A corn maze or maize maze is a maze cut out of a corn field. Corn mazes have become popular agritourism attractions in North America, and are a way for farms to generate tourist income. Corn mazes appear in many different designs. Most have a path which goes all around the whole pattern, either to end in the middle or to come back out again, with various false trails diverging from the main path. In the United Kingdom, they are known as maize mazes, and are especially popular with farms in the east of England.
These mazes are normally combined with other farm attractions of interest to families and day trippers. Some of these attractions include hay rides, a petting zoo, play areas for children, and picnic areas. Each year a few of the mazes are featured in national newspapers and TV.
In the U.S., corn mazes typically are cut down circa the first week of November; in the UK typically in September after children return to school.
Mazes may cover 2acres9acres.[1] Larger mazes can have more design details.
, the Guinness World Record for largest temporary corn or crop maze was 65.8acres, created by Luc Pelletier in La Pocatière, Québec, Canada, in October 2022.[2]
In 2012, a maze in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada earned the Guinness World Record for the largest scannable QR code on Earth. It was about 29000m2.[3]
Designs may be simple lines, or they may produce an overall image that can be seen from above. Many are based on artistic designs such as characters from movies. Some mazes are even created to tell stories or to portray a particular theme. Complex designs include those featuring popular singers, movies,[4] farming themes,[5] patriotic themes, or historical events.[6]
Complex designs may be produced by a specialty company.[7]
A large maze may be broken into several sections. This allows people to chose a path with the length and complexity that they want. For example, a family with small children may want to choose a shorter, simpler portion, and others may want to do multiple sections. An unusually large corn maze at Stoney Brook Farms in the US, which covers an area of 110acres, has a total of 15mile of pathways.
The designs may be cut earlier in the season, when the corn plants are shorter (about 12inches tall), or during the summer, when they are taller.[8] In other cases, the corn is planted to form the maze, using GPS mapping technology.
Corn mazes are usually created because they can bring money into a family farm. Some farms also donate a portion of the proceeds to a charity.
The first full-size corn maze is believed to have been created in Annville, Pennsylvania in 1993,[9] although the Los Angeles Times mentioned the existence of a corn maze at the R&H Ranch, in Lancaster, California, in 1989.[10]
In order for farmers to create a corn maze they must carefully plan their production, design, and marketing techniques in advance.