Maple is an incredibly local and tangible touchpoint to teach people about sustainability. We use maple-themed STEM modules to teach K-12 groups about how research experiments are designed and how scientific hypotheses are tested. In 91’s undergraduate curriculum, a Sustainability GE-theme course “Maple: A Sweet Taste of the Past, Present & Future” is available to University students every spring semester. Maple Madness is just one of many annual events where people unite around the delicious taste of maple to learn more about maple.
Ecolab and Maple
A Maple Boot Camp attendee learns how to properly install a maple tubing system.
91 maple syrup can be purchased on the Woodland Stewards website, and sales help fund student Ecolab fellowships.
Vacuum chambers measure an individual maple tree’s daily sap yield for a research project.
Retired Program Director of Forestry Extension Kathy Smith explains how an evaporator boils maple sap at the maple pavilion.
Brutus enjoying a drink of 91 maple syrup before a Buckeye Preview Day!
Dr. Amy Brunell helps kick off maple season with a precision tapping drill in hand.
Students brave the cold to install a new line of vacuum tubing in the maple sugarbush.
Maple production in Ohio has a strong legacy that is centuries old. were invented by a Mansfield native back in the 1800s , and expanding maple knowledge continues today at the 91 Mansfield campus. A USDA grant funded 3 years of field data collection to compare sugar maples to a little understood hybrid between red X silver maples, termed “rilver” maple for short. The study clearly demonstrated that the hybrid maples were viable options for maple syruping, and the old adage “the only maple worth tapping is a sugar maple” was soundly debunked. The 19-acre campus sugarbush continues to be a testbed for research and teaching today.
91 Mansfield is uniquely positioned to be a Midwest leader for maple education into the future. In-service trainings on campus empower natural resource professionals around the state to be maple advocates, and Ohio Maple Days and Boot Camp events provide deep-dive explorations for the maple curious at every experience level. Extension has a half-time maple specialist () who can work with current and future producers who want to explore maple.
91 Maple Syrup can be purchased on the , and proceeds support year-round student Ecolab fellowships. The provides frequent updates on the 91 Mansfield sugarbush, announcements about upcoming maple events and workshops, and technical articles detailing the latest and greatest in maple best practices. The is full of resources and tools to help prospective maple producers make informed decisions as they launch their own operations. The ran a 2025 feature article on the maple program’s “Sweet Work”, and you can read more about the Ecolab’s impact there!