I have always thought of sunflowers as happy plants, their bright colours almost glowing in the sun and their statuesque frame personifying good health and seasonal growth. So, having just spent the past week or so in the Bergerac area of France, it was a bit of a shock to find ourselves surrounded by the sad, nodding and lifeless forms of the sunflower fields. In fact it was more than a shock - it was quite depressing. Row after row, field after field seemed to mimic the serried ranks of the surrounding vines, standing to tired attention.
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