Megan McCarthy, who heads the Spier Food Garden, was born in Gauteng to a family of avid nature lovers and gardeners.
A Unisa diploma of horticulture graduate, she’s practised organic food production and permaculture since 2006. In 2008, she joined South African National Parks (SANParks) where she acquired extensive experience in invasive alien plant eradication, landscape restoration and coastal resource management in the Eastern Cape. Passionate about social development and upliftment, she established a small community-run food garden and skills transfer facility in Addo National Park, and assisted with the creation of a community library and skills transfer centre there too.
In her personal capacity, Megan also started a permaculture market garden from home which supplied the public and guest houses in the Addo area with organically grown produce and preserves. After leaving SANParks, she managed a certified organic farm near Jeffrey's Bay, before moving to the Cape Winelands in 2015 to develop the food garden at Boschendal. She ran this for four years, supplying fresh produce to Boschendal’s restaurants and picnic operation before moving to Spier.
On one hectare of what was formerly an old horse paddock at Spier Wine Farm, Megan and her team of 10 now cultivate a bounty of nutrient-rich and delicious fruits, herbs, salad greens and vegetables. No inorganic pesticides or artificial fertilisers are used; instead, much effort is spent to ensure the soil is healthy so that the plants have a robust immune system to withstand attacks by pests. Worm compost and weekly foliar sprays (a natural form of fertiliser) boost nutrients. Alien vegetation removed from other parts of the farm has been chipped and turned into mulch.