Due to logistical challenges related to the Covid-19 pandemic, count data from the same week in 2020 were used for Bloemfontein and Kimberley. All the other sites show current findings.
Cape Town
Grass levels were low. Low tree levels included pine (Pinus) and cypress (Cupressus). Weed levels were low and only goosefoot (Chenopod) and nettle (Urtica) were seen. Moulds were very low.
Johannesburg
Low tree levels were detected and gum (Myrtaceae) was the only tree type observed. Grasses were low. Weed levels were low and included English Plantain (Plantago), goosefoot (Chenopod) and sorrel (Polygonaceae). Mould levels were consistently low.
Pretoria
Grasses were moderate. Low tree counts included eucalyptus (Myrtaceae), olive (Oleaceae) and karee (Rhus/ Searsia). Low weed counts were detected, including slangbos (Stoebe) and nettle (Urticaceae). Fungal spores were generally low, with small spikes for basidiospores, ascospores and Cladosporium following days of rain.
Bloemfontein
Due to logistical challenges related to the Covid-19 pandemic, count data from the same week in 2020 were used. Grass counts for this week were high and the levels were consistently >50 grains/cu M/day throughout this sampling week. Tree pollen counts were low to moderate as olive, oak, cypress, Rhus and pine continued to flower. Weed pollen levels were low and only daisy and English Plantain pollen was seen. Moulds were very low.
Kimberley
Due to logistical challenges related to the Covid-19 pandemic, count data from the same week in 2020 were used. Grass counts were moderate to high throughout this week and even on days with rain. Tree counts were low, consisting of Morus (fig or mulberry) and olive, and the weed levels were also low goosefoot (Chenopod), the daisy family and ferns (Polypodiaceae). Fungal spores were very low.
Durban
Grasses were low. Low tree counts were detected and included the types eucalyptus (Myrtaceae), birch (Betulaceae), Australian pine (Casuarina) and kareeboom (Rhus/ Searsia). Low weed levels included sedges (Cyperaceae), ragweed (Ambrosia sp.) and goosefoot (Chenopodiaceae). Moulds were high with strong spikes for ascospores and basidiospores, and small spikes for Cladosporium.
Gqeberha
Low grass levels were detected. Tree levels were low and included the types gum (Myrtaceae), yellowwood (Podocarpus) and palm (Arecaceae). Weed levels were low and the types detected included the daisy family (Asteraceae) Erica (Ericaceae) and Euphorbiaceae, a family which includes succulents. Moulds were very low.
