Maple syrup is a classic favorite at breakfast tables everywhere. English chemist Robert Boyle said it best in 1663 when he wrote “There is in some parts of New England a kind of tree whose juice that weeps out its incision, if it is permitted slowly to exhale away the superfluous moisture, doth congeal into a sweet and saccharin substance and the like was confirmed to me by the agent of the great and populace colony of Massachusetts.”

Well, move over New England. It’s time for Chicago to make some syrup!

The first (and most important) step to creating syrup is to have maple trees in your yard. We highly recommend against tapping someone else’s maple. After having maple trees, it is important to understand the process of sap production.

Many factors affect sap production (which is the base of syrup):

Seasonal Differences. In the late summer and autumn, maple trees begin to stop growing. It’s best to buy mature trees before they completely stop growing, because that’s when the fun begins. As the plant’s temperature sinks below 40 degrees, the tree stores starches and almost completely stops growing. When the wood hits about 40 degrees, enzymes in the tree turn its starches into sugar, mostly sucrose. As it rises toward 45 degrees, the opposite occurs but that’s when sap flow begins, which is helpful for, well, collecting sap.

Time of Day. Mornings tend to yield higher sucrose content than evenings.

Size of Tree. Your maple tree must be at least 10 inches in diameter and 4.5 feet above ground. The following ratio should be followed for taps.

10″ — 20″ diameter: One tap.

20″ — 25″ diameter: Two taps.

Diameter > 25″: Three taps.

Never more than three taps. Don’t get greedy! Also, the bigger the tree’s crown (the aboveground parts), the better for sap production.

How to Tap a Maple Tree.

According to the University of Maine, the average yield of a maple’s taphole is five to 15 gallons, though it can reach up to 40 to 80 gallons a year. Ten gallons of sap can yield about one quart of syrup, so it’s important to get every drop.

1. To tap a maple tree, use a 7/16 inch bitstock and drill into the tree’s truck at a slightly upward angle.
2. Either buy a spout or create one by cutting an elderberry stem to about 4 or 5 inches and sharpen one end to fill the taphole. Then use a small rod and push it through the stem to knock the wood out the way and leave an open hole for the flow.
3. Place a covered bucket (or a good household container, such as a milk jug) either under the spout’s opening or simply (in the case of milk jug-type object) force the spout into the object.
4. Wait as the sap collects. And note, store the sap in a cold place. It can sour fairly easily, especially in the heat.

How to turn Sap into Maple Syrup.

Ahh, finally. The best step. The step that brings you ever closer to sweet, thick syrup covering warm pancakes and getting trapped in the gridiron traps of waffles. The main purpose here is to boil water off. Be careful when making your syrup. The heat is extreme, and sap creates a good bit of steam when being boiled, so it’s best to do this outdoors or at least under stove ventilation.

And while there are many ways to turn sap to syrup, this is the simplest method for those who haven’t received a Ph.D. in syrup production.

1. Take a pan and start filling it with sap. Make sure you have a lot of room in the container, as the sap will boil up and possibly spill over the sides. Rubbing some butter or oil around the rim will help with this.
2. Continue adding sap as the water naturally present in it evaporates. If it begins foaming, don’t stop boiling. Simply scrape the foam off, but, again, be careful as it will be extremely hot.
3. Watch the heat levels, as not to burn the syrup, and keep the pan filled with 1 to 1.5 inches of liquid.
4. Your first step is finished when you have your desired amount of syrup, and it is 7 degrees above the boiling point of water in your area.
5. Take this syrup, while hot, and remove the sediments in one of two ways (like coffee grinds from Turkish coffee): pour through a special filter purchased at a maple store or pour into a jar and let sit for 12 hours (for sediment to settle at the bottom), then pour carefully into another container.
6. Finally, reheat your syrup to 180 degrees and pour it into your containers, which should be airtight. Then place in a very cold place (preferably a freezer, as properly-made syrup will never freeze) and wait.

Voila! Your very own maple syrup made from your very own yard! It’s a small step away: all you have to do is buy mature trees, plant them, tap them and make syrup. And you can have warm, sweet syrup for years and years to come.

As the days become shorter and the sky becomes grayer, it’s no wonder that people often want to buy mature trees to enliven their Illinois landscaping even when it is covered with a blanket of white. Conifer trees like pine, spruce and hemlock are some of the season’s most popular landscaping beauties, and with their rich greens, and painterly textures, your winter blues are sure to fade when you look out your window.

Though your Illinois landscaping really needs no artificial embellishment, it is a fun and whimsical tradition to decorate one’s yard with lights and other ornaments during the holiday season.

Some unique ways to adorn your Illinois landscaping for the caroling and gift-giving months include:

- Highlighting trees and shrubs instead of just stringing them with lights. Tuck white, green, red, amber, or other colored spotlights under bushes and tree to provide a warm glow.

- Hanging lights from tree branches. One way is to wrap strings of lights around tomato cages (or anything else you can think of in a pleasing shape) and hang them at varying heights from different branches.

- Hanging faux candles from trees. Place them in lanterns. They’ll look great during the daytime as well as the night.

- Hanging ornaments specifically made for the outdoors on trees. Or use fun items like old tin cookie-cutters. To keep it from looking tacky, don’t just place them sporadically. Choose one or two trees in the yard and decorate them in ornaments all one color.

The winter blues can easily be chased away with lovely Illinois landscaping ideas from iTrees.com!

Winter-onset depression is not unlikely in the mid-west, where the sun starts to dip early in the day and the cold creeps into the bones. But a beautiful evergreen tree in your front yard is a nice way to combat it. Green to combat the blues. And it’s not to late to add it to your Chicago landscaping project.

In fact, planting season doesn’t end for a couple of weeks, so there is still more than enough time to adorn your yard with a beautiful tree to sway in the winter breeze, because it’s the simple things, the elegance of it all, the joy of life in the cold winter … it’s not too late to have an Illinois landscaping project that can turn your snowy white lawn into a veritable collage of illustrious colors.

Of course, it also isn’t too late to buy mature trees and plant them, even if they are not ones to keep color in the lawn, they will be waiting reminders of the breath of life Spring will bring, waxen statuettes waiting to come alive when the first bit of sunlight begins to seep back over Lake Michigan and flood the beautiful streets and unique Illinois landscaping that is one of the reasons we all call this mighty city home.

The tree was chosen and cut down on Thursday, and its addition to the city is usually a highly anticipated event. Many flock from miles around to get a piece of the holiday cheer it brings, the peace it instills in this stressful city’s heart, the majesty of its towering form that blithely reminds the world to slow down for a moment and appreciate the little things. The things that make the holiday season such a special and wondrous time.

But why go all the way to Daley Plaza to enjoy this serenity. It’s not hard to buy mature trees online, especially when using iTrees. And we have evergreen trees akin to the leafy ornament that offers such joy in Daley Plaza. All you have to do is choose an evergreen tree, and we will take care of the planting. And since it is already a mature tree, you can have that peace as soon as you so choose.

Just remember, planting season ends as December begins, so if you want a mature evergreen tree as part of your Illinois landscaping project before they start appear indoors, then time is of the essence.

Planting season ends as December begins, which leaves more than enough time to both plant windbreaks and prepare for the upcoming seasons. It might seem like a strange idea to buy mature trees with winter upon us, but it’s actually one of the best times to do so. Handling trees during dormancy, which is the stage most trees enter in winter, is easier on the trees and allows them to flourish when leaving dormancy in the spring.

Aside from the technical benefits of having windbreaks and planting mature trees during dormancy, nothing could be more exciting than actually watching as the trees leave dormancy. It can be a beautiful and awe-inspiring thing. And having them in your front yard, as part of your Illinois landscaping design, makes this majesty yours.

And it’s easy! All you have to do is buy mature trees online at iTrees.com, and we’ll do the rest. Well,  we’ll leave the watering to you! But we’ll work with you to find the best tree possible, then our professional Illinois landscaping crew will come to your home and plant it for you. All you have to do is watch as it, and your home, become part Chicago’s beautiful landscape.

In addition to the elegant chromatic show unfolding all around, a closer look will reveal an intricate display of eye-pleasing decorations designed by Mother Nature herself. On a dry day collect the falling ornaments of these exquisite trees to create beautiful bouquets, wreathes, or garlands. Leaves can easily be preserved by breaking the stems and dipping them into a glycerin and water mixture. The open stem absorbs the solution, and when the leaves appear glossy they are ready to keep.

There are also fun ways for the kids to make creative use of the majestic Illinois landscaping. By carefully laying a piece of paper over their favorite collected leaves, kids can use a crayon to lightly rub over it revealing the its veins and intricacies. This is a great way to learn, while marveling at the complexity of nature.

As the weather continues to get cold more and more of these colorful days are slipping away. Make the effort to get out and take it all in. Whether its a walk in the park, or a day of preserving this fleeting beauty, take this opportunity to be humbled in the presence of abounding natural beauty. It lies everywhere your trekking toes may take you in this beautiful state.

How can your Illinois landscaping design affect your energy bill? Well, obviously wind is an issue in the Illinois winter. Windchill can lower the temperature drastically outside and can get through cracks around windows and doors and chill inside your home, too. Planting windbreaks is an easy way to protect your home and your heating bill! Evergreen trees and shrubs that will not lose their foliage during the winter can insulate your home and direct wind up and over your house, if properly planted.

Tall windbreaks should not be planted on the south side of a home, for instance. Blocking the sunshine that might warm your home is not the goal of a windbreak! With expert placement, windbreaking shrubs and trees can alleviate the bitter Illinois winter temperatures. And it’s not too late to plant– with iTrees.com, you can buy mature trees and have them planted at your home, getting the full effect of a large windbreak before the winter sets in.

And of course, as utilitarian as winter trees and shrubs can be for your energy bill, they also add beauty to your home’s Illinois landscaping. Snow-crested evergreens are definitely more picturesque than bare branches come winter, so you can have a beautiful yard year round, even in Chicago and the surrounding areas!

If you are thinking that some of your own Illinois landscaping needs some pruning, consider these steps:

1. Make a small wedge shaped cut in the underside of the branch just on the branch side of the stem collar. This will break the bark at that point and prevent a tear from running along the bark and stem tissue.

2. Somewhat farther along the branch, starting at the top of the branch, cut all the way through the branch leaving a stub end.

3. Make a third cut parallel to and just on the branch side of the stem collar to reduce the length of the stub as much as possible.

Pruning your Illinois landscaping in the fall or winter will cut down on sap loss, and be easier on the tree. Also, since it’s colder outside, there is less of a chance for critters or other tree infections to make a home at the “wound” on the tree.

The breath-taking Fall Fiesta Sugar Maple, a native tree of Illinois, can easily be turned into a residence for a few festive ghosts by hanging bed sheets from the tree, or any Illinois landscaping feature, in your front yard. Drape a white sheet from your tree by attaching one end of an individual string to the middle of the sheet; tie the loose end of the string to a tree branch. The corners of the sheet should hang down so that your “tree ghosts” sway in the breeze.

Though your luscious Illinois landscaping will burst with vivid colors during the autumn months, at some point, leaves will fall. Let the leaves on the ground be a part of your decorated yard, by sweeping up some of the leaves and putting them in Halloween-themed garbage bags. Many grocery stores sell bags adorned with smiling pumpkin faces, and when stuffed with leaves, these bags are a charming addition to your walkway or porch.

After your yard has been ornamented by iTrees.com, Illinois landscaping experts, your Halloween decorating possibilities are endless.

Many trees in our yards and neighborhoods have been falling victim to diseases and insects. When you are forced to cut down a tree in your yard, especially a large, mature tree, it changes the entire atmosphere of your landscaping. Fortunately you have options as to how to restore the balance and beauty of your Illinois landscaping design. We can help. Our landscape designers can help you determine the best course of action, whether it’s to go in a different direction from your original layout or to simply replace the tree you’ve had removed. We work with what you want.

If you’ve never thought about buying trees online, now is the time to start. When you visit iTrees.com you can browse our extensive selection of trees, complete with beautiful photos, from the comfort of your own home. You’ll appreciate it even more now that the weather is becoming more brisk. The process couldn’t be easier. You simply pick the trees you want, contact us to schedule your delivery and sit back with a warm cup of apple cider while we do the rest of the work. It will be the easiest and most enjoyable Illinois landscaping experience you’ll ever have.

This fall, when you’re out walking the dog through the neighborhood and you see a gorgeous flaming red tree in the yard of a neighbor, you don’t have to be envious. You can get the same effect with a few clicks of your mouse. Yours can be the front yard that the neighbors “Ooh” and “Ahh” about while they’re taking a walk. Contact iTrees.com to speak with one of our experienced landscape experts, and bring fall to your home today.