Birch sap is a drink that is collected in the spring and then used for drinking, for medicinal purposes and even for cosmetic purposes.
Where this drink has proven itself well: it is believed that washing with birch sap will return velvety to the skin, making it smooth and even.
It is known that birch sap helps with coughs, eliminates swelling, and is a preventive measure for cardiovascular diseases. It also cleanses the body of waste and toxins. That is why it is recommended to drink 5 liters of fresh juice during the season.
When to collect birch sap this year 2022
During the winter, birch trees accumulate nutrients, which later enter their sap. People collect this drink mainly for medicinal purposes.
It is a clear, colorless liquid with a slightly sweet taste. After 2–3 days, the juice begins to ferment, acquiring a more sour taste. Therefore, you need to drink it fresh.
The collection of sap usually begins with the onset of spring: it is important that all the snow has melted and a consistently warm temperature of at least 3 degrees Celsius has established. Many people focus on the buds - if the buds on the trees begin to swell, then you can start collecting a natural drink.
They usually go for birch sap no earlier than the second half of March, but you can navigate this way: select a suitable birch tree, make a small cut with an awl and check whether liquid is released from the cut site.
There is no exact date for the harvest of this drink, since it can be difficult even for weather forecasters to predict the weather. Therefore, you need to focus on the air temperature and the swelling of the buds on the trees.
Several recipes for preserving birch sap for long-term storage.
Fresh birch sap is fermented in glass containers of any size. After washing with hot, preferably boiled, water, they are filled with fresh juice. For every half liter, add half a teaspoon of regular or glucose sugar, 2-3 raisins, washed in cold boiled water, and if you like, a little lemon zest. The container is closed with a stopper or lid and secured with wire or bands.
The pressure of carbon dioxide during fermentation is created quite high, and to prevent the glass from bursting, it is not recommended to add more than the specified amount of sugar. In a few days you will get a pleasant-tasting, sour, highly carbonated drink. To preserve the juice, heat it in an enamel container to a temperature of 80 degrees. Pour into glass bottles and jars. Fill almost to the top and seal the bottles with caps and then resin. Then soak for 15-20 minutes in 85 degree water to pasteurize.
Timing for collecting birch sap in Russia by region
The healing liquid is collected based on weather conditions. It is logical that it gets warmer earlier in the southern parts of the country, so the drink is collected there earlier than in other regions, starting from the beginning of March.
In the Moscow region, juice collection usually begins no earlier than the end of March - beginning of April.
In the Urals and northern parts of Russia, this process begins in early April.
It is advisable to focus on the swollen buds - this is the surest way to find out when it is really time to collect the juice.
When to collect birch sap in the Moscow region in 2022
Don’t forget that everything depends on weather conditions: as a rule, sap collection starts well at a consistently warm, above-zero temperature of 3 degrees.
In the Moscow region, you can prepare to collect healing liquid from birch trees from the 20th of March. Most often, this process begins from March 20 until mid-April.
You need to collect the drink when the swollen buds appear, but be sure to complete the process before the leaves appear. In the Moscow region, the end of juice collection occurs in the second half of April.
How to collect birch sap without harming the tree
You need to be able to correctly collect liquid from birch trees so as not to injure the trees. In this case, you need to follow some basic rules:
- Young trees are not suitable for harvesting. For some reason, many people are sure that it is from young birch trees that the sap is the most delicious and healthy, but this is not at all true. Their root system is not yet stable, so they absorb all the dirty water and thawed snow. Moreover, the procedure will harm the birch tree and next year there may be no sap from it.
- Avoid making cuts with an axe. This is the most destructive tool for trees. Instead, it is better to opt for a drill.
- There is no need to make deep holes at all. It is enough to make a small cut between the bark and the wood - this is how birch water moves.
- After the birch tree gives you enough sap, do not forget to express your gratitude and “heal” the wounds you caused. To do this, you can insert a wooden plug into the hole made.
- You cannot collect all the sap from one tree; it is better to look for at least several birch trees.
Professionals say that the most delicious and sweetest drink comes from trees that are already quite mature.
Birch sap analogues
We described above how to make birch sap and store it correctly. However, few people know that in spring sap flow occurs in all trees. Although not all plants can produce it. The drink, which is collected from ash-leaf and sugar maple (American), has received practical application.
In our country, maple juice is extracted very rarely. And its volume is quite difficult to compare with birch. This is due to the fact that the sugar maple grows only in North America, while other species are not fast-growing enough to produce large quantities of the life-giving drink.
In the northeastern United States, as well as in southeastern Canada, maple sap is used very widely. As a rule, it is used to produce a sweet syrup, which is often consumed with pancakes and added to various confectionery products.
Sources
htps://edaTuristu.ru/prochee/kak-pravilno-sobirat-berezovyy-sok htps://legkovmeste.ru/poleznye-sovety/kogda-i-kak-sobrat-beryozovyiy-sok-svoimi-rukami.html htps: //velesovik.ru/novosti/375/kogda-sobirat-berezovyiy-sok-v-2019-godu—sroki-sbora-tselebnogo-napitka htps://dachnoetsarstvo.ru/kak-pravilno-sobirat-berezovyj-sok/ htps ://dlyahozyaek.ru/kogda-sobirat-berezovyj-sok htps://silaznaniya8.ru/kogda-i-kak-sobirat-berezovyj-sok-v-2021-godu-pravilno/ htps://vcusnyatina.ru/ stati/sobirat-berezovyj-sok.html htps://otomatah.ru/sbor-berezovogo-soka-v-2021-godu-v-podmoskove.html htps://mir-tourista.ru/statyi/vyzhivanie-v- dikoi-prirode/pitanie/berezovyj-sok.html htps://elektro-sadovnik.ru/interesno-pochitat/sobirat-berezovyj-sok-v-2021-godu htps://diy-master.info/sbor-berezovogo- soka/ htps://FB.ru/article/181428/kak-dobyivayut-berezovyiy-sok-pravila-i-prisposobleniya
When to collect birch sap and how to do it correctly
Processing the wood after harvesting
It is believed that from one medium-sized birch tree you can collect no more than one liter of drink per day, so as not to injure the tree. But after receiving the desired sap, you must definitely help the birch to heal the wound.
This can be done using garden putty, wood plug or wax. Those who have been collecting sap from birch trees for years traditionally take wax with them so that they can then use it to close the hole.
If you don’t have anything like that with you, you can use moss for this purpose. The main thing is to bandage it well to the incision site so that the birch trunk does not begin to rot.
If you collect the sap and close the hole correctly, it will close in a couple of years. This will help keep the tree alive and get sap from the same tree next year.
You also need to take into account that birch trees can begin to heal themselves on their own after the deepening is made. Because of this, the amount of juice may be small.
You should not make the hole larger; it is better to wait until enough liquid comes out for you, cover the hole with wax or moss and use another tree to obtain the sap.
How to collect birch sap correctly and at what time
Collections should be made in places far from roads. To get an environmentally friendly drink, you need to choose a place where there is no transport and the environment is not polluted.
It is recommended to choose the time to collect the vitamin drink from approximately 11 am to 7 pm.
Special crane
Ideally, it is better to prepare a special tap for collecting the drink for this procedure, but any metal or wooden plate will do. First you need to make a small hole in the wood (no more than 3 cm deep) using a drill.
Then you need to insert a plate into this hole through which the juice will flow, or a tube. A container is installed under this plate where the juice will drain.
Using a straw
It is very easy to use a straw to collect the vitamin drink. Any straw with thin walls will work, including a pen or cocktail.
A recess is made in the wood using a drill of a suitable diameter for the tube to enter. A tube is inserted into the hole, a bottle is connected to it, and juice is poured through the tube into the container.
Collecting groove
You can also use a groove. A small piece of bark is removed from the tree and a hole no more than 3 cm deep is made. Next, the groove is driven into this recess.
And it is directed to a bottle or other container where the juice will flow.
The container is usually either taped to the tree or placed on the ground. After receiving a sufficient amount of the healing drink, be sure to treat the tree with wax, garden putty, or at least moss.
Using a dropper
Another interesting and easy way is to collect the juice using a dropper. To do this, a suitable tree is simply pierced with a dropper needle (it must be wide).
And the second end of the dropper is installed in a juice container. A bottle or other container can be tied to the trunk or placed on the ground.
But under no circumstances should you use an ax to collect sap. This, of course, will help to get the maximum amount of liquid from the tree, but alas, this method will destroy the birch.
She will no longer be able to replenish her reserves. Therefore, such a barbaric method is unacceptable for collecting birch sap.
Rules for choosing a place to collect birch sap
Be sure to choose time this coming weekend to visit the forest, breathe in the life-giving spring air and fulfill your old dream of collecting birch sap.
In early spring, it is exciting and useful to take a walk through the spring forest awakening from sleep after hibernation. I assure you that you will get unforgettable pleasure from such a stay in nature. Enjoy the aroma of an awakening forest, smell the thawed earth, swelling buds, and listen to the murmuring of spring streams.
And while enjoying all this splendor, choose stronger birch trees, ready to share birch sap with us. According to the rules outlined below, gently collect birch sap, which resembles soft life-giving moisture with a slightly sweet taste.
You should wisely choose an environmentally safe place to collect birch sap, away from densely populated areas, railways and highways, power lines, landfills and other places that can pollute the environment.
Trees growing in environmentally unfavorable conditions feed on moisture from soil contaminated with various chemical compounds. And even by pumping this moisture through its “internal organs,” birch trees are not able to cleanse the sap of unwanted toxic impurities. Therefore, it is better to go for birch sap away from large industrial settlements, where the environment is environmentally friendly.
To avoid penalties, it is better to refrain from collecting birch sap in places of mass celebrations of residents, botanical and dendrological parks, cultural and recreation parks, memorial parks, nature reserves, and in places where plants listed in the Red Book grow. It is prohibited to cause even minor damage to forest plantations and parks adjacent to health and educational institutions, and manufacturing enterprises.
How to drink birch sap and how it is useful
The healing drink that people get from birch trees contains many nutrients, especially vitamins and minerals.
The composition of these nutrients is influenced by many factors, including geographic location, soil type, and even the specific species and age of the tree.
However, it is usually low in calories and sugar, but high in vitamins and beneficial elements such as magnesium and manganese. In addition, birch drink contains a small amount of amino acids and a large amount of polyphenolic antioxidants.
Therefore, drinking juice is useful for everyone: children to strengthen the immune system, women for beauty and youth, people with stomach diseases and everyone who periodically suffers from vitamin deficiency.
Also, birch liquid with medicinal properties has become a popular ingredient in lotions and other cosmetics due to its moisturizing and antioxidant properties.
If you drink this drink regularly, your kidneys will be cleansed, toxins will be removed from your body, and muscle spasms will disappear. But this applies to a fresh drink, without additives.
It’s also worth talking about how to properly consume this juice internally. There should be a measure here: it is best if you drink no more than one and a half liters of fresh juice per day.
For a person suffering from vitamin deficiency, it would be an excellent solution to take the juice orally, one glass three times a day.
The benefits of birch sap
Birch sap contains organic acids, fructose, glucose, iron, calcium, phosphorus, potassium and other substances. Consuming it in its natural form provides:
- Improving the functioning of the circulatory system.
- Leveling hemoglobin levels.
- Strengthening the nervous system.
- Increased energy production.
- Normalization of the functioning of the genitourinary system.
- Strengthening bones.
- Better absorption of glucose.
Interesting fact: this drink contains absolutely no fat or protein.
The use of birch sap in folk medicine.
Disease Treatment with birch sap
| Anemia | Birch sap has many useful elements, including iron + natural sugar. So you can and should drink it with low hemoglobin. Mix fresh birch sap in equal proportions with apple, carrot and beet juice. Hemoglobin should then return to normal. You need to consume 50 milliliters three times a day before meals. |
| Low immunity | Birch sap can improve the condition of the immune system if you make a drink from birch sap and milk in equal proportions, adding a little starch. |
| Tumors | If you suffer from various tumors, traditional doctors use 2 parts of birch sap + 2 parts of yarrow juice + 2 parts of carrot juice + 1 part of hemlock herb juice + 1 part of St. John's wort juice + 1 part of meadowsweet herb juice. Use a tablespoon of the product on an empty stomach and wash it down with milk. They also drink a tablespoon at night, also washed down with milk. |
| Digestive system diseases | If you suffer from heartburn and gastritis with high acidity, biliary dyskinesia, acute ulcers, flatulence and constant inflammation of the pancreas, then drink the juice as follows: 50 milliliters in pure form or diluted with warm boiled water (2 to 1). Drink this in a day. |
| High pressure | When you constantly see high numbers on your blood pressure monitor, suffer from swelling, heart pain, headaches and dizziness, drink half a glass of juice twice a day. The drink acts as a mild diuretic that removes excess moisture. |
Birch sap helps against various diseases
How long can birch sap be stored at home?
The most healing properties are preserved only in a fresh and raw drink, but, unfortunately, it cannot be stored for more than two days. On the third day, the juice becomes more sour, that is, it begins to ferment.
But people have still come up with many ways to enjoy this drink longer. So, some freeze healing juice, others prepare kvass and similar drinks, in which practically nothing remains of vitamins.
At home, you can store birch sap for no more than two days so that it does not lose its healing properties and taste. At the same time, it is recommended to keep the container with juice in a cool place.
You can use freezing to have a vitamin drink left over for the winter. But in this case, you need to know that freezing should be as fast as possible, otherwise most of the nutrients will not be preserved.
