What’s not to love about early autumn, when late figs hang low on the trees in rich earthy colours, even reddish purple?
At Osdrift, a fifth-generation farm near Worcester in the Breede River Valley, a team of about 150 people have been busy harvesting figs since February, and the picking and packing season continues into April.
“Farming with figs is incredibly intensive,” says Nicola van Heerden, who manages The Figary with her sister, Helen van der Merwe, and brother, Dan Hugo. “For three months, you need to pick the ripe fruit from every single tree every day. If you skip a day, it’s a disaster!”
They planted the first fig trees in 2006 and realised five years later that they’re meant to be fig farmers. “The vineyards have since been…
