Make way for the ducks
IT’S A curious thing, watching a legion of ducks marching from a large pen flanked by centuries-old Dutch farm buildings, in single-minded purpose, towards the pond and vineyards of Vergenoegd Löw Wine Estate just off Baden Powell Drive, en route to Stellenbosch.
They’re a delight to see, waddling with verve out of their pen, to the enchanted cries of children and adults alike, armed with their smartphones, capturing the daily ritual for their social media posts.
It’s a highly Instagrammable sight, but it’s not just for show. Vergenoegd boasts a working flock of more than 1 200 Indian runner ducks, part of one of Africa’s first integrated pest management programmes. Every day the ducks are herded from their massive, lush enclosure, where visitors can feed them, before their commute to the vineyards.
There, they snack on snails, crickets, cutworms and other pests that threaten the vines. They eat their fill before being shepherded back home, creating another spectacle in the afternoons.
“We greatly appreciate a R10 contribution per person upon arrival at Vergenoegd… Your valued contribution may be redeemed against any purchase from the farm and goes towards our Integrated Pest Management and Duck Research Programme, the results of which will be made available to other vineyards or farms around the world that may opt for natural pest and snail control by Runner Ducks,” reads the estate’s website.
And what do you do while you await the famed duck run? Well, on Saturdays the estate hosts a market with everything you need to keep yourself and your own brood busy, from a petting farm to paintballing and smoky pit-fire food.