A popular activity in the fall is for families to visit corn mazes. If you are looking for an opportunity to interact with the public and welcome them on your farm, try developing a corn maze! Corn mazes are a popular staple of autumnal agritourism that diversifies businesses and increases customer bases. It is a chance to build positive community relations and raise educational awareness of agriculture.
Benefits
Corn mazes offer developmental and educational benefits while drawing families and friends to enjoy a fall learning experience. The following are some learning benefits from experiencing a corn maze:
Improves Problem Solving Skills and Spatial Awareness: exploring through the maze enhances one’s awareness of space and is an opportunity to boost brain development.
Enhances Memory: tracing the route to figure out where to go next will help strengthen long and short-term memory.
Promotes Family Time: children and parents working together through the corn maze is a wonderful opportunity for families to bond and spend time with each other.
Encourages an Appreciation for Nature: from the tall corn stalks to the sky, this is a chance for people to unplug, discover and admire nature.
A Sensory Experience: this is a great way for people to engage senses with the smell of fresh air, the feel of the stalks, the sound of the leaves crunching and the view of the farm.
Considerations Before You Start
Corn mazes vary in complexity, size, and purpose. The process of how to make a corn maze, the artistry, the management and how to execute the maze itself, can seem daunting. Like any farm business venture, the development of a corn maze requires mindful planning. Here are some common questions to ask yourself before developing a corn maze:
- Are there potential competitors within proximity?
- How many visitors can my farm accommodate?
- How will I ensure the safety of farm visitors?
- How much time is needed to build, advertise, and promote this new venture?
- How much will it cost to develop a corn maze? Carefully develop suitable budget assumptions.
- Are additional employees necessary to staff a maze?
Developing a Corn Maze
When designing a corn maze, be imaginative and different. Corn mazes can tell a story or portray a theme inspired by books, movies, or time periods. Drawing to lay out the corn maze allows for more flexibility in creating challenges throughout the maze.
Creativity will attract new customers, so implement special events such as pet friendly hours or glow in the dark night. With Halloween, corn mazes can transform into a field of screams with actors and scary props.
Maintaining a corn maze properly is a time commitment but keeping the trail well maintained and clear for visitors is key. Plant in a spot with well-draining soil that gets full sun and ensure the corn is sturdy to resist falling over. It is important to address strict rules to ensure visitors do not destroy the corn maze.
Improve your Chances of Success
By offering other products or services, small farms can improve profit potential. Here are some additional things to include on your farm to maintain engagement:
Food – Speak to your public health, dairy and/or meat inspector and Canadian Food Inspection Agency representative before offering any of the following food options:
- Prepackaged snack items – chips, cookies, pretzels
- Handheld snack items – hotdogs, popcorn, sweet corn, pizza slices, ice cream
- Meal items – Hamburgers, sandwiches, soups
Attractions – sights and activities appeal more age levels within a family and give reasons for customers to stay longer. This includes wagon rides, face painting, haystacks, puppet shows and animal petting areas.
Ambience – adding cost efficient visuals such as cartoon cut-outs, picnic areas and background designs for photo opportunities attract attention and are fun activities for families to enjoy.
Once corn mazes are harvested, this corn is often consumed by ruminant animals such as cattle, sheep and goats and stalks can be repurposed to help replenish the soil.
As seasons switch to Fall, there is no better time to get outside, enjoy the cool air and beautiful fall colours of nature. Corn mazes are both fun and profitable for farmers and serve the public.