Pure white stumps covered the hills of the once secret place like mushrooms. The grass withered and burned in the sun, exposing the roots of tired Birch trees. The birds disappeared, the silence deafened, pressed on the eardrums.

A hot tear ran down the stranger's cheek. The dream of seeing this magical place is buried forever under the muddy track of a timber truck.

Taking a deep breath, the traveler decided to stop here for a short while. You need to think about your further path. Having settled down at one of the stumps, the stranger sank into a light doze.

The traveler dreamed of a Birch grove: green hills, fresh Birch juice, birds and forest animals, a light haze of morning fog and the sweet scent of birch brooms.

Continued at the end of the article.

Birch juice

Birch juice- a real gift of nature to man. After a long winter, until the greenery has blossomed, a person especially needs vitamins and minerals. How to properly collect birch sap so as not to damage the tree too much?

Let's begin with that Birch juice useful for humans, especially in early spring, when the body is deficient in vitamins. Birch sap has its own special sweetish taste, and it is better to drink it fresh.

Why is birch sap useful?

In birch sap contains about a dozen organic acids, tannins, enzymes, phytoncides, numerous vitamins (C, A, group B, etc.), minerals (iron, potassium, calcium, sodium, magnesium, manganese, etc.), etc.

Birch juice- tonic, general tonic. It helps relieve chronic fatigue, lethargy, drowsiness and boosts immunity.

Birch juice normalizes the microflora in the stomach and improves digestion. Excess acidity will remove, deficiency will add.

Birch juice has the ability to dissolve urinary stones of phosphate and carbonate origin in the kidneys and liver.

Birch juice useful as a prophylactic tonic and for the treatment of lung disease.

Washing birch sap reduce age spots on the face and acne. It is very useful to wipe your face with a piece of frozen birch sap in the morning. The skin not only receives thermal stimulation, but also the microelements that nourish it.

When is birch sap harvested?

Birch sap begins to move up the trunk, usually after the spring equinox (Shrovetide) on March 21 / Bereznya until mid-April / Pollen, when the birch is dressed with the first foliage.

The exact period for collecting birch sap is difficult to establish. As a rule, birch sap starts to run when the snow melts, and swollen buds are the first sign that it is time to collect birch sap. The collection of birch sap stops when the leaves are already blooming. So how to properly collect birch sap, and how to store birch sap. Birch sap, birch is a drink that has a beneficial effect on the entire human body. The benefits of birch sap were noticed by our ancestors, and the secrets of birch sap treatment are passed down from generation to generation. Birch sap has a healing composition, because birch is one of the most medicinal trees in our country.

When to collect birch sap

The beginning of the collection of birch sap depends on the weather conditions and in different regions Russia begins in due time. Somewhere in the middle of March, and somewhere in the end of April ... The buds swollen on birch trees can serve as a reference point for collecting birch sap. To determine the beginning of sap flow, it is enough to go into the forest after March 20-25 and make an injection with a thin awl on a birch as thick as an arm. If the juice has gone, a drop of juice will immediately appear at the puncture point. It means that the time has come to collect the gray sap.

The main thing to remember if you decide to get healthy birch sap: it is necessary to collect birch sap only in ecologically clean forests, because the tree is capable of absorbing harmful substances and exhaust gases.

How to collect birch sap

Rules for collecting birch sap:

• You cannot use a young tree to collect birch sap!


• Collecting birch sap - do not use an ax. It is better to use a drill with a 5-10 mm drill bit. Such a hole in the trunk of a birch is overgrown almost without a trace.


• When collecting birch sap, it is important to know that, basically, the sap goes in the surface layer between the bark and the wood, so you don't need to make a deep hole at all.


• The best time to collect birch sap is between 12 and 18 hours.


• Do not drain all birch sap from one birch. It is better to bypass 5-10 trees and take a liter of juice per day from each of them, than to collect all from one birch, destroying it.


• After you finish collecting birch sap, help the birch to heal the wound. Cover the birch sap collection point with garden varnish or hammer a wooden cork into the hole.

How to collect birch sap correctly

Choose birch trees with a diameter of more than 20-30 cm with a well-developed crown. In addition, as experts say, the juice is sweeter from ripe birches. Carefully make a hole in the trunk of the birch at a distance of 20 cm from the ground. A birch bark tray or other semicircular device is attached to the hole made or under it, through which the juice will drain. The groove should be directed towards the bottle, can, or bag.

The number of holes depends on the diameter of the birch, which can be done:

• if 20-25 cm - then only one,


• with a volume of 25-35 cm - two, at 35-40 - three,


• and if the diameter is more than 40 cm, it is permissible to make four holes.

After collecting birch sap, do not forget to help the tree recover: you need to tightly close the hole with pitch, wax, cork or moss so that bacteria do not enter the trunk, which can pose a serious threat to the life of the tree.

Keep in mind that birch, as soon as you drill it, it will immediately begin to overgrow the wound inflicted on it. Therefore, the amount of birch sap will constantly fall. This is fine! Do not try to destroy the wood by deepening a hole or drilling a new one. Just change the birch when collecting birch sap is no longer satisfactory.

How to store birch sap

You can store fresh birch sap in the refrigerator for a little over 2 days. To keep birch sap longer, kvass is prepared from it.

Recipes for kvass from birch sap:

• Heated to 35 degrees, add 15-20 g of yeast and 3 raisins per 1 liter, you can add to taste lemon zest... After that, the jar or bottle is tightly closed and left for 1-2 weeks. The result is a delicious, carbonated, invigorating drink!


• Kvass can be prepared in a slightly different way: add the juice of 4 lemons, 50 g of yeast, 30 g of honey or sugar, raisins at the rate of 2-3 things per bottle to 10 liters of birch sap. Bottle and keep in a cool dark place for 1-2 weeks.

In the cases described above, kvass can be ready in 5 days, but the fact that it will last longer does not spoil the drink: it can be stored for the whole summer.

Our ancestors drank birch and fermented in barrels without added sugar - this was a traditional low alcohol drink at Russian feasts.

You can insist birch sap on dried fruits, in a jar covered with gauze, also for about 2 weeks. And you can also add berry juice to "birch tears", insist them on herbs.

Recipes for harvesting birch sap for future use:

Canning. For 1 liter of birch sap - 125 g of sugar and 5 g citric acid... Filter, pour into jars, pasteurize and tighten with lids. It is useful to infuse the juice on the leaves of mint, lemon balm, thyme, St. John's wort, linden blossom, rose hips, lingonberries.

Birch kvass. The juice is heated to + 35 ° C, yeast is put into it at the rate of 15-20 g per 1 liter. The sourdough is placed in a cold place for 3-4 days, then poured into containers and canned.

Birch syrup. After evaporation of the juice to a lemon-white color and honey density, the sugar concentration in the syrup reaches 60-70%.

The benefits of birch sap, birch sap treatment

In spring, for about three weeks, birch shares with us its "tears" and helps a person to heal the body. The secret and popularity of birch sap lies in the fact that the forces accumulated in the birch trunk during the winter are transferred to humans with birch sap.

Composition of birch sap

Birch sap contains sugars (fructose, glucose, sucrose), organic acids, enzymes and substances with high antimicrobial activity (phytoncides). Also, there are a lot of mineral elements in birch sap, which the body weakened by spring hypovitaminosis needs. After drinking birch sap, we replenish the body with a supply of potassium, calcium, sodium, magnesium, iron, manganese, copper.

Properties of birch sap

• Since birch sap contains enzymes and biological stimulants, it strengthens the immune system.


• Potassium, calcium, magnesium contained in birch sap are essential for the normal functioning of the heart.


• Birch sap tannins - have an anti-inflammatory effect.


• Easily digestible sugars are good for brain function.

The properties of birch sap make it an indispensable tool for improving the health of the human body and strengthening the immune system.

What is the use of birch sap

Spring birch sap can be considered one of the best dietary aids. Systematic taking birch sap has a tonic effect. If you drink at least a glass of birch sap a day, you will feel refreshed and energized. Drowsiness, depression, fatigue will disappear.

The benefits of birch sap and the fact that birch sap is a good general tonic for a variety of diseases. Among other things, it has a diuretic effect, stimulates kidney function. Birch juice promotes the release of uric acid, increases urine output. It is useful for people with kidney and urinary tract diseases. Birch juice strengthens the strength of those with lung disease, arthritis or bronchitis. However, people with urolithiasis and stomach ulcers should consult a doctor before expecting the benefits of birch sap.

It is recommended to drink birch sap for skin problems - eczema, lichen, furunculosis. Rinse with birch sap sore throat, proven benefits of birch sap in the complex treatment of headache, cough, joint diseases. Birch sap the ability to purify blood and remove toxic substances is inherent, therefore it is real benefits of birch sap with intoxication of the body. Also Birch juice eases the condition in case of infectious diseases.

Undoubtedly, the benefits of birch sap are obvious, but it is worth understanding: this juice is not a medicine, but a good supportive agent given by nature, which should be used in complex treatment.

The harm of birch sap

Birch sap can be harmful if: harvested near highways, harvested in a city, in a place with an unfavorable environment. Also, birch sap can be harmful to those who are allergic to birch pollen!

The benefits of birch sap - folk recipes

What birch sap treats, how to treat with birch sap, what diseases does birch sap treat ... Recipes for treating birch sap were collected and preserved by our ancestors. People were often treated with birch sap.

Anemia - birch sap treatment
Birch sap contains a large amount of vitamins, microelements, including iron and natural sugar, so it is shown with a low hemoglobin level.
Mix fresh birch sap in equal proportions with apple, carrot or beetroot juice and you get a remedy that effectively increases hemoglobin. Take 50 ml (this is about 1 stack) 15 minutes before meals 3 times a day, during the entire time of birch sap flow.

Lowered immunity - treatment with birch sap
A drink consisting of birch sap, milk (in equal proportions) and with the addition of a small amount of starch helps to raise immunity perfectly.

Tumors - treatment with birch sap
In the presence of various tumors, traditional medicine recommends mixing 2 parts of birch sap with 2 parts of yarrow herb juice, 2 parts of carrot juice, 1 part of hemlock grass juice, 1 part of beast grass juice and 1 part of elm grass sap. Take 1 tablespoon in the morning on an empty stomach, washed down with milk, and 1 tablespoon at night, also washed down with milk.

Digestive system diseases - treatment with birch sap
With heartburn and gastritis with low acidity, biliary dyskinesia, exacerbation peptic ulcer, for flatulence and chronic inflammation of the under-stomach gland, birch sap is taken as follows: 50 ml in pure form or diluted with warm boiled water in a ratio of 2: 1 - drink a day.

High pressure - birch sap treatment
In case of hypertension with high blood pressure, accompanied by edema, pain in the heart, headache and dizziness, drink 1/2 glass of birch sap 2 times a day. The juice acts as a mild diuretic that removes excess moisture from the body.

Diseases of blood vessels and joints - treatment with birch sap
The diuretic function of birch sap, coupled with anti-inflammatory action, allows us to consider it as a good remedy for arthritis, arthrosis, gout, rheumatism, varicose veins of the legs, trophic ulcers. In this case, the juice should be drunk 50 ml in pure form or diluted with water in a ratio of 2: 1, 3 times a day, half an hour before meals. The effect of therapy will increase if you drink a glass of warm milk on an empty stomach and before bedtime.

Pulmonary Diseases - Birch Sap Treatment
With bronchitis, pneumonia, tuberculosis, birch sap is drunk as follows: 75-100 ml 2 times a day. With colds (pharyngitis, laryngitis) and with sore throat with birch sap, in pure form or diluted with warm water, it is useful to rinse your throat after each meal. At high temperatures, birch sap can also be used as a local heat-reducing agent - in pure form or with cold water (2: 1). Gauze or cotton flaps are moistened in juice, slightly squeezed and applied to the elbow bends, armpits and groin areas, under the knees, wrapped around the ankles and wrists and changed as they dry until the patient's temperature subsides.

Skin diseases - treatment with birch sap
As an external remedy, birch sap is used for eczema, neurodermatitis, psoriasis, furunculosis, acne, fungal diseases and poorly healing wounds. In these cases, birch sap is used in the form of washes, wipes, lotions, compresses on problem areas and places. The external effect of the juice can be duplicated by ingestion in pure form, 75-100 ml each before meals and at night.

Diseases of the genitourinary system - treatment with birch sap
With kidney diseases - chronic pyelonephritis, the presence of sand or small stones - birch sap should be drunk daily on an empty stomach, 1 glass undiluted.
With urolithiasis and gallstone disease, birch sap should be taken with caution, first finding out the composition and size of the stones. Otherwise, being a strong "stone-running" remedy, birch sap can expel a large stone into a narrow channel and provoke colic. However, this applies only to stones of oxalate and uric acid origin. But birch sap, on the contrary, dissolves phosphate and carbonate stones, only for this you need to drink it for at least 3 months, 1 glass on an empty stomach and an hour before bedtime.

Hair loss - birch sap treatment
If you begin to notice that your hair has weakened and began to fall out, then rubbing a mixture of birch sap with vodka and decoction of burdock root in equal parts into the scalp will help to stop this process. Birch sap also helps to fight dandruff, for this you need to wash your hair with birch sap.

When to collect birch buds

Also birch buds have medicinal properties. This is a kind of concentrate of nutrients, loved by the people and often used in folk medicine.

The largest amount of nutrients in birch buds is contained during the period of active sap flow in the tree. That is, around the same period when you can collect birch sap, or rather a little later. Don't miss the moment when the buds are swelling but have not opened yet. It is necessary to collect birch buds for further use for medicinal purposes when they are very swollen, but the scales have not yet parted. Of course, it is worth remembering about the elementary rules: collecting birch buds, like birch sap, is worth away from highways, landfills, and industrial enterprises. Only the collection of birch buds in ecologically clean places will provide you with useful raw materials.

With the arrival of spring, the collection of birch sap begins - an incredibly healthy drink that can improve health and strengthen immunity. In the villages, this period was considered the most important, because the sap under the bark of the tree does not flow for long, only about a month. During this time, people try to get drunk with juice and recharge with the vigor of this drink. But to get all the beneficial properties, the juice must be collected correctly. In this process, it is important not only to obtain a healing liquid, but also to protect the tree as much as possible.

The benefits of birch sap

In appearance, birch sap is plain water- without any special smell and color. If the juice is left warm for a while, it will ferment and deteriorate. This means that there are certain trace elements in the drink. The taste of birch sap can differ from the area where it was harvested, as well as the size and health of the tree itself. Sometimes the juice comes across sweet, sometimes tasteless, like water. However, the composition of this drink is not so simple. It contains vitamins, minerals, organic acids, enzymes, saccharides. Birch sap has a tremendous effect on the body.

1. Due to its rich composition, the juice has tonic and tonic properties. The juice is drunk by patients during the recovery period, even after the most serious illnesses.
2. Birch sap strengthens the immune system, improves the body's ability to fight viruses and infections, and has an anti-inflammatory effect.
3. Birch sap improves the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, normalizes the acidity of the stomach.
4. The drink is able to speed up metabolic processes, improve metabolism, which contributes to weight loss. In addition, the juice has a very low calorie content.
5. Regular consumption of juice improves the functioning of the kidneys and genitourinary system.
6. Birch sap is used externally to heal and treat various wounds, boils, inflammations, abscesses and eczema.
7. Birch sap is actively used in cosmetology. Washing with this invigorating moisture helps to get rid of age spots, freckles, and unwanted sunburn. In addition, birch sap eliminates excess oily skin and hair. Rinsing with birch sap makes the curls silky, strong and shiny.

This is just a small dose useful properties birch sap. If nature gives us the opportunity to strengthen the body, we must take advantage of this opportunity. But so as not to harm this nature and not to respond to good with evil.

When to collect birch sap

There are no exact dates for collecting a healing drink. Indeed, in different regions of the country, spring comes at different times. Approximately this period can begin from mid-March and lasts at most until the end of April. When the sun begins to bake, juices wake up under the bark of the tree, even if there is still snow around. You can determine the readiness of birch to give life-giving moisture by its buds. If they begin to swell, it's time to collect the juice.

You need to start collecting sap from the extreme trees. Subsequently, when the sun bakes more and more, you can move deeper into the forest or birch forest, because the trees wake up there later. You should not collect sap from birches located along highways and other places with polluted air.

To collect birch sap, you need to choose medium-sized trees with a good trunk. It is not worth making a hole in a young tree. Firstly, it will not provide much refreshing coolness. Secondly, the tree may die after such a harvest.

To collect birch sap, you need a drill, dishes and a straw.

1. First, we choose a birch, from which we will take juice. Its diameter should not be less than 20 centimeters. It is better to choose a tree with a slight slope, so that the flowing sap is easier to collect.
2. You need to make a hole on the sunny side of the forest. The sun heats up the bark of the tree, the sap flows in this place much more intensely.
3. Do not use an ax to extract juice. After all, if such a wound does not heal, the tree will expire with life-giving moisture, dry up and simply die.
4. Take a drill and make a small hole in the tree trunk. The hole diameter should not exceed one centimeter, preferably 4-6 mm. If you don't have a drill, you can simply drive a nail into the barrel, loosening it slightly and enlarging the hole. The hole should not be too deep. It should be understood that birch sap flows mainly between bark and wood. Therefore, you should not drive the nail too deeply.
5. After that, a small tube is inserted into the hole. Beverage straws with a pleated part can be used. In some stores you can buy a special straw for collecting birch sap. If such devices are not at hand, use natural materials - ordinary grass. Several stems and leaves need to be rinsed and the bunch inserted into the hole. Greens have a unique capillary system, and very soon birch sap will drip from the other end of the grass.
6. Place under straw or grass plastic bottle or package. You do not need to leave a container with a wide mouth - a can or a saucepan. The fact is that the juice drips for a long time and the dishes will have to be left near the tree for more than one hour. During this time, foliage and debris can attack it. And if the juice is sweet, insects will certainly encroach on it.
7. It is better to collect juice 2-3 times a day. If the juice has stopped flowing from the hole, you do not need to deepen it or make another well. Just change the tree.
8. Birch can give up to five liters of sap, but never take all the life-giving moisture from one tree, otherwise it will die. It is better to collect one liter from five birches than to squeeze everything out of one.
9. After collecting the sap, help the tree to heal the wound. You need to drive a piece of a branch into the hole, cover it with clay or plug it with moss. Next year, you won't find where you made the hole.
10. Best of all, the juice flows down the birch in the afternoon, it is at this time that it is best to collect.

These simple tips will help you get a life-giving drink, without harm to the tree.

The most useful use birch sap is drinking it in fresh... In the refrigerator or cellar, the juice can be stored for a month, no more. After this time, all the healing power of the product is lost, the drink becomes useless.

Some housewives canned birch sap, but this is a rather dubious occupation. The fact is that during boiling and even during pasteurization, all the useful properties of the juice are lost, the product becomes no more useful than ordinary sweet water. And putting fresh juice into jars is very dangerous - the jar can explode from a non-sterile product. Indeed, during the collection process, small specks have got into the juice.

The most optimal way to store birch sap for a long time is to freeze it. During the freezing process, all the nutritional properties of the product are preserved. Birch sap can be stored in this form for up to a year. To preserve all vitamins and minerals, you need to properly defrost the juice. The temperature difference should be minimal. First, the container is placed for defrosting in the refrigerator, and then at room temperature. If you are going to use birch sap for cosmetic purposes, you can freeze it in cubes. Birch ice cubes are always at hand, wipe your face with them to tone and invigorate the skin, narrow pores.

Very tasty and rich kvass is obtained from birch sap. To prepare it, you need to take 10 liters of birch sap and heat it to 30-40 degrees. Add the juice of five medium lemons, 50 grams of yeast and a couple of tablespoons of natural liquid honey to the liquid. Mix everything thoroughly and pour over glass bottles... Throw 3-4 raisins into each bottle and leave the container in a warm place. When the kvass begins to ferment (after about 5 days), it will need to be removed in the cold. Such kvass can be stored for several months. However, it is unlikely that it will last so long - the drink turns out to be very tasty and deep.

Birch sap is a storehouse of natural vitamins and useful elements, thanks to which you can quickly and effectively improve your health. Stop taking medication, at least for a while. Understand that nature has all the substances we need that can cure almost any disease. And most importantly, natural medicines are absolutely free. Just reach out and take them.

Video: how to collect birch sap

Any resident of a Russian village knows perfectly well how and when to collect birch sap. The city does not give such a luxurious opportunity to enjoy this wonderful drink in spring, and because there are not too many birches in it, but to a greater extent because there will not be much benefit from such juice. Gas pollution, the use of reagents and other chemical additives poison the soil, and after it the herbs and trees growing on it. Therefore, if there is a desire to get really complete healthy drink incomparable to anything to your liking, you will have to get away from the city, noisy highways and industrial areas.

When and how birch sap is harvested

With the onset of spring, nature wakes up, and active sap flow begins in the trunk of a birch tree. People say about this period that birches begin to cry. At this time, you can start collecting birch sap. It is very important to remember that when starting work, you need to act carefully and according to certain rules so as not to harm the tree.

When considering how and when to collect birch sap, do not stop near young trees. Their juice will not be very tasty, besides, a young tree may not tolerate such a procedure badly. The most delicious juice will give a tree with a trunk more than 20 cm thick.

Take care of creating the correct wound. To make it quickly tighten, it would be more correct to prepare a small hole in the tree trunk with a downward slope of 3 cm deep, for which you can bring an ordinary drill with you. From the resulting hole, valuable liquid will immediately begin to flow. Insert any conductor into this hole (something that will allow the juice to drain directly into the container, such as a wooden groove), and direct it into the container. The most convenient way is to use a plastic bottle. The narrow neck will not allow insects and forest debris to enter, and due to its large volume, it will not have to be emptied so often - 2.3 times a day.

When a tree is cut, it immediately tries to heal it. Therefore, the productivity of birch will gradually decrease. Do not pick out your old hole, or make a new one - just change the tree.

A wound on a birch that has given part of itself to support human life will heal very quickly. Returning to this place a year later, you will no longer find a scar on the trunk. However, in order for the process to be as fast as possible, after the end of collecting the juice, its hole must be repaired. You can find any dry twig or twig right there in the forest, and clog a wound with it. Some "hunters for birch sap" bring with them garden pitch, which they fill up the hole like with resin. Both methods are good, the main thing is not to leave the wound open, so that the tree does not lose a few more liters of juice and does not dry out.

How to store birch sap

Most The right way the use of birch sap - fresh, just obtained from under the birch. It can stand in the refrigerator for only a few days, so, we repeat, it is better not to take too much. While the season is on, you can always pick up fresh ones. If you want to preserve it for the fall-winter, you can do conservation. Only with this method of storage, many useful substances will leave the birch sap, and the taste will deteriorate a little.

If possible, birch sap can be frozen. With this method of storage, it will not lose its useful properties, and can be stored for about a year.

Having figured out how and when to collect birch sap, you can very quickly prepare your own "source" of this nutritious drink. Remember only that we must save the trees for our children, so birches must be injured with the least loss.

Chemical composition

Birch sap is very rich in vitamins, carbohydrates, minerals and other chemical elements. This drink also contains many saponins, essential oils, tannins and fruit sugars.

Birch sap is considered a treasure trove of chemical elements, because it contains calcium, potassium, copper, manganese and copper. Outwardly, birch sap looks like water, but chemical composition displays an advantage over all vitamin cocktails.

Calorie content of birch sap

In many countries, nutritionists of the most expensive and prestigious clinics advise drinking birch sap. Indeed, in addition to the benefits in the form of many vitamins and minerals, you get only 22 kcal out of 100 grams of the drink you drink. Birch sap is considered to be a low-calorie drink.

The benefits of birch sap

Birch sap contains many chemical elements: calcium, potassium and magnesium, which contribute to the healing and strengthening of the heart system. The juice contains many biological enzymes and stimulants that help improve the performance of the immune system.

Birch sap is also useful because it contains many tannins, which give the drink antiseptic properties. Certain types of fructose and glucose stored in birch sap make it a stimulant for the human brain. Therefore, doctors recommend drinking this drink with severe mental stress (at work, school).

Birch sap is allowed to be drunk by children, adults, sick or absolutely healthy people. Due to its diuretic properties, the drink helps to fight edema, which is often formed in some tissues or throughout the body. So, it is recommended for young mothers to drink birch sap to reduce swelling of the body.

Scientists have proven that birch sap does not cause allergic processes in the human body. Therefore, doctors very often recommend it to children.

Birch sap is beneficial because it helps the body cleanse the blood and kidneys. It is recommended to use it in case of intoxication of the body, symptoms of chronic diseases, as well as during severe inflammatory processes.

Birch sap should be drunk for colds and infectious diseases, because it not only helps the body fight the disease, but also removes the remnants of the decay products of viruses and bacteria.

People who suffer from digestive diseases are simply obliged to drink it. After all, it is this drink that best stimulates the production of gastric juice, which subsequently normalizes the digestion process.

If a person suffers from problems with the exchange of societies, then we again return to the use of birch sap. After all, it contains many chemicals that stimulate and regulate the metabolism in our body.

The properties of birch sap are widely used in cosmetology. After all, with its help, cosmetologists recommend fighting acne, boils and neurodermatitis. Also, the drink reduces sebum production, the amount of dandruff and the level of hair loss.

Contraindications for birch sap

Despite the many useful properties of birch sap, it is not recommended to drink it for people who have problems with kidney stones. Also, do not abuse the drink for people who have an ulcer.

In everything, you need to observe the measure, the use of birch sap is no exception. Drink a glass of juice every day and your health will never leave you.

TOTAL!

Collecting can begin from the beginning of sap flow (spring equinox), continue until the leaves bloom.

Young trees cannot be used.

Do not make wide cuts with an ax.

You cannot take a lot of juice from one tree.
It is better to get 5 liters of juice from 5 trees, 1 liter each, than from one.

You can: use a drill up to 10mm. A special groove or just a bunch of clean dry grass is inserted into the hole, through which juice flows. At the end of the collection, a dry stick treated with garden varnish or a piece of wax is hammered into the hole. Mature, sturdy trees are used. After the felling, the juice can be extracted from the stumps.

Wine, kvass, syrup are obtained from birch sap.

Birch kvass recipe:

Strain the birch sap through several layers of cheesecloth to remove debris. Add raisins, sugar and ferment in a cool place. After 3-4 days, the kvass is ready. Then strain the kvass, seal the bottles and place in a dark, cold place on long-term storage... Kvass from birch sap can be stored until autumn.

Anastasia
When and how to collect birch sap correctly?

Birch sap is a storehouse of trace elements and all kinds of vitamins, which are literally indispensable for strengthening the immune system and healing the body. But in order to get all this useful storehouse at your disposal, you need to know when and how to correctly collect the juice. There are no secrets here, but there are several important subtleties - further we invite you to get acquainted with them.

When and how to collect?

The beginning of the collection period for birch sap in different geographic regions may differ - it all depends on the climate of a particular zone. But in most cases, sap flow starts during the melting of snow, that is, from mid-March, and ends with the dissolution of birch leaves.

The main landmark in this process is the kidneys: if they are swollen, you can start collecting juice. The best time of the day to work is from 12.00 to 18.00.

Juice assembly technology:

• Choose suitable trees. Avoid young birches - depriving them of sap, you will harm them. Look for mature trees at least 25 cm in diameter with a developed crown. One birch will not be enough, since it is impossible to drain all the juice from the tree - it is better to process 5-10 birches, but take only a liter of liquid from them.
• Make holes in the trunks. The optimum height is 20 cm from the ground. The number of holes is determined by the diameter of the tree: 25 cm - one; 25-35 cm - two; 35-45 cm - three. Make holes only with a drill with a drill no more than 1 cm in diameter. The ax cannot be used - it strongly deforms the trunk, which can provoke the death of the birch.

Advice. The sap flows directly under the birch bark - in the upper layer, so there is no need to make holes too deep: 2-3 cm is enough.

• Install the collection device. Insert tubes or semicircular grooves into the holes made and direct them into the collection container.
• Heal the tree. Once the sap is collected, treat the holes with garden varnish or cover them with moss or wooden stoppers.

How to store?

Once harvested, birch sap should be stored for up to two days. And always in the refrigerator. If you want to extend the shelf life of the drink, use the following options:

1. Canning. The recipe for canning juice is simple: for 1 liter of drink, prepare 125 g of sugar and 5 g of "lemon", mix all the ingredients and carefully filter through cheesecloth, and then pour into jars, pasteurize and screw tight lids.
2. Kvass. In order to prepare birch kvass, first heat the pure juice to 35-40 degrees and add yeast to it: 15 g per liter. Put the resulting starter culture in the refrigerator for 3-4 days, and then pour it into containers and seal with lids.
3. Syrup. To prepare a sweet syrup, evaporate the juice until a lemon-white color and a honey consistency. You don't need to add sugar.

Advice. The easiest way to extend the shelf life of birch sap is to insist it for 2 weeks on: dried fruits, mint, rose hips, thyme or St. John's wort.

As you can see, you really need to collect and store birch sap according to certain rules - if you choose an unripe tree or make a mistake with the season, all the healing properties of the drink will remain only theory for you. So if you want to get real healthy juice, do not neglect the above recommendations.

How to collect birch sap: video