1949 
Something of this strange fatalism seems to have followed attempts 
to introduce and disseminate the plant in this country. The imported 
prepared product, however, is a more or less common article of commerce 
obtainable in many of our markets, especially in the East. 
Time has served to show that plants distributed some years ago by 
the National Botanic Garden at Washington and by the United States De- 
partment of Agriculture, under the name Ilex paraguariensis are not of this 
species. It is doubtful, in fact, if there are any plants of the true 
yerba mate growing in the United States except those recently intro- 
duced by the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction. One spec- 
ies which was sent out under the name /. paraguariensis is Elaeodendron 
quadr •angulation. This is found among ornamental plantings in South Florida 
but it has no resemblance and no relation to the true Ilex. Another 
plant, distributed by this Office under the name /. paraguariensis, proved 
to be Ehretia mierophylla, the so-called "forest tea" of the Philippines. 
The leaves of this Ehretia contain no caffein but are used by the nat- 
ives as a substitute for tea. It is of interest to note the difference 
in the fruits of the Ehretia and of /. paraguariensis, for the fruit char- 
acters are important in identification work. We are indebted to Homer 
C. Skeels for the following: 
"The fruits of Ehretia mierophylla and /. paraguariensis are nearly spheri- 
cal and about 4 mm, in diameter. Each has the remains of a stigma about 
2 mm. long at the apex of the fruit. The grayish black surface of each 
fruit is irregularly wrinkled, that of the Ehretia being slightly darker 
in color and duller than that of the Ilex. The Ehretia fruit in falling 
from the plant drops out of the calyx. The Ilex fruit carries the calyx 
with it, but this calyx, 1 to 2 mm. broad, is nearly the same color as 
the fruit and is closely appressed to it. The fruits differ greatly, 
however, in internal structure. The Ilex contains 4 one-seeded nutlets 
which separate easily and which are shaped like the quarters of an apple. 
The Ehretia fruit contains one globular nutlet with 6 to 8 cells and is 
usually 4-seeded." 
In the months of May and June, 1922, the Office of Foreign Seed 
and Plant Introduction was fortunate enough to secure seed of /. para- 
guariensis from three sources. The first lot, S.P.I. No. 55489, was 
presented by D. S. Bullock, Agricultural Commissioner of the Bureau of 
Agricultural Economics of this Department, located at Buenos Aires, 
Argentina. Mr. Bullock secured the seeds in the territory of Misiones 
early in April and the shipment reached us June 7, 1922. On the same 
date a small lot, No. 55493, was secured through Vilmorin-Andrieux & 
Co., Paris, France. A few weeks previous to these introductions a 
sample, No. 55566, arrived from C. Fiebrig, Director of the Botanical . 
Garden at Asuncion, Paraguay. All three lots of seeds were sown at 
our Plant Introduction Garden, Bell, Md., and from them several thous- 
