Standing at the very top of Vergelegen Wine Estate in Somerset West, you can spot Gordon’s Bay, Cape Point and even get a glimpse of Table Mountain on a clear day. You can also see the many different blocks of vineyards that form part of the 3 000-hectare, 324-yearold farm. I’m here with viticulturist Rudolf Kriel, who has driven us up to this vantage point to explain how they’ve been using drone-delivered beneficial insects to control pests across the vineyards.

He says that their primary targets are mealybugs, a common pest that looks like a speck of cotton wool. They congregate on leaves, stems and in plant crevices and feed off plant juices, causing general plant decline. They also spread something called leafroll virus, which diminishes the quality and volume of the fruit.