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Commercial cannabis viability in the Western Cape
This is the regional version of the processing pipeline series. The short version: grade the harvest into four classes at trim time, A for flower, B for hydrocarbon carts, C for bubble hash, D for static-sifted kief plus an ethanol wash on the leftovers. The full model and the economics are here: https://420forums.co.za/processing-pipeline-farmer-economics/
The Western Cape version of the viability question comes down to four things: water, wind, autumn rain, and the city on your doorstep.
Water. Winter rainfall, dry summers. Irrigation is not optional in a summer crop. Check the allocation, not the rainfall total.
Wind. The Cape Doctor and the summer southeaster stress plants in veg, but the trade-off is low humidity and clean air in flower, which keeps bud rot down.
Autumn rain. The crop finishes February to March, right into the first rains. The calendar decides more than genetics. Plant late September at the latest and aim to be off by mid March.
Market. Cape Town is the biggest consumer market in the country and the club scene is dense here. Proximity to buyers is a real advantage for a small farm.
The soil picture, Malmesbury shale and Cape Granite country, is covered in the SA soil map: https://420forums.co.za/ultimate-soil-map-of-south-africa-for-farming-cannabis/