{AMISH COMMUNITY NEWS} Vol. 5 No. 3
Farming as Heritage
March 6, 2013
When the Sap Runs Free By Mrs. Rudy Kathryn Detweiler
In the spring of the year, It was always so. When the sap in the trees began to flow, Father would know when the time had come, To tap the trees so the sap would run. Pails were hung beneath each spout, To catch the sap as it trickled out. We gathered and cooked till the sap bubbled down, And turned to Maple Syrup, sweet and brown. Just a little more cooking and it would be ready, To pour into the pans that Mother held steady. We worked and sang and laughed a lot, Such great fun in the sugar plot.
Memories of Winters Past By William Bender
To me, we don’t get the winters we did when I was going to school. I remember one day Uria shut the school down, sent the boys home to tell the parents to come and get their children. It was a long time till Dad came for us. Old Fred Hubbord was the Township man. A lot of the time, it was three days before our road was plowed. I still can see him come up the road with the V plow on the maintainer. We were the only house on Pioneer Road between Clay Street and Princeton Road. We were the last road to be opened. Here is a story of a snowstorm back in April 19, 1901. It snowed for three days. Eli Borkholders lived north of Hayes Corners where John Henry Yoder now lives. The snow drifted so high between their house and barn that they couldn’t get through. So they dug a tunnel under the snow from the house to the barn. They led their stock through the tunnel to water them, I heard Yost Hostetler say. Yost Byler (Pinky) said some farmers had their oats sowed, left the grain drill out in the field and it was covered with snow. I forget what date it was that Pinky threw a snowball from that storm. In my growing up years, that farm was the Joe Schmucker farm.
I wish again that I could be, In the sugarhouse when the sap runs free. (Our Sugarhouse was located on Donley Road at the top of the hill. It is now owned by Deacon Willy and Barbara Byler (Aggie Joes Bills Joes). It holds many memories.)
Spring Recipe Contest
Get out the aprons, the mixing bowls, measuring cups, and oven mitts. Spring is here, and the Middlefield Post /Plain Country is having a recipe contest to find Geauga County’s tastiest spring dishes! Share your recipes, whether they’ve been passed down from generation to generation or you’ve just invented your own.
See details on page 7
Next issue Plain Country– Mar 27. Submission deadline–Mon., Mar 11 Advertising deadline–Mar. 15. Please send the information to share to Plain Country, P.O. Box 626, Middlefield, OH 44062, or call 440-632-0782 or fax to 440-834-8933. Subscriptions are available for $25 per year.