Contact

internafrica@gmail.com

Informal Human Settlements of Cape Town

Cape Town – Informal Human Settlements. Shack towns are very dense settlements comprising communities housed in self constructed shelters under conditions of informal land tenure, a dense proliferation of small, make-shift shelters built from diverse materials, this populace pressure causes degradation of the local ecosystem and produces severe social and health problems.

Water is obtained from communal taps and toilet facilities range from buckets to pit latrines. These areas are prone to flooding & fires; killing 358 people and displacing 237,412 in the past decade, affecting 68,710 dwellings.

The Western Cape has a Tuberculosis (TB / MDR-TB / XDR-TB) and HIV/AIDS pandemic which is exacerbated by the conditions in these habitat environments. Informal human settlements occur when administration and planning fails.

The improvement of living conditions in informal settlements is imperative to a functional society. "We also have a housing waiting list of about 460,000 and 222 informal settlements around the city (150,000 shacks compared with 28,000 in 1994), and a growing crime rate," Cape Town Mayor - Helen Zille. April 10 2008

The province has a housing shortage of nearly 500 000 units. Western Cape Housing MEC Bonginkhosi Madikizela has warned if something drastic is not done it could take 28 years to address the housing backlog in the province. Oct 14 2009

The housing situation in the Mother City is so bad that people who are currently on waiting lists for houses will stay on those lists for another 15 to 20 years...

"If one takes into account that 350,000 houses are needed, the properties would stretch from Cape Town to Malmesbury.

"Our infrastructure can't handle this."

There also isn't enough money for brick houses.

"Government should openly and honestly admit to the people that it can't afford properties with brick houses.

"We have to consider what we can afford and for that reason we have to think about servicing properties rather than building houses on properties," said Plato.

Cape Town Mayor - Dan Plato 20/11/2010

[InternAfrica would like to point out the 150,000 reduction in housing demand from last year to this; either depicting a misunderstanding of the demand, or figures or the mayor has no clue as to what is going on in his city. Clearly 150,000 housing units were NOT delivered in the Western Cape last year, nor 110,000 units in the past two years] Good thing someone is joining the dots hey Helen...?

On Average each shack is home to 3,4 human beings.

Http://www.InternAfrica.org http://InternAfrica.blogspot.com/

A not for profit organisation which aims to educate and ensure Africans the right to dignity and adequate housing through secure ecologically sustainable development and use of natural resources, while promoting justifiable economic and social development.

View the informal human settlements of Cape Town.

View in Google Earth * View in Google Maps

InternAfrica - Media

15/04/1999 Hemp Project - The private sector would also be allowed to apply for a permit for the trials.
24/08/2001 ‘Dope Dwelling’- (SA)
18/11/2002 Hemp for housing – (SA)
01/05/2003 5Fm radio interview (15min )
01/05/2003 Cape Talk radio interview (1hr )
01/05/2003 TV 7pm News - E-Tv
01/05/2003 ‘Build a better life for all with dagga’- (SA)
01/05/2003 Public protector petitioned to build dagga houses - Cape Times
01/05/2003 Capetonian petitions for dagga homes - (SA)
02/05/2003 Cannabis could solve SA’s housing problems - (SA)
02/05/2003 Making homes with dagga mooted - Dispatch
03/05/2003 Kan dagga pyp rook of boustof vir huise? - Die Burger
04/05/2003 Dagga the solution to SA's housing problem? - M&G
05/05/2003 Dagga Houses: protector to take up cudgels - Cape Times
06/05/2003 My dagga plant is on offer to help build homes for the poor - Cape Times
11/05/2003 Hy is vuur en vlam vir sy huise van dagga - Rapport
13/05/2003 ‘High-rise’ housing for South Africa - BBC
15/05/2003 Cannabis homes for South Africans - National Black Newspaper of the year - (CA)
15/05/2003 Inventor propõe uso de planta da maconha em habitações - BBC Brazil
17/05/2003 Crise du logement - Le Figaro - France
18/05/2003 Range ton chanvre - (SA)
11/06/2003 Casas mais baratas e saudáveis - LabMed
01/08/2003 Hemp houses could solve housing shortage - The Big Issue
30/04/2004 TV In-studio interview - SABC Africa (10min)
30/04/2004 Legalise the true highs of dagga’s potential - Cape Argus
01/05/2004 Balloons for dagga liberation - (SA)
01/05/2004 In defence of cannabis - (SA)
03/05/2004 ‘Legalise it, for construction’ say marchers - Cape Argus
03/05/2004 Legalise dagga & help solve SA’s problems’ - This Day
04/05/2004 South Africans march to ‘liberate’ cannabis - (SA)
04/05/2004 Grow with the flow, says dagga lobby - M&G
05/05/2004 ‘Propaganja’ Aims to Clear Up the Haze About Dagga - Pretoria News
02/09/2004 Cape Talk interview; How to build a cannabis Home - Cape Learning Fare - (30min)
03/09/2004 Bush Radio interview; How to build a cannabis home - Cape Learning Fare - (15min)
15/09/2004 South Africa: Don't Bank On Hemp - Business Day
02/11/2004 Bush Radio Cannabis Construction - (15min)
05/04/2005 How ‘cannabricks’ can ease housing problem - Global Report
17/04/2005 People in grass houses won’t get stoned - (SA)
20/04/2005 Why we should build Zol Joints - Daily Voice
21/04/2005 Cape Talk interview - cannabis construction - (30min)
21/04/2005 TV Repeat of 2003 Coverage - World Report - E-Tv
29/04/2005 TV in-studio interview - cannabis construction- World Today (15min)
03/05/2005 How ‘cannabricks’ can ease housing problem - (SA)
03/05/2005 Innovator seeks to build hemp homes - (SA)
04/05/2005 Hemp could be a fix for housing backlog - (SA)
04/05/2005 ‘Cannabricks’ could solve housing crisis - (SA)
06/05/2005 TV Cannabrick update - SABC Africa (10min)
07/05/2005 Cannabrick Demonstration - (SA)
07/05/2005 5Fm radio interview (15min )
07/05/2005 TV 7pm News - E-Tv
08/05/2005 Protestors punt dagga houses - Weekend Argus
08/05/2005 ‘Cannabricks are fireproof’ - Sunday Independent
12/05/2005 TV Voorblad Hoe om ‘n dagga baksteen to bou - Kyk-Net
16/05/2005 Thousands support call for dagga decriminalisation - (SA)
31/05/2005 Hemp housing man lays complaint - (SA)
01/06/2005 Hemp housing ‘unduly delayed’ - (SA)
07/07/2005 Cannabis the answer - Cape Times
14/10/2005 Minister acknowledges Cannabricks and rapid urbanisation
23/11/2005 World Today SABC 3 - InternAfrica - Habitatjam - (SA)
03/02/2006 IRIN Swaziland Marijuana / Umya farming to help S.A. Homeless
09/11/2006 Hemp Houses for Africa - CC
07/02/2008 NGO slams lack of action on shack fires - Cape Argus
08/07/2010 Challenge begins for stadium owners - FT
21/11/2010 Swazi dagga used to build houses?

A special license by year's end that would allow them to grow hemp commercially

The Eastern Cape's minister of agriculture, Max Mamase, recently remarked that he expects farmers in the province to be granted a special license by year's end that would allow them to grow hemp commercially.

According to Mamase the national departments of agriculture, health and and environmental affairs are currently involved in the drafting of new legislation that would see the granting of permits to farmers to grow the much maligned plant as a commercial crop.

The Agricultural Research Council was, in the meanwhile, working on a hybrid that would be ideally suited to local growing conditions."Hemp farmers can easily earn R5000 ($722.5)," stated Mamase, adding that the crop is ideally suited to the Eastern-Cape region, given the region's high levels of poverty and it's reliance on subsistence farming.

The commercial cultivation of hemp is sure to herald an about-turn for rural households, most of whom subsist on a tiny monthly income (a fraction of Hemp's per-acre earning potential).

The minister commented that the introduction of Hemp would, furthermore, make positive contributions to the method of production on communal farms.Hemp has exceptionally strong fibres that have three times the tensile strength of cotton and are softer, warmer, more water resistant and naturally resistant to ultraviolet light.

The plant has also been advocated as a wonder crop that can greatly reduce the environmental degradation caused by the tree-based pulp and paper industry as it produces more pulp per acre than timber on a sustainable basis.

Family of marijuana, hemp has a multitude of additional uses from medicine to fuel, but it does not contain any THC (the intoxicating substance found in marijuana).

Still feared and reviled in the wake of post-60's Calvanism, Hemp's cousin, marijuana, is already extensively cultivated throughout impoverished rural SA and provides many families with an indispensable additional income.

Unlike marijuana, however, hemp produces no purple haze, and poses no palpable threat to Calvanist (and colonialist) morality.

Mamase commented that he expects Hemp to be legalised within the country as a whole within the next 3 years; a move that will herald an end to industrial imperialism and the privileged status accorded to certain products which replaced 10 000 years of global hemp cultivation.

Patentable synthetic products, tree-based paper, petroleum, cotton, and the like, replaced Hemp, which was banned world-wide in the early 20th century.

It would seem, however, that SA is finally re-instigating the cultivation of this multi-purposed crop.

"For the next phase of our hemp project we are taking all six cultivars and we will initiate commercial production," stated Mamase, adding that the project will be off the ground by year's end in the Eastern Cape region.

- GISA South Africa's Green Search Engine

Sideline - that other thing other than my job

OMG My Portfolio reads... but watch what I can do....

Look Ma no Hands...

R25 Million for Hemp in South Africa

A R 25-million, five-year project to introduce and develop new cultivars of hemp for South Africa will reap significant rewards for the country, and place it at the forefront of international hemp research and development.

Cultivars will be the first adapted to subtropical growing conditions that will yield a high fibre and low drug content crop for local fibre and seed production.

"Demand for hemp products worldwide has increased by 233% over the past two years, and yearly South African hemp imports have grown from R500,000 to R1-million in the last year," Southern Africa Hemp Company ( SAHC ) director and international expert James Wynn tells Engineering News exclusively.

"Given the recognized demand for fibre products, particularly tree fibre, and the limited availability of forest land in South Africa, the development of a viable hemp industry in South Africa will help boost the economy and empower rural farmers," he argues.

The project will involve the cross-breeding of local cannabis varieties with hemp cultivars certified by the European Union ( EU ) to lower the tetrahydrocannabinol ( THC ) or narcotic content, and will yield a new certified high-fibre crop, suited to the South African climate, that can be grown year-round.

Existing European cultivars can be grown only during a four-month growing season in subtropical climates. European countries are expected to fund the project, which will expand the production of existing EU hemp cultivars.

This will involve specific breeding, development and adaptation of the cultivars in cooperation with scientists and students, as well as the transfer of knowledge and technical know-how to students, researchers, farmers and regulatory authorities.

Already PG Bison and Masonite Africa, leaders in the South African panel products industry, have provided funding of R300,000 to kick start the breeding programme, and a license has been granted by the Department of Health to grow hemp at Rustenburg in the Nort West Province. A hemp, flax, sisal & kenaf cluster comprising representatives from the government, industry, trade associations and research institutions has also been formed to further advance the local development of these strategic resources.

This follows on from the formation of the South African Bast Crop Consortium ( SABCC ) last year to introduce and develop bast or fibrous bark crops such as hemp, flax, kenaf and sun hemp for the local agricultural industry.

Present members include the Agricultural Research Council's Tobacco and Cotton Research Institute, PG Bison, Masonite Africa and the Southern Africa Hemp Company.

Despite the actions being taken to launch a local hemp industry, and the support from local and foreign private investors, the project is being delayed by legislation and bureaucratic processes within the Department of Health regarding the issuing of permits, warns Wynn.

Any researcher or farmer wishing to grow and process hemp must be granted permits by both the health and agriculture departments, as well as the Medicines Control Council.

"As the council meets only once every six weeks, hemp-permit applications can get pushed aside for issues deemed of higher priority such as new medicines and health policies," explains Wynn. "A whole season can be missed because it takes months before a permit is cleared," he asserts. "This, in turn, affects potential foreign investment, as we require permits before funding can be secured." Wynn adds that the existing legislation could cost the country its competitive advantage in this lucrative sector.

In the 1920s, South Africa outlawed the entire cannabis plant due to its narcotic effects, but since 1964 scientists have learned to monitor drug levels in different cannabis plants, and today low THC hemp cultivars are grown in more than 30 countries.

Hemp seed and fibre are used in the manufacture of food and beverage products, building materials, textiles, cosmetics, fuels, paper, and automotive components ( Engineering News November 21, 1997 ).

Although the SAHC has been granted a permit to grow hemp at Rustenburg, it is still waiting for approval of a permit to grow the crop in the Eastern Cape.

The SABCC, together with the Department of Agriculture, plans to conduct commercial scale trials at Stutterheim at the end of next month, and has targeted areas in the Eastern Cape and Western Cape for future hemp production due to the favorable climate there.

This component of the project has already elicited interest from international companies, including the leading national French hemp co-operative, which hopes to introduce French hemp cultivars to South Africa. Funding proposals have already been submitted to this organization, as well as to the EU.

Interest has also been expressed by the Department of Agriculture, which seeks to ensure the accessibility of the newly-developed seed to local farmers.

The five year research programme will require funding of R5-million each year to expand the commercial agronomic trailson a nationwide basis. ( END )

This message was received from James Wynn: Director, Southern Africa Hemp Company sahc@icon.co.za Manager, South African Bast Crop Consortiumwww.hemp.co.za

Response of hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) varieties to conditions in Northwest Province, South Africa

M.C. Dippenaar, C.L.N. du Toit and M.S. Botha-Greeff
Tobacco and Cotton Research Institute, Private Bag X82075, Rustenburg 0300, South Africa

---

Dippenaar, M.C., C.L.N. du Toit and M.S. Botha-Greeff 1996. Response of hemp (Cannabis sativa L) varieties to conditions in Northwest Province, South Africa. Journal of the International Hemp Association 3(2): 63-66.
Cannabis sativa L. is illegal in South Africa due to its cannabinoid content and its potential psychoactivity. However, an increased interest in this bast fibre plant has developed in South Africa because hemp can provide future job opportunities. Five improved hemp varieties from Europe with low cannabinoid content, but which are high in bast fibre, were planted at Rustenburg, 25ƒ43'S, 27ƒ18'E, at 1157 m elevation in the beginning and middle of November and again in mid-December 1995. Each variety was sown at densities which would produce plant populations of 150 and 250 plants m 2 respectively. Extreme warm and dry conditions prevailing directly after planting in early November dried the topsoil and a proper plant stand was not achieved. Rhizoctonia seedling disease destroyed the seedlings of the mid-November planting. Even a fungicide sprayed directly after replanting in December did not improve the plant stand sufficiently to measure the effects of plant population and nitrogen levels that were included as treatments. Flower initiation was induced in all the varieties within 34 days after sowing. At 60 days after planting, some seeds were mature, the plants were cut and the biomass, leaf areas and fibre content of the bark and woody stalks were determined. A fresh biomass of 9 to 13 t ha-1 and a stalk yield of 3.5 to 9.5 t ha-1 were achieved. Plant height ranged from 96 to 123 cm. The bast fibre content varied between 15 to 21%. Chemical analysis of the plant material revealed that absorption of nitrogen and potassium was very high. At the end of the season, the plants were attacked by American boll-worms, aphids and stink-bugs. Hemp roots were infested by nematodes, even at the low natural population present. This first trial on hemp in South Africa indicated that the cultivation of hemp is not as easy as popular articles claim. Systematic research on the most limiting production aspects is essential to provide future South African farmers with locally tested cultivation practices.

---

Introduction
Hemp, as an industrial crop, is unknown to South African farmers. However, Cannabis sativa L. has been grown in Southern Africa for medicinal purposes for centuries and during the past half-century it has also been cultivated as an illegal drug crop. This plant species was declared illegal in South Africa in 1928 due to its high cannabinoid content and potential psychoactivity. New improved varieties, characterized by very low levels of THC, but high in bast fibre content, have been developed in countries such as France and Hungary. In South Africa, there is renewed interest in the special properties of this bast fibre crop as it could provide an income for the small farmer. The optimum cultivation practices for hemp as a fibre crop, and the bio-diversity of the different local landraces present in South Africa have not yet been scientifically established.
The purpose of this paper is to indicate problems in the cultivation of hemp as a fibre crop and the importance of research and test plot plantings before commercial production can commence.

Procedures
This project was initiated and sponsored by the Southern Africa Hemp Company and special permission was granted by the State Department of Health. These trials were planted at the Tobacco and Cotton Research Institute at Rustenburg (25ƒ 43'S, 27ƒ 18'E, 1,157 m elevation).
Five industrial varieties ('Fedora-19', 'Futura-77', 'Felina-34', 'Kompolti', and 'Secuini') were supplied by the International Hemp Association and were planted at three planting dates, namely on 1st November, 15th November and 20th December 1995. An attempt to establish the effect of two plant population densities in combination with three nitrogen fertilizer levels formed part of the trial, but will not be discussed in this paper. The seed was evenly sown by hand in shallow furrows spaced 10 cm apart, made by a manually-pulled furrow-maker and covered with dry soil. To control seedling diseases on the trial area planted during December, the fungicide "Rhizolex" was sprayed at a dosage of 37 g in 15 l of water as a complete cover spray and washed in with sprinkle irrigation.
The trial was planted on a red soil containing 46% clay (Hutton 3100 soil form). This soil is characterized by an orthic topsoil overlying a red apedal B horizon (Soil Classification Working Group, 1991). Before planting, 500 kg superphosphate and 100 kg K per ha (as potassium sulfate) were incorporated with a rotavator. Two weeks post-germination, limestone, ammonium nitrate and potassium sulfate were applied as a top-dressing at 100 kg/ha each and were washed in by irrigation.
Drip irrigation was applied at three-day intervals and soil moisture was kept close to field capacity. Rainfall, and minimum and maximum air temperatures were measured at a weather station located 700 m from the trial site.
A randomized block design was used with a plot size of 2 x 3 m. These factorially arranged treatment combinations were replicated four times.
When the first seeds started to mature, plants were cut at ground level from a 2 m 2 area in the middle of each plot and the fresh biomass was determined. Five plants were picked at random and divided into stalks, leaves and branches, and the fresh and dry mass determined. After the removal of the slender 10 cm tip of each of these five plants (containing undifferentiated fiber elements), subsamples, 10 cm in length, were taken from the base and end of the stalks. The bark was separated from the woody part of these samples by hand. The wood was oven-dried, weighed and ground. Fibre content of both the bark and wood was determined by dissolving all soft tissue, boiling it in a 2% sodium hydroxide solution. The fibre so obtained was washed under running water, dried and its mass determined. Leaf area was determined with a leaf-area meter (Model Li-3000 from Li-Cor). The dried plant parts from two replications of all the varieties were chemically analyzed for N, P, K, Ca, Mg, B, Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn. Various insect species were observed at harvest and collected for identification. Soil and root samples were collected and the population density of the dominant nematode genera determined.

Results and discussion
Agronomy
Only the December planting produced a population which could be utilized to assess biomass yields. The early November trial ended in total failure. Directly after planting, the weather changed and became extremely hot and dry (average of 33.3ƒ C). This lasted for 16 days with only 9.5 mm of rain. Although additional sprinkle irrigation was applied twice a week, the germinating seeds were damaged. However, various weed species, established themselves on the trial site during this time and overgrew the few hemp plants that managed to emerge. Good germination was obtained with the replanting of the trial in the middle of November, but damping-off seedling disease, Rhizoctonia, reduced the stand to only a few plants per plot. Even spraying the complete trial area with a fungicide did not control the disease and all the varieties seemed to be equally susceptible. Table 1 summarizes the number of seedlings which emerged 13 days after planting and indicates that only an 8 to 40% stand was obtained. The standard deviation of the mean values reflects the huge variation experienced. The number of plants per m 2 decreased further with time and, at the time of harvesting, no evaluation of the effect of plant population density on biomass production could be made.

Table 1. Seedling population and number of plants harvested at the two seeding rates. (Standard deviations in parentheses.)

Varieties	Seedlings/m2		Plants harvested/m2
	150 seeds/m2	250 seeds/m2	150 seeds/m2	150 seeds/m2
'Fedora-19' 'Futura-77' 'Felina-34' 'Kompolti' 'Secuini'	60 (5.43) 13 (4.36) 39 (16.22) 27 (21.82) 13 (1.42)	35 (19.75) 37 (24.97) 50 (28.30) 34 (36.98) 38 (8.33)	28 12 19 11 7	26 15 22 10 14

The reproductive growth stage was induced 34 days after planting, although day length was at the maximum of 13.6 hours at the 25ƒ'43' S latitude. This early flowering retarded stalk growth. Table 2 shows that the average plant height at harvest, 62 days after planting, was only 114 cm, with a standard deviation of ±30 cm. This high standard deviation is evidence of the variation caused by the poor plant stand. All five varieties seemed to be very sensitive to photoperiodic induction of flowering.
The hemp varieties produced between 10 to 13 tons/ha dry biomass (see Table 2) within the 62 days of plant growth, with a dry stalk weight of 3.5 to 9.5 t/ha. The average fibre content of the bark and woody part of the stalks was 17.6 and 53.0% respectively. These figures corresponded to the lower limits of similar determinations done by H–ppner and Menge-Hartmann (1995). Popular newspaper articles on hemp gave the misleading impression that hemp is easy to grow. Business Day (1995) stated that a major advantage of this plant species ("dagga") was that it was hardy, grew in relatively poor soils and on steep slopes, and did not need horticultural or agronomic expertise. Similarly, Danylchuk (1995) referred to an old farmer at Cold Lake, north of Edmonton in Canada who said, "You don't have to spray it, you don't have to fertilize it. It builds up the land. You just have to plant it and it grows fast. It chokes the weeds out". These comments seem to contradict our experience during this initial trial, but may be due to either the introduction of varieties unsuited for the regional daylength or the weak growth of these particular varieties.
Vogl and Hess (1995) reported that farmers in upper Austria sowed 250 ha with the French variety 'Felina-34' under the impression that it just grew everywhere. These farmers experienced poor germination due to soil compaction. Where nutrients were not easily accessible, the hemp stopped developing and weeds flourished. Low soil pH also caused poor growth and the sporadic presence of deer, birds, beetles and slugs caused local damage.
The leaf area per plant is summarized in Table 2. 'Fedora-19' tended to have a smaller leaf area than the other varieties at the lower seeding rate. On the other hand, the plant population density of this variety tended to be the best.

Table 2. Growth and yield parameters of hemp varieties.

Parameters measured	Varieties
	'Fedora-19'	'Futura-77'	'Felina-34'	'Kompolti'	'Secuini'
Height (cm)	101.5	119.3	104.3	117.3	129.3
Dry biomass (t/ha)	12.8	12.2	10.8	12.1	10.4
Stalk mass (t/ha)	8.23	9.49	7.31	8.61	3.56
Leaf area (cm 2 /plant)	418	443	511	685	685
Bark fiber (%)	15.7	20.5	14.2	20.5	17.6
Wood fiber (%)	57.4	50.9	57.0	52.6	47.3

An indication of the nutrient uptake by the hemp crop at Rustenburg is given in Table 3. Nitrogen and potassium were absorbed equally in high amounts. This emphasizes the importance of fertile soil and sufficient N and K in a fertilization program. Berger (1969) summarized literature on the fertilization of hemp and indicated the dominant role of nitrogen and equivalent supplies of potassium in the nutrition of this plant. All the hemp varieties were able to accumulate 0.35% P in their leaves from the red clay soil. The microelement content in different plant portions was typical of that found in many plant species.

Table 3. Total nutrient uptake (kg/ha) by hemp varieties from a Hutton clay soil at Rustenburg, South Africa, during the 1995/96 growing season.

	Macro- element uptake	Varieties
		'Fedora-19'	'Futura-77'	'Felina-34'	'Kompolti'	'Secuini'
	N P K Ca Mg	264 55 241 170 87	181 35 200 127 56	220 46 182 144 75	159 28 221 138 58	114 22 112 84 41

Insects
The trial planted in December was attacked by many insect species and the leaves and some seed were damaged. Seven individual Lepidoptera larvae specimens were collected and reared on an artificial dry bean diet until fully grown. All seven pupated and developed into Helicoverpa armigera adults. A number of different Hemipteran species also attacked the plants. Most of the plants were infested by parthenogenetic viviparous alate and apterous aphid females as well as by the various immature stages. These aphids were tentatively identified as Aphis gossypii. The aphids, in turn, were attacked by internally developing parasitoids and also ladybird beetle predators. Some pentatonic stink-bugs, a Nezara species, were also collected on the plants. The stink-bugs and aphid specimens were sent to The National Insect Collection for confirmation of identification.

Nematodes
Nematodes that were found in the naturally infested field where the different C. sativa cultivars were planted, consisted of lesion nematodes (Pratylenchus spp.), spiral nematodes (Helicotylenchus andScutellonema spp.) and the reniform nematode (Rotylenchulus spp.). Small numbers of nematodes (Table 4) were found on the roots of most of the C. sativa cultivars, except for the cultivar 'Kompolti', where higher numbers of Pratylenchus spp. were found. Only a small number of spiral nematodes occurred in the soil, in the immediate vicinity of the roots.

Table 4. The occurence of nematodes on different cultivars of C. sativa (per 10 g root) planted in naturally infested soil.

Cultivar	Pratylenchus spp.	Hoplolaiminae
'Fedora-19' roots 'Futura-77' roots 'Felina-34' roots 'Kompolti' roots 'Secuini' roots Combined soil sample (250 ml)	13 2 0 158 4 0	4 2 3 3 12 9

According to de Meijer (1994), the root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne hapla) reproduces on C. sativa, but differences occurred among hemp accessions with regard to nematode reproduction.Meloidogyne spp. (with the dominant species being M. incognita races 2 and 4 and M. javanica) are the most important plant-parasitic nematodes in South Africa, attacking a wide spectrum of crops. As none of these were present in the field where the trial was planted, it is necessary to evaluate the resistance of the hemp cultivars to the local Meloidogyne species.

Conclusions
As for any other crop, well-adapted cultivars, high quality seed and favorable conditions during germination are required to establish a good plant population.
The five varieties from Europe and Hungary are very sensitive to day length and this characteristic limits plant development and fibre production under the conditions which prevail at Rustenburg.
Chemical analysis of the hemp plants confirms that the nitrogen and potassium nutrient requirements are high. Therefore, a fertile soil of suitable pH is preferred. Growth of hemp is further determined by sufficient water and enough sunshine. Arable land in the Republic of South Africa lacks some of these growth factors. Supplementation with required nutrients, amelioration of the soil acidity, and irrigation will be necessary for production of this crop.
Northern European hemp varieties with low cannabinoid content seem to be subject to aphid and boll-worm damage. Promising hemp varieties should be evaluated for resistance to local insects andMeloidogyne species. Before hemp can be grown economically as a fibre crop in the Republic of South Africa, research and evaluation of cultivation and pest management practices are essential to place hemp production on a sound scientific basis.

References

• Berger, J., 1969. The world's major fibre crops - their cultivation and manuring. Centre D'etude De L'azote 6 Zurich. Conzett & Huber, Zurich.
• Business Day, 1995. Dagga 'can cause economic high'. June 17. SA Associated Newspapers, Johannesburg.
• de Meijer, E., 1994. Diversity in Cannabis. Doctoral thesis, Wageningen Agricultural University. The Netherlands.
• Danylchuk, J., 1995. High on hemp. Alberta farmers want to beat the ban on this exciting old versatile plant. Edmonton Journal, July 15.
• H–ppner, F and U. Menge-Hartmann, 1995. Cultivation experiments with two fibre hemp varieties. J. International Hemp Association. 2 (1): 18-22.
• Soil Classification Working Group. 1991. Soil classification: A taxonomic system for South Africa. Memoirs on the agricultural natural resources of South Africa. Department of Agricultural Development, Pretoria.
• Vogl, C.R. and J. Hess, 1995. Hemp growing and research in Austria -1995. J. International Hemp Association. 2(2): 98-100.