Underground Cannabis Archives
Karel Schelfhout
Karel Schelfhout started growing cannabis in Amsterdam in the early 1980s with very little success. The cold and wet climate of the Netherlands wasn't suitable for growing the imported sativa strains he had to work with.
Karel noticed an Ad in a High Times magazine
for cannabis seeds from the Seed Bank. Karel placed an order for some cannabis seeds and Nevil contacted Karel and told him that he was
the first person in Holland to buy cannabis seeds
from him. ​
Nevil invited Karel over to see his operation.
Nevil was having a hard time keeping up with
the demand, so Karel started helping Nevil in producing cannabis seeds. This was short lived,
Karel took what he learned from Nevil and some
of his cannabis strains and founded the Super
Sativa Seed Club in 1985. Around the same time
Dave Watson AKA Sam the Skunkman moved to
Amsterdam bringing with him Skunk #1, Haze and Afghan #1. Karel met Sam and he offered
these strains to him. Karel quickly added them to
his cannabis seed catalog.
​
The Super Sativa Seed Club was the first company to offer a cannabis seed catalog with
colored pictures and tips for cultivating cannabis.
The genetics that Karel collected would be the backbone of the Super Sativa Seed Club and other cannabis growers around the world for years to come. The Super Sativa Seed Club closed in late 1990 but Karel continued to operate
as a small-scale underground cannabis cultivator.
In recent years Karel and his son, Kees, have restarted the Super Sativa Seed Club and they have begun selling cannabis seeds once again.​
