Siler-cicles: An arctic winter

Wow. What a winter we had. It was long, cold, and windy. Everything that those who work outside hope to avoid. However, we can admit that living in Western New York there really is no way to completely avoid those things.

It was one of the 20 coldest winters in the history of the National Weather Service, which started in 1870. A frigid February and record snowfalls made it a challenge working in the woods, which is a primary focus on the farm in the winter months.

Why are farmers working in the woods, in the middle of the winter? A large part of Sivue Farms business is the family tradition of making maple syrup. The Siler family started making maple syrup in 1908 and we'll keep doing it for as long as we are able. So in the winter, we need to do maintenance work in our maple woods, such as replacing damaged areas, walking lines, stringing new trees into the system and eventually tapping the trees. For more information on the complex process of making maple syrup, visit the following link: TIME magazine's overview.

Below you will find Little Joe, Mary & Big Joe after a long day working in the woods, described as "Siler-cicles".

"Winter? What winter?"