December 17, 2020 – National Pear Month | National Maple Syrup Day

Not All Maple Trees Produce Syrup. Turns Out There's An Age Limit!

Welcome to December 17th, 2020 on the National Day Calendar. Today we celebrate gifts that keep on giving and late bloomers.

Anna: Hey Marlo, if someone gave you all the gifts from the song The Twelve Days of Christmas, how many total gifts would you end up with? 

Marlo: Y’know, I’ve never even thought of that.

Anna: You would have 364 items in total. So you’d better hope you have room for 42 swans-a-swimming. 

Marlo: I’d be more worried about the drummers. My neighbors would hate me.

Anna: Yeah, there’s no regifting those! The best part would be the 12 pear trees (with partridges, of course). But before you buy someone a pear tree, you’d better check for what variety they prefer because there are a lot!

Marlo: How many? I’d guess maybe a hundred.

Anna: Get this…There are 3,000 different kinds of pears in the world. Which is perfect because that means you have plenty to choose from during National Pear Month.  

This day was made for pancakes, French toast and biscuits as we pour on the sweetness of National Maple Syrup Day. During cold weather, maple trees store starch in their trunks that is converted to sugar in the Spring.  The sap from red, black and sugar maples is collected and processed by heating to evaporate most of the water, which produces a concentrated syrup. About 40 gallons of sap are needed for one gallon of the finished product.  Thankfully, the trees that produce this sap can live up to 100 years, though they must be at least 45 years old before they can be tapped.  Talk about a late bloomer!  On National Maple Syrup Day we celebrate nature’s bounty with our Canadian neighbors who produce most of the maple syrup we enjoy today. 

If you’d like to know more, be sure to follow us on Facebook and check out our website TheNationalDailyShow.com. I’m Anna Devere and I’m Marlo Anderson.  Thanks for joining us as we Celebrate Every Day!