stick or fingers. It can then be chewed like a piece of gum. Both the gum and the juice it produces can be swallowed a…

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https://frarborists.com/what-is-tree-sap/

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Filled with nutrients and minerals, sap is the blood of a tree. It carries energy out into the branches when new buds are forming in spring-time. It comes in many forms; it can be that stuff that gets on your clothes and sticks to your car, or it might be perfect drizzled over pancakes. And if those things weren't interesting enough for this curious substance, it has also been the subject of shocking photographs that swept the world thanks to disease.

There are a few reasons why you might come into contact with sap, with some being desirable and some not, but what is it and what does it do for the tree?

What's In Tree Sap?

There are two separate substances usually lumped together under the label of sap; these are xylem and phloem. Xylem transports water, minerals and hormones from the bottom to the top of the tree in a long string formation. Each year the xylem channels die off and new ones are produced. When you fell a tree and are faced with those wonderful rings you are seeing the old xylem channels, one ring for each year of life.

Phloem, however, is the sticky sugary stuff we tend to come into contact with whether by accident or on purpose. This is made up of the sugars created by photosynthesis, which is then fed back into the tree and leaves as much-needed food during the growth period.

Trees That Produce Edible Sap

One very popular tree is the sugar maple ( Acer saccarum). Its sap has a sugar content of up to 2% and they make a lot of it; it is tapped in late winter and early spring, with a healthy, good-sized tree producing as much as 15 gallons of heavenly sweetness. The sugar maple is the most prolific for sap production, but every maple produces edible sap with varying degrees of sweetness. Much is not commercially viable due to the lower yields but they are still commonly used for domestic purposes. In Korea the Gorosoe ( Acer mono) is the most common source of sap; traditionally it's used 'raw' as a hot beverage rather than boiled down into syrup.

As well as maples there are a few other trees that produce edible sap. The white walnut ( Juglans cinerea), black walnut ( Juglans nigra), heartnut ( Juglans ailantifolia) and the English walnut ( Juglans regia) will all yield tasty sap, with the heartnut boasting sugar levels comparable to the sugar and black maples. The sap of many birches is also very nutritious - while it's low on sugar it's a great source of minerals and natural antioxidants.

Why Do Trees Produce Sap?

The aforementioned uses of tree sap are undoubtedly positive; however our other interactions with it might not be so much fun. Often the reason we encounter sap on the outside of a tree is because something is wrong. Leaking sap on the bark can be a sign of disease, pests or damage. A common pest that causes damage to trees, and forces protective action, is the bark beetle. These burrow into the tree to lay their eggs under the bark layer. When the eggs hatch the larvae burrow start to carve out a network of deep burrows, and it usually requires chemical treatment to save the tree. However the tree's own sap can often serve as an effective defense mechanism - the holes made by the burrowing adult beetle fill up with the sticky fluid, which can prevent it laying the eggs and even sometimes trap it.

Indirectly exposed sap can result in various mildews, as there are insects such as the mealybug and aphid which feed on the substance. They, in turn, exude their own sticky fluid known as honeydew and the presence of this can increase the occurrence of sooty mildew.

There is one particular showing of sap that created many stories of impending doom and apocalypse, however. Presented with images of trees leaking what appeared to be blood, the internet went into meltdown with fantastical stories about what might be causing it. A quick search of Google for "bleeding trees" will pull up some fascinating images if you have not seen them already, and there are some quite graphic shots of the stuff pumping forcibly from trees. But was there some sinister reason for these eruptions of deep red sap? Of course, much like blood pumps harder round our bodies as we exert ourselves, as does tree sap. If these trees are cut or damaged at the height of the sap production it can appear in spurts from the injury, and some species are well known as "bleeders". It's worth looking at the images if you ever need a reminder of just how surprising nature can be.

Removing Sap From Clothes, Skin, Cars and Other Items

One common complaint about sap is its famed ability to stick to things we'd rather not have it stick to. You can get covered in sap while doing yard work, exploring in the woods or even decorating the Christmas tree, and it's always best to clean it up before it has a chance to harden. If caught while still sticky it can usually be removed without too much trouble. Skin and hair are two areas where contact can be tricky. Rub sticky skin with nail varnish remover to break the bond, then wash it away gently with warm soapy water. In hair your first reaction might be to chop it straight out, but that isn't really necessary. Treat it like bubble-gum - coat the sap with peanut butter, massage it loose then wash your hair as normal.

Rubbing alcohol is great for removing sap from fabric; apply it to the affected area to loosen and remove the substance, then put the item through a warm wash.

Another way to utilize nail varnish remover is when sap drips on your car - something many of us have experienced. Do not apply directly to the paintwork, just soak some cotton wool and work it gently into the offending sap before washing your vehicle as usual. If the idea of applying nail varnish remover makes you uncomfortable another great option is WD-40, which is very unlikely to react with the paintwork at all. Once it has achieved its aim, simply wash it away with a solution of water and vinegar.

From your point of view sap can either be a nuisance or a delicious treat, but to your trees it's vital. Look out for unusual leaks and consider sap activity when deciding when to trim, and if you have a maple on your property read up on how to tap it. If you have trees you're going to have sap, so make the most of it!

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Filled with nutrients and minerals, sap is the blood of a tree. It carries energy out into the branches when new buds are forming in spring-time. It comes in many forms; it can be that stuff that gets on your clothes and sticks to your car, or it might be perfect drizzled over pancakes.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pD68uxRLkM

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Photosynthesis | Photosynthesis in plants | Photosynthesis - Biology basics for children | elearnin

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The Secret Life of Pine Cones - Ypsilanti District Library

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Pine cones grow on pine trees . They are how pine trees reproduce , or, in other words, make more trees. Usually, male and female pine cones are born on the same tree. Typically, the male cones, which produce pollen , are located on the lower branches of the tree. This is to prevent the pollen from falling on the female cones of the same tree.

When you imagine a pine cone, you are probably imagining a female pine cone with woody, spirally scales. This is because male pine cones are much smaller and live only for a short length of time, usually in the spring. Male pine cones do not make the hard-shelled woody case like the female pine cones do. They are soft and spongy.

Female pine cones use their woody structure to keep their seeds safe. They keep their seeds safe so the seeds can hopefully be pollinated and grow. Each female pine cone has numerous spirally arranged scales, with two seeds on each fertile scale.

Male pine cones produce pollen, which is like a powder. The male cones release their pollen, which is carried around the air by blowing wind, and hopefully to another female pine cone on a different pine tree. If the pollen reaches a female pine cone, this process is called pollination.

After pollination, and as time passes (usually about two to three years), the pollinated pine seeds grow and eventually peel loose and off of the cone and fall to the ground. If a good spot for the seed is available, a new pine tree will grow! However, there are many ways fertilized pine seeds can move from place to place.

ANIMALS

Animals eat pine seeds, move to another area, and spread them around by defecation, or in other words, pooping them out.

WIND

If the pine seeds are in a windy environment, they can be blown around and spread. On some pine cones, the scale with the nutlike seed, can expand to form a wing for airborne dispersal.

WATER

Pine cones can move around by falling into water. Pine cones float. Currents can carry seeds across oceans, lakes and rivers, and they end up on shores where they can grow.

PEOPLE

Humans plant pine seeds to create tree farms. They also find pine cones and move them. Have you ever picked up a pine cone and carried it away?

FIRE

Plants cannot run away from a fire, so some some species of pine trees developed a way to help their seeds survive. Some species of pine tree need the heat from a fire for their cones to open and release seeds.

Did you know that female pine cones open and close depending on the weather? It's true! When a female pine cone is in a warm and dry place, the pine cone opens up to expose the cone's seeds. When it is in a damp or cold place, the scales close up tightly. This is how a female pine cone protects its seeds. She keeps them safe from the rain and cold air. Watch this fast time-lapse video to see it in action!

HANDS-ON EXPERIMENT YOU CAN TRY AT HOME
SUPPLIES

2 Pine cones or more

2 Bowls

Water, both hot and cold

1 Slotted spoon (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS
Take a walk and gather at least two pine cones.

At home, fill two bowls with water. Put hot water in one bowl. (Ask an adult to help make sure it's not too hot!) Fill the other bowl with cold water.

Place a pine cone in each bowl. Does the pine cone float or sink? What else do you notice? Leave the pine cones in the water. Watch carefully and you'll see the pine cones begin to close. Which one closes faster? The one in the hot water bowl or cold water bowl?

After the pine cones close up, use a slotted spoon or other tool to remove the pine cones from the water. Place the pine cones somewhere where they can dry inside.

Watch the pine cones over time. What happens? Note the changes! How long does it take them to reopen? Can you find pine cones from different types of pine trees? Do they open and close at the same rate? Make a guess, set up your experience, then test your hypothesis, just like a scientist!

Some types of pine cones have a part that is edible. Edible means something can be eaten. There are about 20 different types of pine trees with cones big enough to harvest pine nuts from. Humans can eat the nut, but not any other parts of the pine cone. You can see what harvested pine nuts look like in this photo.

Pine nuts, also known as pignolia nuts, are most commonly used in baked goods such as cakes and cookies, but are also a tasty ingredient in salads and pesto sauce. Pine nuts are one of the most expensive nuts in the world. Why? The reason pine nuts are so expensive is because of the time required to grow the nuts and the effort it takes to harvest the seeds from their protective cone.

MAKE PESTO

Pesto is a tasty bright green sauce that originated in Genoa, Italy . It tastes great on pasta and on crackers. Some people put on sandwiches or on the outside of cooked chicken or potatoes. It can even replace the red sauce on a pizza.
INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 small garlic clove

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

2 cups basil leaves

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, more for a smoother pesto

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, optional

INSTRUCTIONS

In a food processor or blender, combine the pine nuts, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, and pulse until well chopped. Add the basil and pulse until combined. With the food processor running, drizzle in the olive oil and pulse until combined. Add the parmesan cheese, if using, and pulse to briefly combine. For a smoother pesto, add more olive oil. You can also substitute spinach for the basil or walnuts for the pine nuts.

PINE CONE BIRD FEEDERS

Help feed the birds over the winter with this fun and easy pine cone bird feeder project that uses peanut butter and bird seed.

MAKE PINE CONE ART

Use whatever supplies you have at home to paint, or glue craft materials to a pine cone to turn it into something cute and decorative.

LEARN MORE ABOUT PINE CONES

The Coulter pine tree is a species of pine trees that produces HUGE pine cones. Coulter pine trees are native to the coastal mountains of Southern California & Northern Mexico, but are rarely found in the wild today. Coulter pine cones are nick-named "widowmakers" because they can weigh up to 11Ibs. Foresters had to wear hard hats when working in areas where these trees grew to keep themselves from being knocked out cold by a falling pine cone. Look at how big these pine cones are!

OTHER FUN FACTS

Dinosaurs ate pine cones! Today, squirrels, woodpeckers, and crossbills birds like to eat pine cones, but about sixty million years ago, they were a favorite meal of Parasaurolophus . Parasaurolophus dinos had teeth that were good for chewing tough pine cones.

White pines cones are the official flower of the state of Maine . Are pine cones technically flowers? No, they are not, which makes Maine the only state with an official state flower that are not flowers at all. (What's up with that, Maine?).

In ancient times, pine cones were a symbol of fertility . Celtic women who wanted to have a baby put a pine cone under their pillow. Ancient Romans associated pine cones with Venus, Goddess of love and fertility.

Make a nature mandala and include pine cones!

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The Secret Life of Pine Cones - Ypsilanti District Library

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Pine cones grow on pine trees . They are how pine trees reproduce , or, in other words, make more trees. Usually, male and female pine cones are born on the same tree. Typically, the male cones, which produce pollen , are located on the lower branches of the tree.

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Why do coniferous trees not lose their needles? Why do deciduous trees lose their leaves in the Fall?🌲🌲

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Why do coniferous trees not lose their needles? Why do deciduous trees lose their leaves in the Fall?🌲🌲

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Posted in Kids, mobile and tagged christmas tree, conifer, conifer stay green through winter, conifer survive winter, evergreen, evergreen stay green through winter, evergreen survive winter, evergreen tree, why do conifers stay green?, why do evergreens stay green?, why don't evergreens lose needles?, why?

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Plant Videos for Students - Primary Theme Park

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Videos about plants, seeds, needs of plants

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Videos about plants, seeds, needs of plants

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For every unit that we do, I always head straight to YouTube to try to incorporate videos as part of our learning. This time I searched for plant videos for students that touched on many of the important concepts we were studying. After an extensive search, I finally found some great videos!

What's Inside a Seed?

Have your students ever wondered what's inside a seed? This videos takes a look at the inside of a bean and teaches about all the parts of a seed.

How Seeds Travel

Seeds can't pedal scooters or ride bikes, so how do they move? This cute song gives examples of how seeds travel.

This video presents different types of seeds, asks how they might travel, and then pauses before giving the answer. I love that it gives students an opportunity to apply their knowledge by choosing the method they think each seed uses.

Parts of a Plants

Dr. Binocs teaches students the parts of a plant and what each part does.

Harry Kindergarten videos never disappoint! He teaches students the parts of a plant and their jobs with this rhyming song. Kids will love acting out the parts of a plant at the end of the video.

This precious claymation video labels the parts of a plant as it grows.

The artists walks students through the steps to draw and label their own plant. This is a great activity to include in your plant unit!

Plants' Needs

Harry Kindergarten delivers again with this song about the different things plants need to survive. He touches on water, air, soil, sunlight and space to grow.

Plant Life Cycle

SciShow Kids provides a great explanation of the plant life cycle.

I think this just might be my favorite plant video! It shows a time-lapse of a bean growing over a twenty-five day period. You see what's happening above and below the soil. It's fascinating!

Plant Experiments

This videos walks students through setting up an experiment in which they modify growing conditions of some of the seeds to see what happens. For example, one seed is planted in sand instead of soil, and another seed isn't watered.

What happened to the plants in the previous video? This video provides a follow-up to the experiments in which some of the plants' needs weren't met.

How does water get from the ground all the way into the plant's leaves? Learn how by completing this color-changing celery experiment!

Plant Videos Playlist

Find all of these videos plus over 30 more on my Plant Videos for Students playlist on YouTube by clicking here. It also includes videos about carnivorous plants, pollination and photosynthesis.

More Plant Resources
Growing Beans in the Classroom Parts of a Plant Painting Parts of a Plant Lollipop Plants Unit for Kindergarten and First Grade

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Plant Videos for Students - Primary Theme Park

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For every unit that we do, I always head straight to YouTube to try to incorporate videos as part of our learning. This time I searched for plant videos for students that touched on many of the important concepts we were studying. After an extensive search, I finally found some great videos!