Charles Darwin & farmers agreed, on some things.

Admiralty map of the Galápagos prepared from data provided by Captain Robert Fitzroy, whose signature and inscription appear at the top. Farm & Pick-Your-Own Orchards: Mon-Sat 8AM-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM, Open Columbus Day monday, too! Maze: Fri & Sat 10AM-10PM, Sun 1-6PM, Columbus Day 10AM-4PM Winery: Sat 12-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM Charles Darwin & farmers agreed, on some things. Hello from the farm! Charles Darwin was an English scientist who did his work throughout the 1800's most famously for his theory of evolution. I certainly am not qualified to launch a discussion on that, but I was struck by one of his quotes, "It is not…
Read More

Why your visit matters so much to so many.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h63CNtol5yc CLICK TO WATCH The GoPro Ride to the Pumpkin Patch we filmed when we were in this patch a few years ago. Farm: Mon-Sat 8AM-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM Maze: Sat 10AM-10PM, Sun 1-6PM, Pumpkins are here! Winery: Sat 12-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM Food Trucks at the Winery: Sat 11AM-5PM Everyone is welcome to enjoy the food trucks, and we'll be offering wine and beer by the glass for purchase with your food receipt per PA regulations. Why your visit matters so much to so many. Hello from the farm! You might think that your trip to our farm ends in your support of Farmer Hugh's family, but…
Read More

How to be a rookie.

Farm: Mon-Fri 8AM-5PM, Sat 8AM-10PM, Sun 1PM-7PM Maze: Fri & Sat 10AM-10PM Flashlight Nights, Sun 1-7PM, Pumpkins are here! Winery: Sat 12-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM How to be a rookie. Hello from the farm! Each season we employ 65-75 staff to take care of the maze, fun park, orchards, farm market, bakery, and winery. Inevitably, we end up with rookies. A rookie is a worker who is new to the job and often new to the workforce. Maple Lawn Farms has always been the local 'first job' for high schoolers, and that accelerated as Maize Quest grew its need for staff, so we end up each season with…
Read More

But you can do this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPHmxj-1R9k&feature=youtu.be CLICK TO WATCH The NEW MEGA-Strike ultimate gem mining bag be 'unearthed' by two of our guests. It's 20lbs of mining excitement and includes exclusive items such as a BIG mineral, BIG crystal, sharks teeth and more. Farm: Mon-Sat 8AM-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM Maze: Sat 10AM-10PM, Sun 1-6PM, Pumpkins are here! Winery: Sat 12-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM You can't control everything, but you can do this. Hello from the farm! My sister and our maze designer Dave; both live in California. Both had to evacuate because the area around them was in flames. I have farm friends deluged with rain from hurricanes in the deep South.…
Read More

I got stuck twice this weekend, and it was a good thing.

Farm: Mon-Fri 8AM-5PM, Sat 8AM-10PM, Sun 1PM-7PM Maze: Sat 10AM-10PM, Sun 1-7PM, Pumpkins are here! Winery: Sat 12-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM Apple picking is the "NEW" thing to do, but you already 'knew' that. Hello from the farm! First things first, Thank You, for a great opening pumpkin weekend. If you are reading this, you are already 'in' with the 'in crowd.' You know the farm, and likely have known it for years. Perhaps some of you have been coming to the farm longer than I have been alive! This weekend, I got 'stuck' in two places, and that taught me some valuable lessons. I got 'stuck' making donuts. I came…
Read More

Pumpkin season offers respite from your day to day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SDOHsXe2Vo CLICK TO WATCH Farmer Hugh try to push a GIANT pumpkin wagon as LIVE watchers try to guess the weight and see his flat tire from unloading the heavy bins of fresh picked pumpkins... Farm: Mon-Sat 8AM-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM Maze: Sat 10AM-4PM, Sun 1-6PM, Pumpkins are here! Winery: Sat 12-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM "The most wonderful time of the year" Andy got it wrong. Hello from the farm! Joy fills my heart as pumpkin season commences, and people start the search for their perfect pumpkin. Each pumpkin is so tuned to the individual. Warty pumpkins. Big pumpkins. Tiny baby pumpkins. White pumpkins. Gooseneck gourds.…
Read More

“The most wonderful time of the year” Andy got it wrong.

Farm: Mon-Sat 8AM-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM Maze: Sat 10AM-4PM, Sun 1-6PM, Pumpkins are here! Winery: Sat 12-5PM, Sun 1PM-5PM "The most wonderful time of the year" Andy got it wrong. Hello from the farm! "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" was released by Andy Williams for Christmas of 1963. It is one of my favorite Christmas songs, yet I disagree entirely with Andy. In fact, I don't think Andy was a farmer. Right NOW is the "Most Wonderful Time of the Year" because it is harvest time. I think if Andy had visited Maple Lawn Farms and walked around, enjoying the loaded apple trees, the pumpkins bursting…
Read More

Timed-ticketing, Covid Signs, & Happy People – Sunflower Festival Report Part 1

This is our TicketSpice.com System allowing 50 tickets per timeslot, counting down to SOLD OUT status. We've pushed TicketSpice for a special deal for all our Agritourism clients & friends. If you reach out to use them, remember to ask for the "Platinum Set-up" package and exclusive, "Agritourism Phone Support" package. You can ask me questions, too, my Sunflower Fest link is after the blog. Timed-ticketing, Covid Signs, & Happy People - Sunflower Festival Report. Sorry this is a hurried blog post, we're cranking to get everything ready in-between festival weekends. I'm sure you are running hard, too. I wanted to…
Read More

You never stop growing up.

External heat leads to explosion. You never stop growing up. It was Tuesday the week before we hosted our first event of the season, and it just boiled over. Farmer Hugh's a pretty nice guy most of the time, but he remains completely imperfect. I boiled over. I sharpened my words and darkened my tone. I lit into the crew of teenagers who had worked all summer getting the fun park ready. I was venting frustration I didn't even know I had on a good group of kids. External pressures and circumstances. We are all under a new set of external forces during…
Read More

Hugh “unboxes” REAL Sweet cherries that are coming from our friends. Read the full story.

Reserve your sweet cherries by June 14th! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mj2blfVnnas CLICK to watch the video -> See the reactions when Farmer Hugh and the kids try all the new pies, like all of them... Remember Kimmy's Cafe in Fawn Grove? They are now "Kimmy's BBQ Brought 2 U" and have joined as this festival's food purveyor! Pull Pork with an exclusive Cherry-Chipotle Sauce (on the side), Mild Italian Smoked Sausage, 3-Bean Baked Beans, Homemade Coleslaw and Honey Cornbread - all in a platter you can take home! You might want to come just for the food! Our FIRST Summer Drive-Thru Fesitval keeps…
Read More