Children of the Corn is scary but children love the corn and that’s a fact! These amazing corn mazes show off American agricultural artistry to best advantage.
Treinen Farm Corn Maze, Lodi WI
Combine creativity with complexity in a corn maze and you’ll end up with something like the modified Vitruvian Man. Inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic figure, Alan and Angie Treinen of Lodi, Wisconsin’s Treinen Farm set out in 2012 to writ the symbolic Renaissance Man large enough to do old Leo proud.
Not that any work of the Florentine master needs improving, but Angie Treinen added a few modernistic touches that Leonardo probably wouldn’t have thought of: a ray gun, mechanical gears and knotted carbon nanotube to name just a few. Like most corn maze designs, however, the Treinen’s Vitruvian Man only lasted a single season. This year’s corn maze displays a nautical theme highlighted by an enormous Kraken!
Wilcox Farms’ Llama Corn Maze
Wilcox Farms near Boyertown, PA has been contracting out their annual corn maze designs for some time now and it seemed to be a foolproof system. This year’s kid’s Llama Corn Maze proved otherwise when what is being termed “an honest mistake” resulted in the maze becoming male – in a big way at that. The llama only appears anatomically-correct from high in the air and most visitors shrug off the foible with a giggle and a grin. Not everyone is amused, however. “Some people,” said Beth Schultz of Wilcox Farms, “they have to take a good family thing and make it into something more than what it is.” I guess we could say the same about your maze-cutter, Beth.
Richardson Farm Corn Maze, Spring Grove IL
The Richardson Farm Corn Maze in Spring Grove, Illinois claims to be “The World’s Largest Corn Maze” and with 4 separate mazes winding through 33 acres of living corn, they’ve got a solid case. This year’s maze celebrates the 50th anniversary of The Beatles’ first album release. Talk about a long and winding road!
As impressive as corn mazes look from the air, the view just above ground level really helps put their massive sprawl into perspective. That’s the 2008 version of the Richardson Farm Corn Maze above, captured brilliantly by Flickr user Contemplative Imaging. If the corn looks a little past its prime, you can blame late October (the 26th, to be exact) Illinois weather.
