As alluring as a picturesque sunflower field may be to a dedicated selfie seeker, farmers in Manitoba are asking visitors to respect their property when they鈥檙e trying to snap that perfect shot.
Bruce Stewart owns a large, eye-catching field filled with yellow sunflowers on the edge of Winnipeg. Recently, his property has seen an uptick in visitors stopping on the side of the road to take photos in front 鈥� and sometimes inside 鈥� of his field.
鈥淓verything has a saturation point,鈥� he told CTV Winnipeg. 鈥淪unday there was like 40 cars here.鈥�
On Monday, there was a steady stream of people taking photos at the edge of Stewart鈥檚 sunflower field. He said he鈥檚 concerned about the impact these visitors are having on his crops.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e raking [sunflower] heads. They鈥檙e taking heads,鈥� he explained. 鈥淭here was a trailer here cutting heads off.鈥�
James Battershill, the general manager of Keystone Agricultural Producers, Manitoba鈥檚 largest general farm policy organization, says other farmers across the province are dealing with the same problem as Stewart.
鈥淲e know that a lot of people, especially from urban areas, have really lost a connection to a primary producer and they see these beautiful fields that we have in Manitoba and they want to stop and take a photo,鈥� he said.
Battershill asked the public to respect farmers鈥� private property when they鈥檙e considering stopping to take a photo.
鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 go to their yard and walk around in their yard and pick flowers,鈥� Stewart said.
With a report from CTV Winnipeg鈥檚 Jon Hendricks
