Cultivating Organic Yerba Maté

Farming Yerba Maté

Cultivating organic yerba maté: Small family farms in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay grow organic yerba maté.

Ilex paraguariensis or Yerba Maté is a subtropical dioecious evergreen tree that can reach 2 to 5 meters in height. Yerba Maté is a flower and fruit producing tree, flowering from October to November in the southern hemisphere and produces fruit from March to June. The Yerba Maté tree requires large amounts of water. On most farms and in the wild this water comes in the form of annual rainfall, the Yerba tree needs no less than 1300 mm through out the year. Hence it only grows in subtropical climates. However the tree is much less susceptible to temperature, being able to withstand temperatures of –2 °C, with an average annual temperature of 22 to 25°C. The latitude that most of the worlds Yerba Maté can be viewed on our Organic Yerba Maté Production and Sales Site.