SPRINGDALE--A family farm turned theme park that aims to share the tradition of farming used a nontraditional method to cut a 10-acre corn maze Tuesday morning.
The Parsons family hired Maize Quest Corn Mazes, a Pennsylvania-based company, to cut the Farmland Adventures corn maze using a global positioning system. The Parsons started Farmland Adventures in 2011 to supplement their income. The corn maze is a major feature of Farmland Adventures, said LuDonna Parsons.
By The Numbers
The Parsons’ Maze
• 420 Acres: Size of the Parsons’ farm
• 10 Acres: Size of the Parsons’ cornfield
• 3 Miles: Estimated length of path within maze
• 4 Hours: Time to cut maze
"It's worked out really well," she said. "They help us out a lot."
Dwain Parsons said he was inspired by a corn maze he and his children went to in 2010.
"When I came home from the corn maze, the next day, I was like, 'LuDonna, we can do this.' I think my exact words were, 'This won't be a very big deal.' And I've come to regret those words," he said, chuckling.
The Parsons chose this year's design in February, planted their field corn for September bloom, then worked with the company to customize the design to fit the size and shape of their cornfield.
This is the fourth year Maize Quest cutter Timothy Day has cut the Parsons' corn maze.
Day started working for Maize Quest about 14 years ago, and started cutting mazes not long before the company implemented GPS technology.
Before global positioning system technology was used, Day said cutters used a grid to design and scale their mazes, then used markers to designate where to cut. The process could take upward of 400 hours to complete, he said. Now, cutters can complete corn mazes such as the Parsons' in as little as four hours.
"It's so much easier," Day said.
Cutting a maze that took several workers to complete before GPS technology now requires only two workers. Day and his driver travel nonstop four to five days each week and cut mazes day and night. They trade off for a few hours at night to sleep, but squeeze in as many as three farms a day.
Day travels cross-country from late June to early September to cut mazes. He said he's done about 30 of 50 mazes scheduled for this season.
"Out of the 50 that I cut out, it's one of the largest four or five, probably," Day said of the Parsons' maze.
GPS equipment and software cost the company about $8,000, Day said, but it doesn't need to be upgraded often.
Other maze businesses such as Precision Mazes and The Maize are popping up across the country to help farmers design and cut their fields.
Precision Mazes uses GPS to cut the Ozark Corn Maze in Cave Springs. Similar to Maize Quest, the company helps the owners design the mazes, then cuts them using GPS mapping, said Carrie Hays, who owns Ozark Corn Maze with her husband.
Dwain Parsons said their maze contains about 3 miles of path.
The Parsons chose from 250 Maize Quest designs. They went with "Lost Civilizations," which is packaged with educational game sheets for maze-goers to fill out as they reach checkpoints.
The agri-tourism industry is taking hold, LuDonna Parsons said, because it's hard for farmers to make enough money otherwise.
"It helps draw people back to make them more connected to what the farm is really like," LuDonna Parsons said.
That 's part of the reason the Parsons started Farmland Adventures in 2011. They raised cattle and horses before 2011. Growing crops and agri-tourism are new to them, but the seasonal attraction has nearly doubled its visitors from about 9,000 in 2011 to 16,000 in 2013.
Michelle Posey with Maize Quest said she thinks the agriculture industry is growing, especially in the field of agri-entertainment.
Posey has consulted with the Parsons over the years. She said sometimes it's hard to tell when people are devoted to their cause.
"But the Parsons gang, they truly do, they work very hard," Posey said.
Dwain and LuDonna Parsons have the help of six of their eight children. While Farmland Adventures is open, several members of the Parsons' extended family work the attractions.
Farmland Adventures also has a pumpkin patch, pony rides, a petting zoo, pig races, a kids play area, a corn box and a hay bale maze. This year they are adding a track and seven pedal karts.
Farmland Adventures is open Sept. 5 through Nov. 1. Tickets for adults are $11 and $10 for children.
NW News on 07/23/2014