5 May 2023
Summary Pollen counts were low at all sites. A surge in the allergenic mould spore Cladosporium was seen in Durban where a record daily high of >17 000 spores/cubic metre was seen, following heavy rain and high relative humidity. Cape Town Grass concentrations were extremely low. Trees were low and included the sumac family (Anacardiaceae), […]
21 July 2023
Low pollen concentrations were seen at all the sampling sites, but tree pollen is increasing in Cape Town as cypress begins its pollen release cycle. Cape Town: Pollen concentrations were low but tree pollen is increasing largely due to increased cypress pollen in the atmosphere. Other tree pollen detected was the gum (Myrtaceae), waxberry (Morella […]
28 July 2023
Tree counts are increasing in some cities as spring approaches and a spike for weeds was detected in Gqeberha. Grasses and moulds were low at all sites. High tree counts were seen in Cape Town and Johannesburg as the tree pollen in the atmosphere increased. The most prevalent pollen type was cypress (Cupressaceae) at both […]
4 August 2023
Tree pollen is increasing in many of our sampling sites and the dominant tree pollen is cypress, with high cypress pollen concentrations in Johannesburg. Cape Town Low grass, tree and weed pollen levels were seen. Tree pollen detected included the sumac family (Anacardiaceae), birch (Betulaceae), pine (Pinaceae), cypress (Cupressaceae), gum (Myrtaceae) and cedar (Cedrus sp.). […]
11 August 2023
Tree pollen has increased to moderate or high levels at most of the sites and the dominant tree is cypress. Grasses and weeds were very low. Cape Town Repeat of the same week in 2022. Grass levels were very low. Trees were low but varied, with some species approaching moderate levels. The trees detected were […]
18 August 2023
Tree counts were moderate to high at most SA sampling sites and the dominate tree pollen was cypress. Cape Town Rain removed pollen and fungal spores from the atmosphere during this sampling period. Grasses and weeds were low. Trees were moderate with some high counts for cypress (Cupressaceae). Other trees identified were gum (Myrtaceae), elm […]
25 August 2023
Tree pollen is high at many sites and plane tree is now the dominant pollen. The Cape grass season has started early (27 August) after heavy winter rainfall in this area so be prepared for symptoms of hay fever, rhinitis and eye allergy. Trees pollen is increasing rapidly in Gauteng and Bloemfontein and plane tree […]
1 September 2023
High tree pollen concentrations were seen at several sites and the dominant tree was plane, followed by cypress, beech and mulberry. Cape Town Grasses were generally low but on the last sampling day, which was sunny, grass concentrations exceeded 10 grains/cubic meter. This is the threshold for grasses awaited every spring and is earlier than […]
8 September 2023
Tree pollen increased in Johannesburg, Bloemfontein, Pretoria and Potchefstroom. Rain diminished the pollen concentrations in Cape Town. The dominant trees are plane, mulberry, olive, ash, and African stinkwood. Grasses, weeds and moulds were low. Cape Town Several days with heavy rain affected the pollen catch. On sunshine days total tree counts reached 188. Cypress (Cupressaceae) […]
