Sugar Maple Sap

This video includes scenes of trees with spiles and buckets collecting sap from sugar maple trees in the spring in Iowa. In the final bucket you can see the liquid inside. This process occurs when certain producers take energy from the sun and convert it to chemical energy. The living tree makes food for other living organisms from non-food materials.

• How does the water get into the tree? 

• Why is the time of the year important? 
• How does this process impact the cycling of energy in the ecosystem? 
• What role does the sap play in the ecosystem?

Students could:

• Discuss the roles of organisms in a forest ecosystem.
• Utilize a tree and the role of a producer in a model of an ecosystem.
• Model the flow of energy between living and nonliving things in the ecosystem.

• Sciencing | What is Tree Sap Used For?: This article provides a brief description of tree sap is and its role for the plant.
• University of Texas at Austin Wildflower Center | Sugar Maple: Description of a sugar maple, including physical and ecological characteristics, relationships within the ecosystem and fun facts.
• Iowa State University Extension | Sugar Maples: This article describes sugar maples in Iowa, their locations, features and photos.