Platt’s Patch Family Fall Festival brings a corn maze and pumpkins to a Melbourne farm on Saturdays and Sundays through Nov. 1. The event is at 3300 Sand Gulley Drive. Z88.3 FM’s event listing gives general admission as $18 for visitors age 3 and older, with proceeds going directly to Platt’s Patch Rescue & Sanctuary, the farm-animal rescue on the property.
One festival, part of a wider farm economy
Agritourism is a measurable, though statewide, part of Florida agriculture. The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service counted 784 Florida farms with agritourism and recreational-services receipts in 2022, compared with 761 in 2017. Reported receipts rose from $27.047 million to $39.924 million over that period. Those figures describe Florida as a whole, not Platt’s Patch or Brevard County, and do not show how much this festival raises.
Other Florida operations illustrate that farm visits and animal-rescue support can take different forms. In Eustis, Amber Brooke Farms describes a fall festival with pumpkin picking, flower fields and other farm attractions; its page does not establish a connection to Platt’s Patch or its sanctuary. Separately, Florida Rescue Farm says it relies on community support and directs donations to animal feed, supplements, shelter and veterinary care. That is a different organization and funding model, not evidence about Platt’s Patch.
Z88.3 reports that Platt’s Patch festival admission proceeds go to the on-site sanctuary, but its listing does not quantify the amount or share raised. The statewide agricultural figures and other farms’ examples provide context for the event; they cannot establish the sanctuary’s finances or the festival’s specific impact.
