Can you make maple syrup in Maryland?
Local timing guidance
Preservation Maryland: 'Maryland syrup production only occurs from late February through April.' Baltimore Sun (Garrett County, 1992): 'During the first tap of trees in February, the crew drilled 6,200 holes.' Baltimore magazine: park sugaring events begin 'after President's Day'. No University of Maryland Extension tapping-date guidance was found.
Source: Preservation Maryland 2019 (PRACTITIONER, heritage nonprofit); Baltimore Sun 1992 (PRACTITIONER); Baltimore magazine 2024 (PRACTITIONER)
Trees
Tappable trees in Maryland
| Species | Status | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar mapleAcer saccharum | native | Allegheny Plateau and ridges of Garrett and Allegany counties; Catoctin Mountain (Frederick County) where the state park taps its 'Maple Grove'USFS FEIS range description (MD lies inside 'Appalachian Mountains into New England'; MD missing from FEIS state list — see log); Baltimore Sun 1992 (Steyer family 'tapping sugar maples') |
| Red mapleAcer rubrum | native | Statewide, including the Coastal PlainUSFS FEIS (MD in STATES list) |
| Silver mapleAcer saccharinum | native | River bottoms (Potomac, Susquehanna, Monocacy) and widely planted in townsUSFS FEIS (MD in STATES list) |
| BoxelderAcer negundo | native | Riparian sites statewideUSFS FEIS (MD in STATES list) |
| Black walnutJuglans nigra | native | Statewide on rich soilsUSFS FEIS (MD in STATES list) |
Who already does it
Sugaring in Maryland, documented
Steyer family, Garrett County: 'tapping sugar maples to make syrup since 1908'; in 1992 gathered 40,000 gallons of sap for just under 1,000 gallons of syrup from 6,200 tapholes drilled in February
Baltimore Sun, 19 Apr 1992 · PRACTITIONER
Steyers Brothers Maple, Oakland — 'producing its Garrett County Pure Maple Syrup for more than 100 years'; 'In the 1930s, there were an estimated 40 to 50 commercial tree-tapping operations in Garrett County alone'
Baltimore magazine, Jan 2024 · PRACTITIONER
Maryland DNR's Maple Syrup Festival at Cunningham Falls State Park (Thurmont) — 'held annually for more than 50 years'; park rangers collect sap from the park's Maple Grove and boil it; 2024 dates March 9-10 and 16-17, 2018 was the 48th year
Maryland Department of Natural Resources · VERIFIED
Historic sugar camps: Isaac Kuykendall's 670-acre farm near Huttons, Garrett County (1881) and the Foster Yost sugarbush — 'about fifty gallons of sugar water to make one gallon'
Appalachian History (Dave Tabler), 2017, quoting a 1919 family history · PRACTITIONER
County and city parks run sugaring demonstrations 'beginning after President's Day' (Oregon Ridge, Benjamin Banneker, Marshy Point)
Baltimore magazine, Jan 2024 · PRACTITIONER
Cautions
What local sources warn about
- The 'late February through April' window is a heritage organisation's summary, not an agronomic source; Garrett County producers were drilling in February, so treat early-to-mid February as the realistic start in the west. (Preservation Maryland 2019; Baltimore Sun 1992)
- Maryland syrup 'is typically lighter in color' per Preservation Maryland — a flavour note, not a yield claim. (Preservation Maryland 2019 (PRACTITIONER))
- No Maryland-specific sap-sugar or season-length research was found; the nearest research is the SW Virginia/WV study (Peters et al. 2020, Morgantown WV site), which found 1.3–1.6 °Bx means at the warm edge. (Peters et al. 2020 (VERIFIED, neighbouring region))
Where to look
Likely sugaring country
Oakland (Garrett County)
Steyers Brothers Maple, tapping since 1908; the historic centre of Maryland sugaring on the Allegheny Plateau
Grantsville (Garrett County)
Casselman Inn (1842) serves its own syrup; northern Garrett County sugar country
Thurmont (Frederick County)
Cunningham Falls State Park's 50-year-old festival and tapped Maple Grove on Catoctin Mountain — the east-of-the-mountains anchor
Autosuggest priority place ('when to tap maple trees in maryland'). The 2022 Census of Agriculture county table for Maryland (NASS PDF) returned 403, so farm counts are not given. No UMD Extension maple publication located (searched 'University of Maryland Extension maple syrup when to tap').
FAQ
Sugaring in Maryland: questions
- Can you tap maple trees in Maryland?
- Yes, in parts of it. Yes in western Maryland: Garrett County has made syrup commercially since at least 1908 and the state park service has boiled sap at Cunningham Falls for 50+ years; the Piedmont and Eastern Shore have red and silver maple but a shorter, less reliable freeze-thaw window.
- When do you tap maple trees in Maryland?
- Preservation Maryland: 'Maryland syrup production only occurs from late February through April.' Baltimore Sun (Garrett County, 1992): 'During the first tap of trees in February, the crew drilled 6,200 holes.' Baltimore magazine: park sugaring events begin 'after President's Day'. No University of Maryland Extension tapping-date guidance was found. (Preservation Maryland 2019 (PRACTITIONER, heritage nonprofit); Baltimore Sun 1992 (PRACTITIONER); Baltimore magazine 2024 (PRACTITIONER))
- Which trees can you tap in Maryland?
- Sugar maple (Acer saccharum, native): Allegheny Plateau and ridges of Garrett and Allegany counties; Catoctin Mountain (Frederick County) where the state park taps its 'Maple Grove' Red maple (Acer rubrum, native): Statewide, including the Coastal Plain Silver maple (Acer saccharinum, native): River bottoms (Potomac, Susquehanna, Monocacy) and widely planted in towns Boxelder (Acer negundo, native): Riparian sites statewide Black walnut (Juglans nigra, native): Statewide on rich soils
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