An Aussie farmer has shared extraordinary footage showing more than 20 tourists wandering through a canola crop, as growers continue to plead with visitors to stop trespassing on private farmland in pursuit of the perfect photo.
Barossa farmer Matilda Lienert filmed several cars alongside the spectacular yellow crop before panning across a large group of people scattered through the paddock.
“All pulled up in our canola crop,” Lienert can be heard saying in the video, which she shared with a simple message: “Friendly reminder to stay out of farmers’ crops.”
And Lienert appeared to make her feelings particularly clear with her choice of soundtrack, setting the footage to The Angels’ Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again — timed to the song’s famously blunt audience response at the chorus.
The tongue-in-cheek swipe accompanied footage that shows just how widespread the annual problem can become when Australia’s canola fields burst into colour, attracting visitors keen to photograph the spectacular scenes.
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It comes just days after Yahoo News Australia revealed similar frustration among farmers in Western Australia, where tourists have been caught venturing hundreds of metres into private paddocks.
Jamie Ferguson said he recently spotted two women inside a property near Toodyay while taking his mother for a drive to see the blooms.
“There were two cars parked just off the road, but inside the gates of a property. They didn’t look like they belonged,” he said.
“I walked down and tried to talk, but there was a language barrier. I don’t feel that they were aware it was a bad thing, but after pointing at the crop and shaking my head, they quickly left.”
Visitors to a canola field in WA were spotted trespassing last week.
(Jamie Ferguson)Why farmers want tourists to stay out
The frustration isn’t simply about people entering private property.
Farmers have repeatedly warned that visitors walking through working crops can flatten plants and potentially carry weeds, pests and diseases between properties on their shoes and vehicles.
Authorities encourage people to enjoy the spectacular displays from the roadside and designated viewing areas rather than crossing fences, while Lienert’s footage suggests the message still isn’t getting through to everyone.
“Weed seeds and soil material that may contain a fungal disease could easily be spread on footwear or vehicles to other properties, which could have a potentially devastating impact on crops,” DPIRD Regional Biosecurity Co-ordinator Richard Watkins said.
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The flowers are expected to stay around until the end of September.
(Experience York Western Australia)Canola selfie problem spreads across Australia
Lienert is far from the first farmer to find unwanted visitors among the yellow blooms, with the same behaviour frustrating growers across several states.
Farmers in South Australia have previously had to escort groups from their properties after people were spotted hundreds of metres inside paddocks, while NSW growers have reported visitors jumping fences, entering through open gates and trampling crops.
“We’ve had a lot of visitors that have just jumped fences, walked into open gates and trampled the crops,” Karen Beaumont from the Cowra Visitor Centre previously told Yahoo News Australia.
“It’s created havoc in some areas where they have caused extensive damage.”
There are places where visitors are actively welcomed into canola fields, however, with some farms opening designated areas to tourists during flowering season, offering the same spectacular photo opportunity without entering private property uninvited.
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