Casey and Beau MacGregor have set up a sunflower field for an annual tourism experience

It is a secret garden, created to be shared, a place where smiles are abundant, the turmoils faced in the world beyond - are left at the gate and those wise souls who happened upon it bound by a sense of magic and wonder to share their good fortune with family and friends.

It sounds like a fairytale, too good to be true, cloaked in mystery and embellishment be assured this form of escapism is very real and should be added to your summer to-do list.

The Paddock has the power to imbue the senses and it is an experience that almost enters the realms of fantasy - because if there was ever a flower to have such a visceral effect it is the big, bold, unbridled and unapologetic sunflower, a flower that famously inspired a master in Van Gogh.

A plant that in its juvenile stage, literally tracks the movement of the sun and turns its blossoms to face the life-sustaining orb, from east when it rises to west as it sets.

Much like anything with age, and as it gets heavy and laden with seed, the mature sunflower remains still and faces east permanently utilising the sun's morning warmth to ripen its seeds.

The whole experience is the brainchild of local farmer Casey MacGregor and her husband Beau, who were looking to make their own business and those of their surrounding community more viable.

"We had seen people enjoying the farm experience on social media," Ms MacGregor said.

"The popularity of taking photos in canola crops is an example most people would know.

"For us it was about finding something that worked for us both, business-wise and with our family dynamic.

"It was about discovering that niche, that gap in the market and creating our brand."

There is a genius in utilising their crop, which would otherwise sit idly during the growing and flowering stages, to create an insta-worthy photo opportunity, rolled up in an enjoyable journey, while also completing the business model with a seed harvest.

But the genius is quickly downplayed by a humble Ms MacGregor - who did not expect the level of local support and involvement in their project as they received.

"We decided to sell tickets via our farm instagram," she said.

"We are one of the first to open up like this in WA, so we had no idea how things would turn out.

"We went live online and hit 5000 followers in just five weeks and this was mainly locals.

"The first season was attended more by locals, it was really interesting to see.

"This year we had visitors spanning the distance between Jurien Bay and Albany.

"It is a diverse network of people who attend and it has just been marketed via our farm page, word of mouth and a few small articles here and there."

With insurance being an issue for regular crops, the MacGregors were able to manage the costs of this by specifically growing their crop for display purposes.

"The crop is an agri-tourism venture first," Ms MacGregor said.

"The harvested crop is a secondary aspect."

In a world where the prevalence and reliance on social media is often touted as the cause of anxiety and depression in those who become obsessed with the notoriety and are unable to gain the validation they believe they need - discovering an innately flourishing space with the ability to educate and give people a positive experience with agriculture is worthy of recognition.

What makes it even more of a remarkable story of success is the fact that The Paddock operates around a very limited 10-day window and relies on a tenuous guessing game with mother nature as to when the flowers will start their peak bloom.

"We opened the ticket bookings a month prior to when we calculated the flowers would bloom," Ms MacGregor said.

"We sold out really quickly this year."

The Paddock is a social media success story - an example of how rural and regional Western Australians are able to adapt and change to keep their agricultural businesses and legacies alive and thriving in an ever-challenging economic climate.

Something as simple as selling tickets to a very time constrained onfarm experience has become a social media success story and is an extremely tenable value-adding tool for a family business

"People like to share their lives, their stories and journeys on the different platforms of social media," Ms MacGregor said.

"The whole idea was something Beau and I had been thinking of for a while.

"We had been thinking about the future and wanted to be more diverse and there are so many ways of making use of the one place.

"The whole marketing and social media aspect just came together organically and allowed me to indulge a little more of my creative side."

The inaugural The Paddock experience was two years ago, in a paddock in Busselton.

The first year they approached their business concept differently taking a regular sunflower crop and creating pathways for people to walk through - immerse themselves in, take photos and videos - as more of a walking trail.

This year saw The Paddock location move to Crooked Brook, near Dardanup, to Ms MacGregor's family dairy farm.

It also saw the MacGregors plan and sow their sunflowers in a vastly different way, a concept that has proven an invaluable adaptation.

Almost like a small and very easy to navigate maze, the crop was planted in two large squares with wide clearances around each square plot and an open plan centre.

"It was more of an event space this year," Ms MacGregor said.

"People could sit down and immerse themselves.

"It has been so great both years.

"The wider walkways also restrict people to the areas available and there is little or no disruption to the crop.

"People have been so respectful of the crop and we have also been lucky that we have grown on fertile ground both times."

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Wanting to be more diverse and to add value to their crop took a lot of planning and research and a whole lot of good old Aussie, have-a-go spirit.

It was also an amazing learning curve for the MacGregors and meeting and interacting directly with their customers has been a bonus, adding yet another layer to their personal growth and experience.

"Sunflowers are a fascinating flower," Ms MacGregor said.

"We chose the black oil seed variety of sunflowers, this has allowed us to sell the seed and look at the plant as a whole.

"We are all about diversifying and being as sustainable as possible, utilising as much of the plant as possible.

"We have a local business that is cold pressing the black seed oil and that is something we are definitely looking at doing, while also selling bunches of the blooms and looking at eco-confetti."

It is still a learning curve, according to Ms MacGregor, who said one of the most enlightening outcomes so far has been the interaction with customers and their connection to the sunflowers.

"We have heard some amazing and moving personal stories from people this season about what the sunflower symbolises for them," she said.

"Whether it be the loss of a baby, or the link to someone named Sunny.

"They have been beautiful, touching stories people have shared with us about their emotional connection to the flower."

This holistic attitude and strategy has infiltrated every detail of the business and seems to be a mantra for the MacGregors, who have embraced their new business approach wholeheartedly.

"At the end of the day we are definitely growing on a commercial scale," Ms MacGregor said.

"This year we utilised 2.5 acres of a five acre paddock for the crop and the rest was set up for parking."

Ms MacGregor said they would not have been as successful if not for the support of the Shire of Dardanup, which assisted with traffic management and was extremely accommodating.

Location is a huge part of the overall popularity of The Paddock, with the Crooked Brook farm being easily accessible to people from further north.

Situated about 189 kilometres south of Perth, Crooked Brook is an easy two-hour car journey from the State's capital and only 25km from the centre of Bunbury.

Located in the Ferguson Valley, it can easily be a day trip for those on holidays in the South West, or alternatively there are local accommodation businesses and places to eat and drink - you can make a real adventure out of it.

The relationship with other local businesses is something the MacGregors hope to continue to grow in the future.

"The Ferguson Valley is home to wineries, breweries, farm stays and restaurants, there are so many other local businesses we can partner with and help each other," Ms MacGregor said.

"Collaborating is very important to us and we are so grateful for the support of the community, who have got onboard."

The MacGregors have a three-year-old son, Huxley, and Beau works away as a heavy diesel mechanic, which all contributes to how their business model for The Paddock fits their lifestyle perfectly.

"We go hard for three months," Ms MacGregor said.

'"The flexibility and seasonality have given us more time to be together.

"We are able to focus our efforts for the three months and then at the end spend time up north with Beau, who is FI-FO."

The MacGregors have found their own niche in more ways than one, it works for their family, their business and their community.