Dan Young, owner and CEO of the dairy, said this spring was one of the wettest ever in Clark County, prohibiting seed germination. “It rained five out of seven days from May through June so the fields we use for our maze were difficult to get into and work the ground.”
A second try at planting in early July, an “insanely late time to plant corn,” germinated, but when the “faucet turned off,” it produced spotty results. On a normal year the maze is created out of three acres of corn standing 10 to 12 feet high. This year the maze is half the size.
Young and his staff brainstormed a new kind of fun for visitors this year, transporting guests by wagon to Cowvin’s Corny Playland Adventure set in the cornfield.
New features include a bale maze, Hula Hoop toss onto stick cows, a giant Connect Four game, large-scale whimsical animals made out of hay bales and human hamster wheels are among the new activities.
Young said feedback from visitors has been so popular they plan to include the activities in the 2020 Cowvin’s Corn Maze.
Cowvin’s Corny Playland Adventure is open daily starting Sept. 21 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Oct. 27. Admission is $4 per person.
The brutal weather also hampered the pumpkin growing season but Young said between what he was able to grow and purchase from area farms, they have plenty of orange and white “ghost pumpkins” available.
Pick Your Own Pumpkins at Young’s Jersey Dairy, 6880 Springfield-Xenia Rd. in Yellow Springs, begins Saturday, Sept. 21 and runs through Oct. 27. The pumpkin patch is open daily from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The cost is $9 per pumpkin or three for $24, which includes a wagon ride to the pumpkin patch.
The 43rd Annual Fall Farm Pumpkin Festival, the dairy’s biggest festival of the year, will be held Oct. 5 and 6 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
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