--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Before the bud swells, before the grass…" description: "\"Before the bud swells, before the grass springs, before the plough is started, comes the sugar harvest. It is sequel of the bitter frost; a sap run is ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/219/john-burroughs-1157_bitter_before-the-bud-swells-before-the-grass-s_2090989.png" --- # Before the bud swells, before the grass springs, before… ![“Before the bud swells, before the grass springs, before the plough is started, comes the sugar harvest. It is sequel of the bitter frost; a sap run is the sweet goodbye of winter.” quote by John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/219/john-burroughs-1157_bitter_before-the-bud-swells-before-the-grass-s_2090989.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/219/john-burroughs-1157_bitter_before-the-bud-swells-before-the-grass-s_2090989.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/219/john-burroughs-1157_bitter_before-the-bud-swells-before-the-grass-s_2090989.png) > “Before the bud swells, before the grass springs, before the plough is started, comes the sugar harvest. It is sequel of the bitter frost; a sap run is the sweet goodbye of winter.” [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poem likens the sugar harvest to a seasonal cycle, where the end of winter brings a sweet reward after bitter frost. **In simple terms:** Winter ends, sugar harvest follows. Key Takeaway Appreciate the sweet results after hardship. Themes seasons growth reward cycle Mood reflective optimistic Type poetic inspirational When to use this quote - farming - seasonal changes - personal setbacks - career milestones Key Concepts nature metaphor Questions to Reflect On - What “winter” have you endured? - How do you recognize the “sweet goodbye” in your life? A Different Perspective Harvest depends on timing and effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitter/) [Bitter Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitter-frost-1281931/) [Bud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bud/) [Bud Swells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bud-swells-4132261/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frost/) [Frost Sap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frost-sap-4132259/) [Goodbye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goodbye/) [Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grass/) [Harvest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harvest/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Sap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sap/) [Sequels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sequels/) [Spring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spring/) [Sugar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sugar/) [Sugar Harvest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sugar-harvest-4132260/) [Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweet/) [Winter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winter/) ## Related quotes > [“I could have mixed a thousand colors together, but I would never have been able to paint his eyes as I saw them then,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailin-gow/i-could-have-mixed-a-thousand-colors-together-but-i-would-never-have/) [Kailin Gow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailin-gow/) > [In New York and New England the sap starts up in the sugar maple the very day the bluebird arrives, and sugar-making begins forthwith.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/in-new-york-and-new-england-the-sap-starts-up-in-the-sugar-maple-the/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [Our consciousness rarely registers the beginning of a growth within us any more than without us; there have been many circulation of the sap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/our-consciousness-rarely-registers-the-beginning-of-a-growth-within/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [ Trial by jury is a privilege of the highest and most beneficial nature \[and\] our most important guardian both of public and private liberty.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blackstone/trial-by-jury-is-a-privilege-of-the-highest-and-most-beneficial/) [William Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blackstone/) > [But I ask you, those of you who are with us all day, not to stress yourselves out because of us. 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I know that makes me a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-mclain/i-miss-good-old-fashioned-honorable-people-just-trying-to-make/) [Paula McLain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-mclain/) > [Each and every incomplete thing in your life or work exerts a draining force on you, sucking the energy of accomplishment and success out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-olson/each-and-every-incomplete-thing-in-your-life-or-work-exerts-a/) [Jeff Olson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-olson/) > [Energy in a nation is like sap in a tree; it rises from bottom up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-wilson/energy-in-a-nation-is-like-sap-in-a-tree-it-rises-from-bottom-up/) [Woodrow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-wilson/) > [I love these pet names," she said, gazing soulfully up into his eyes, "Nitwit. Sap skull. Termagant. 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We just didn't have the same values. But I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-pleshette/troy-was-a-sweet-good-man-we-just-were-never-destined-to-be-married/) [Suzanne Pleshette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-pleshette/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. 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