The Rural Voice, 2002-03, Page 18• •.
Great -grandpa's iron kettle (above, left) is one of the historic displays on view for people taking maple bush tours at
McCully's Hill Farm near St. Marys. Consumers also get a view of modern maple syrup operation with the gleaming
evaporator (bottom right, where syrup is being collected). Horse-drawn wagons (top) add to the attraction.
Luring
customers
with candy..
... and syrup and candyfoss. How a
young Perth County farm family turns
consumers' interest in the source of their
food into a food/entertainment business.
Story by Keith Roulston
photos courtesy McCully's Hill Farm
14 THE RURAL VOICE
producing maple syrup offers two very distinct ways
of life. Lots of people, says David Pullen, like the
quiet ritual of being back in the bush making syrup.
This kind of person tends to sell syrup to wholesalers.
Da% id and Darlene Pullen at McCully's Hill Farm, near
St. Marys, have chosen a different model, bringing people
to their product and selling their maple syrup right at the
farm gate.
"We really enjoy dealing with school kids and people
from different walks of life," David Pullen says.
And so the beginning of the syrup run is also the
beginning of a farm -entertainment season at McCully's
Hill, a family operation that dates back to 1847. The
Pullens conduct farm tours for school children and adults,
host pancake breakfasts and sugar bush tours, and sell their
farm products through a farm market that's open from
March to October.
"It's been a monumental task to get it to where it is right
now," says Pullen. "There's a reason not everyone does
this."
Part of the reason the young couple have been able to
create this entertainment -educations -retail experience has
been through the help of family, both David's and