FIELD NATURALISTS CLUC. 



295 



The Guarana of commerce, a substance resembling chocolate, 

 and containing Theine as an active principle, is principally made 

 from the fruit of P. Sorbilis, which is found wild from Bolivia to 

 the mouth of the Amazon in Brazil, and is cultivated both in 

 Bolivia and the Brazilian Province of Amazonas. 



The appearance of the plants will be familiar to most of 

 us when it is stated that they are lianes or vines of the same 

 family as the " Supplejacks," various kinds of which are common 

 in all parts of the colony. They are therefore naturally 

 woody climbers, but under cultivation their appearance is 

 quite changed, and instead of spreading over all sorts of 

 bushes thus, they are trained to stakes like the grape vine. 

 The white flowers are borne in terminial pannels and would 

 hardly be noticeable if they were not massed together. The 

 flowers appear in July and the fruit is ripe in November- 

 December. 



The cultivation is as follows : — Soil, the plants are said to 

 grow equally well in hilly districts or rather dry sandy-clay soil, and 

 on rich level black soil. Solving. The seeds are sown in beds and 

 transplanted as soon as they are 2"-3" high, or, another plan is 

 to sow the seeds in small baskets filled with earth, each of which 

 is placed in the hole it is to fill as soon as its seedling 

 is 3" high. Planting out, &c. The seedling are planted at the 

 foot of and trained to stakes placed 18 to 22' apart. The culti- 

 vation demands care and the first crop is not collected till the 

 3rd year (in Amazonas) or the 4th or 5th year (in Bolivia.) (But 

 as it is probable that the Guarana like most vines can be easily 

 grown from cuttings, a more rapid mode of propagation might be 

 obtained.) From that time forward the plant has to be pruned 

 yearly, and its cultivation closely resembles that of the grape 

 vino. The mature plant is said to fruit for over 40 years, produc- 

 ing six to eight lbs. per annum. 



Crop and preparation. The fruits begin to ripen in Novem- 

 ber-December, as indicated by their beginning to burst open and 

 expose the seeds. The fruit is a small pod consisting of an outer 

 shell containing white pulp and seeds (like cocoa) but the latter 

 each in a shell of its own ; each pod contains 4-6 seeds, horse 

 shoe shaped, and about the size of a hazel nut. When the pods 

 begin to burst, no time must be lost in gathering the crop, for 

 the seeds are liable to fall out and get lost. The seeds are 

 then extracted from the pods, and the white pulp is either 

 washed of}', or they are sun-dried until it can be rubbed off by 

 the hand. The seeds are then carefully washed and placed in 

 a sack to remove their cartilaginous shell. They are then 

 milled in a hand-mill, or a wooden mortar to a rather fine powder. 

 To each pound of this powder 12-14 tablespoonfuls of water 

 is added, and the whole kneaded into a doughy mass. This mass 



