Toddy tapping is a traditional livelihood of many Sri Lankans residing in the coastal areas dotted with coconut trees. The son learns the ropes from his father and the trade in the good old days used to be passed down from generation to generation. A toddy tapper walking along a tightrope tied high above the ground is a common sight in the early morning in southern Sri Lanka from Panadura, Wadduwa, Maggona, Payagala, Beruwala to Aluthgama. He makes his living collecting sap from 75 to 100 coconut trees in a typical day.
The sap is collected into a gourd (labu ketaya) from the coconut flower after it is shaved off each day and gently tapped with a wooden mallet (mal thalanaya) to induce the flow. The sap thus drawn is known as thelijja (sweet toddy) and it is used to make coconut syrup (coconut treacle) and palm candy (coconut juggary). 'Toddy', its semi-fermented form, is dispatched in wooden barrels to distilleries to produce a local alcoholic beverage (arrack).
Toddy tapping, today a fast dying vocation due to the social stigma and low wages, is a risky job, which requires a great deal of dexterity and braveness. Toddy tappers have to maintain their balance while moving from coconut trees, which are connected together by two strands of coir ropes. Although the ropes are replaced twice a year as they often get damaged by rats and bandicoots, who climb on to the trees to drink up the sweet sap. The toddy tapper starts his daily rounds early in the morning climbing the coconut tree, which is fitted with a make-shift ladder made by tying coconut husks up the tree trunk at regular intervals to step on, and then swiftly moves from one tree to another using the coir rope network to finish the day's sap collection on time.
The sap is collected into a gourd (labu ketaya) from the coconut flower after it is shaved off each day and gently tapped with a wooden mallet (mal thalanaya) to induce the flow. The sap thus drawn is known as thelijja (sweet toddy) and it is used to make coconut syrup (coconut treacle) and palm candy (coconut juggary). 'Toddy', its semi-fermented form, is dispatched in wooden barrels to distilleries to produce a local alcoholic beverage (arrack).
Toddy tapping, today a fast dying vocation due to the social stigma and low wages, is a risky job, which requires a great deal of dexterity and braveness. Toddy tappers have to maintain their balance while moving from coconut trees, which are connected together by two strands of coir ropes. Although the ropes are replaced twice a year as they often get damaged by rats and bandicoots, who climb on to the trees to drink up the sweet sap. The toddy tapper starts his daily rounds early in the morning climbing the coconut tree, which is fitted with a make-shift ladder made by tying coconut husks up the tree trunk at regular intervals to step on, and then swiftly moves from one tree to another using the coir rope network to finish the day's sap collection on time.
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