Birch is an extraordinary tree that cannot be confused with any other. Since ancient times, people of Russia have composed songs, sayings and proverbs about birch, admired its beauty and gratefully accepted its bounties: wood, tar, birch bark, as well as natural birch sap - a great healthy refreshing drink. Birch sap is transparent and only slightly sweet in taste, despite its sugar content of about 2%. This environmentally friendly drink is rich in proteins, vitamins, organic acids, trace elements and brings many health benefits. Birch sap is able to destroy kidney stones, helps with diseases of the gall bladder and liver. Also, it is very useful for digestion, helps cleanse the body of all kinds of harmful substances and serves as an excellent tonic. On a spring day, there is nothing better than drinking a glass of a beautiful, pure and natural refreshing drink that nature itself brings us. And it is unfortunate that at the time when it is possible to collect birch sap, most urban residents do not have such an opportunity. Indeed, even if you can buy this drink in stores, it can lose most of its beneficial properties when it is preserved. And fresh birch sap is stored in the refrigerator for no more than two or three days, and then begins to ferment.
And when can you collect birch sap? How to do it? Let us consider in more detail the answers to these questions. As a rule, the beginning of the season when it is possible to collect birch sap is considered mid-March, but this period strongly depends on the weather and climatic conditions of the region in a given year. You can start collecting juice when the snow melts. Then water begins to flow to the roots of the tree, and all the starch stock available in the roots and trunk turns into sugar, dissolves in water. This solution rises up the trunk to give life to fresh greens. The collection period, unfortunately, is very short - only about two weeks - until the first leaves appear on the tree. Best juice moves along the trunk in the morning, when the sun stands high shines brightly. To determine exactly whether the long-awaited period of collecting juice has come, you need to make a small puncture on the birch with a thin spike. If a drop of juice protrudes at the site of damage, then you can start collecting it. To do this, it is better to choose trees standing on hills and open edges - where there is a lot of sun. The juice of such birches has a higher content of nutrients.
It is very important not to harm the birch itself in the process of collecting juice. You should be very careful in choosing a tree for these purposes. There are cases when it is impossible to collect birch sap in any case - this will kill the birch. Basic rule: the tree should not be too young or too old. As you know, the age of a tree is determined by the thickness of its trunk, therefore, the best choice would be a birch with a diameter of about 20-30 centimeters. In addition, the tree should not be sick. As already mentioned, it is better to look for a birch tree that sees a lot of sunlight. You should also not be greedy and try to take more from the tree than it can give: a liter of juice for a period of 2-3 days is enough. Choosing a suitable tree, you need to make a hole in its bark with a chisel or knife. The hole should not be excessively deep. A tube or a groove of aluminum or plastic is placed in it, through which the juice will go out. Now it remains only to substitute a vessel suitable for collecting juice and periodically check its filling. In some cases, it is enough just to hang the bottle on a broken off branch without causing additional damage to the birch.
Now, knowing how and when to collect birch sap, we can use the knowledge and get incredible pleasure and benefit from drinking the wonderful natural drink that birch shares with us - a tree that is amazing and dear to the heart of every person in Russia.