Student Research Reports
Effects of Temperature Readings on Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) Sap Flow
Organization(s):Welty Environmental Center
Country:United States of America
Student(s):Mariela Sandoval
Grade Level:Secondary School (grades 9-12, ages 14-18)
GLOBE Educator(s):Darien Becker
Contributors:
Report Type(s):Standard Research Report, U.S. Student Research Symposia (SRS)
Protocols:Air Temperature, Soil Temperature
Language(s):English
Date Submitted:05/10/2023
It has been found that warmer temperatures have a positive effect on sap flow, and overnight temperatures have been found to be more closely linked to increasing sap flow. With that information, we wanted to see how soil, air, and tree surface temperatures affected sap production. To do this, we collected sap from 6 different maple trees (Acer saccharum) around Big Hill Park in March 2023 and measured the diameter-at-breast-height (DBH) of each tree with yarn and a meter stick. We used GLOBE Atmosphere protocols to gather air temperature and GLOBE Pedosphere protocols to gather soil temperature. We additionally gathered tree temperature using an infrared surface thermometer and for methods of measuring sap we started off using a weighing scale (mL) then later used a gallon bottle to gather volume. Colder days showed less sap volume, while warmer days had more of a variety in sap volume. Based on the data, we can conclude that soil temperature shows to have a greater contribution to sap flow than tree temperature. This makes sense because sap comes from the roots, so if the soil is too cold, it won’t be able to bring in the moisture and dissolve the starches that produce sap. We found that sap flow isn’t positively related to DBH like we expected. One of the youngest trees ended up being the one that produced the most sap. Therefore, drastic changes between daytime and nighttime temperatures are more reliable for the sugar makers who need to know when would be the ideal days to collect sap.