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Manila Bulletin devider Drive devider South African vineyard deploys a battalion of ducks to defend farm

South African vineyard deploys a battalion of ducks to defend farm

Published Jul 25, 2022 05:00 pm
Indian runner ducks. Photo by Bjoern Clauss from Wikimedia Commons.

Proper pest management always calls for pesticides as a last resort. Prevention is always better. If pests do infest one’s farm, the use of natural predators to hunt them down has been a proven effective method to naturally control them.

In South Africa, the well-established Vergenoegd Löw The Wine Estate deploys a battalion of up to 1,600 ducks to take care of their pest problems. 

The vineyard uses the Indian runner, a flightless duck with a keen sense of smell. The ducks roam the vineyard on a 14-day route, eating pests and fertilizing the ground along the way.

The ducks repeat this until they are taken out of the vineyard during harvest season as they tend to eat the grapes. They are relocated to a free-range pasture where they can freely swim and breed.

The vineyard has been using ducks to control pests since the 1980s but they are hoping to convince more farmers to do the same. As a pioneer in the winemaking industry starting as early as the late 17th century, Vergenoegd Löw hopes to get other farmers to try their technique by selling 750 of their ducks to other vineyard owners.

Source

Read more about farming and gardening at agriculture.com.ph

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vineyard indian runner pest control South Africa ducks agriculture specials
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