I agree, the first two aren't actually maple syrup at all. I'd only eat/use the last one, because I AM a syrup snob, LOL. the grandkids like Mrs. Butterworth's, which has a lot of sugar/sweetener and artificial flavoring, but no real maple. I don't know what's in the sugar free stuff. The last one is what I'd use, love maple syrup. I'd not use the sugar free stuff to bake with, artificial sweeteners throw off the science of baked goods without careful substitutions. Lars, I thought of you last weekend, I was driving and passed a stand of sugar maples with the taps and buckets, it's been unusually cold here and they're still tapping. I need to pick some up myself, I'm told the local sugarbush is selling for $10 a quart. No grade, LOL, just "maple syrup", which means it's grade B or maybe darker. Annie

Yes, I'm very relieved! And he's still tapping the trees, but not after this year. I don't care if I don't get anything in return for my sap; it's not something I would have used or even thought of otherwise. Someday my son will probably tap some of the trees. We used to love having our own maple syrup when his dad did it.

Maple syrup only -- and it's actually in the fridge. Even when I was a kid, i preferred butter on my pancakes, and just wanted two or three tablespoons of syrup for the flavor -- at that point it was Aunt Jemima, usually. Now, on the rare occasions that I eat pancakes at home, i use maybe one tablespoon -- again for the maple flavor, and just the real stuff. The fake stuff is too much HFCS, and the flavor is... off. Granted, sugar is sugar -- and the real stuff costs money -- but I go through a small bottle about every two years (which is why it's in the fridge), and the most recent bottle was a gift from my GC, whose son in law taps his own maple trees. (Yay New England!) I'll use maple syrup in recipes that call for brown sugar, sometimes. (PS, I have a 1-pound bag of organic palm sugar that has lasted three years, and still has stuff in it. Other than honey, which I use about as often as the maple syrup, there are no other addable sweeteners in this house (discounting a small collection of sugar/sucralose packets for guests to sweeten their coffee with, should they so desire). When I tell people I'm really not a sweet tooth -- it seems I mean it!)

Good morning Prairie Moon and others, now the snow is gone except for small ridges where it was plowed up or fell off the roof. My husband has taken advantage of warm good weather days to do some outside chores but I have not. I would have made a very poor farmer. I never planted my high tunnel last fall since I did a lot of traveling which included my first ever trip to Italy, mostly the Amalfi Coast where lemons were everywhere and it seemed every hillside was planted with grapes. We were there just before the olive harvest. A vineyard we visited had a 300 year old grapevine with a trunk thick like a tree. I'm embarrassed to admit it has been so long since I looked at my seed lists that I don't remember what I'm planting. I do remember a tiny pepper which some people had in one of their meals. I tracked it down to being available pickled in a jar and called Sweetie Drops and low and behold on the pepper bar at Whole Foods in Bedford. A few years ago I planted quite a few pepper varieties because I was trying to grow my own Aleppo pepper and why not buy other interesting sounding peppers while I was at it. The good news from that exploit was sharing plants with a neighbor who is a library volunteer and it seems we are going to have a small town garden club this year. I also like to grow Buran which comes from Pinetree Garden Seeds. It's a very large, meaty bell type. For some reason tomatoes like being under the plastic roof of the high tunnel which then disrupts plans for seeding fall/winter crops. I had an excellent tasting purple and yellow cherry tomato that I think I bought at Edgewater Farm in Plainfield NH. I hope to grow it again IF I figure out what variety it was. The planting label might still be in the ground. I don't think it was a Bumblebee type. Good luck with a couple of raised beds which are probably the best idea is growing fewer vegetables if you can only decide which ones merit the privilege. We have good corn stands and surly raccoons so I don't try growing our own sweet corn. Raccoons outwitted us 35 years ago and I haven't tried since. Surely you will grow a few tomatoes and at least one pepper good for salads and/or frying up for sausage sandwiches (I like Carmen for that but it's not meaty enough for roasting.) And basil. Cilantro self seeds in the high tunnel. Dill self seeds outside. They are easy enough to buy at the store. Last year the new asparagus beds did not get properly weeded so that will be a priority this spring. The beds are infested with Creeping Jenny. I think lettuce is difficult, bolting so easily. Do you have good farmers markets nearby? Sometimes I think I would be a lot smarter to do a CSA. I usually make at least one trip to the Norwich VT farmers market which I think is one of the best and worth the hour + drive especially since I can go to Edgewater at the same time and they grow a wonderful variety of annuals. The inexpensive huge plastic pots I bought a couple of years ago at Ocean State had to be thrown out due to splitting etc. A red morning glory waited to start blooming just before frost so I won't try growing again. But a holly hock was new to our narrow south facing garden under our kitchen table windows which provided a great opportunity to watch hummingbirds. I also like to grow Scarlet Runner bean for that purpose. If we try to grow a couple of cherry tomatoes to have handy, we also get to watch a chipmunk climb tomato cages to feast. Chipmunks don't usually bother the tomatoes in the vegetable garden which is quite a few yards from the house. I think it's because they don't dare be out in the open that long with hawks and crows around. But what about sugarsnap peas? After tomatoes and peppers I think they are our next favorite vegetables. They are also the only green vegetable one fussy granddaughter will eat although she only wants the peas inside not the tasty pods. Green beans are also a favorite and I'm surprised it took me so long to plant pole beans. Fortex is a favorite. I had good luck growing on a metal trellis made from concrete reinforcing wire panel and pepper plants along the base. Well, I'm good at typing about gardening even if I don't get chores done. Alas this week looks like a great time to get outside and I have meetings and seminars. I hope others enjoy some outdoor time this week and tell us about it.