It can only be described as a truly joyful experience – a visit to the Bigfoot Sunflower Field, planted in Ballabeg by Zoe Hampton and her husband, Philip.

As my daughter said to me when we saw the tens of thousands of big yellow blooms: ‘You have to smile when you see sunflowers.’

It’s the sight of them completely filling a five acre field and the crowds of people, laden with armfuls of them, coming back from the field. There will be a lot of houses on the island looking brighter now, with vases full of them.

A garden favourite, sunflowers are an annual, planted each year in the spring to flower around 11-18 weeks later.

If you want to grow your own, the advice from the Gardeners World website is: ‘Sunflowers need sun. They do best in fertile soil in a sheltered spot, but will also do well in containers. However, if you want your sunflower to grow really tall, it’s best to plant it in the ground.’

When it comes to commercial use, there are several varieties of sunflower, depending on what you are growing them for: oilseed, for sunflower oil; confectionery, for those seeds you chew as a snack, or for ornamental purposes.

Prior to the war, Ukraine was the world’s top producer of sunflowers and sunflower oil. They used to suit warmer climates than the UK but as the climate is changing, so more farmers are growing them there.

The sunflowers in the Hamptons field are the tall, ornamental variety.

Zoe said: ‘We planted two 20 kilo bags of seeds. Philip just drilled them in, using the same drill as for planting oats.’

It was noticeable how many bees were drawn to the sunflowers: they are nectar rich and excellent for pollinators.

The Hamptons have also just planted out 1,500 pumpkins, grown from seed, so look out for those being ready.