Pumpkin patches provide family fun, a boost to local economy
If you’ve visited a pumpkin patch, corn maze, apple orchard, winery or farmers market this fall, you’ve supported agritourism, a growing segment of Indiana’s agriculture economy.
One example of the popularity of agritourism in southern Indiana is Lark Ranch in Loogootee.
Now in its 20th year of operation, the farm has expanded from its early days of a simple pumpkin patch and corn maze to offer “the ultimate fall experience.”
Today, Lark Ranch has hay rides, train rides, amusements, food trucks, farm animal encounters and more. Lark Ranch draws thousands each fall from southern Indiana and parts of surrounding states. On busy days when the weather is nice, Lark Ranch can see as many as 4,000 visitors.
Adam Lark, son of founder Matt Lark, manages the day-to-day operations along with his brothers Kyle and Eric.
“We’ve seen huge growth in visitors from southern Illinois and we’re seeing a lot more from Louisville and northern Kentucky,” he said.
The Bloomington and Bedford markets are the strongest.
The operation stayed fairly small, Adam said. In 2008, the family bought land in the Indianapolis area for a second pumpkin patch.
To guide their growth, the Larks joined a group to see business models and other farms that have ventured into agritourism.
“That gave us a road map on what is attainable and also how to handle food, traffic and other aspects of the business,” Adam said.
As part of that growth, the family bought amusement rides for the ranch that they also take to small fairs and festivals.
The number of visitors varies, Adam said, depending on the weather.
“This has been the best year, weather wise,” said Adam. “We haven’t lost a single weekend day to rain.”
Indiana a natural for agritourism
There are nearly 300 agritourism destinations in Indiana. That includes farm tours, U-Picks, farm markets, Christmas tree farms, flower farms, wineries, breweries and other activities that bring the general public to the farm.
The eight-county Radius Indiana area has several other pumpkin patches offering families a chance to pick a pumpkin, grab a cup of hot cider and see farm animals up close. Others operating pumpkin patches include Bledsoe Farms in French Lick, Ratkovich Farm in Fayetteville and Pinhook Pumpkins in Pinhook. According to their websites, Ratkovich Farm had its pumpkin patch damaged by deer and was unable to offer a fall experience; Pinhook sold out of pumpkins last week.
Because attractions like Lark Ranch bring visitors from other counties, agritourism boosts the local economy. According to the Indiana Department of Agriculture, Indiana retains about 70 cents of every tourism dollar spent.
“Lark’s Ranch is a huge asset to Martin County during the fall season,” said Jessica Potts, executive director of the Martin County Alliance for Economic Growth. “The ultimate fall experience brings thousands of people to visit our beautiful county during one of the prettiest times of the year in Martin County!”
The venture got its start when Matt Lark, an Indianapolis attorney with an interest in farming, received requests from nearby schools to host educational field trips on his Loogootee farm. After seeing the reactions of students, he carved a corn maze and started the pumpkin patch for the public to visit.
Lark Ranch covers about 100 acres and the family uses the other 500 acres it owns for traditional farming. The Lark family harvests corn, soybeans, flowers and raises cattle and chickens.
If you go
Lark Ranch hours of operation for the final weekend: Oct. 28, 5-10 p.m., Oct. 29, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Oct. 30 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Bledsoe Farms in French Lick is open Saturdays and Sundays from 1 p.m. until dark. Last day is Oct. 30.