My understanding is that the sap of a sugar maple has a higher sugar content that other trees but the sap of many species may be used for making syrup. Birch sap is also used commercially for syrup.
“Birch sap is also used commercially for syrup.”
At first read I thought that said “b!tch slap.” Couldn’t figure out where that fit into the syrup making process...
This couple decided to make maple syrup and started tapping trees. One of my cousins, who is locally known for his dry wit (read: he's a wiseass) watched them work pretty hard for an hour or so, before he wandered over to ask what they were doing.
"Getting maple syrup, of course", approximately, was the answer.
"Well", my cousin replied, "It's a little late to put taps in. It's May now, taps should go in while the syrup is running. March would be better, depending on the weather and so on. And, you'll have a hard time getting syrup from a tree. You'll need to get the sap, and boil it down. Takes a fair bit of time and patience."
He continued, "But mostly, you'll have a problem getting Maple Sap out of an oak tree."
True story. And, I've made maple syrup before (with that same cousin). Its a lot of work, but the payoff is good. I was up there this summer, and the hippie dippie neighbors were gone. I'd imagine they bugged out after getting their first taste of real winter, though I don't know that for sure.
And I'm shuddering at the thought of what oak sap would taste like. BLEAH!