“An odorless and colorless liquid extracted from maple trees. Can be boiled down to make sweet maple sugar.” - Level 5 Botanist Nodes - Treespeak, North Shroud

Bright blessings upon you, traveler! Care for something sweet?

Nature is abundant with magics and maple is of course imbued with powerful energies. The maple tree can ward against demons and dark spirits leading many to place a piece within doorframes to protect homes. As any who has spent time around trees knows, though, there is more to them than just their bark!

Variances in the coloration of the leaves can symbolize a slew of traits. For example, red might be associated with passion, while green signifies wealth. A crafty witch might create a wreath of many colored leaves, arranging based on whatever she may desire, or take a single leaf and preserve it in wax paper as a token of its magic.

In addition to the more firm examples above, the lifeblood of the tree, its sap, is of great importance to many young witches. Aside from the delightfully magical taste of syrup, the refined product of maple sap also finds use in spells and potions, particularly those intended to bring about love. Pretty sweet, huh?

According to some myths, long ago syrup flowed freely from maple trees. The ancients would rest beneath them and engorge themselves on the delicious secretions, becoming lethargic in their contentment. While there could be a few different figures angered by this, commonly, a creator being known as Glooscap is considered to be the one to take offense at the lazed state syrup had wrought in the people. Thus, Glooscap caused the syrup of trees to run thin, becoming the sap we know today.

It is said that syrup found its culinary roots in cooking meats. A woman named Moqua found she had no water in her pots with which to cook moose for her husband. Instead, she used sap, boiling both until it created a syrup that glazed the meal.

In modern times, syrup can be found in all sorts of foods, taking its place as a welcome addition as a natural sweetener. Thus, using maple syrup in potions can provide a means to provide a pleasant and familiar taste. Just take care not to overdo it! You would not want your potions to draw the ire of whatever powerful forces that may be watching.