Harvesting:

It flowers between the months of October and December. Harvesting is done between May and October, when the tree is in full leaf. Leaves are picked from the same tree only every third year, which protects it for subsequent crops. It is not unusual for one wild tree to yield 30-40 kg of dried leaves annually. In wild harvesting, mate gatherers, called tarrafeirosyebateros, travel through the jungle searching for a stand of trees (called a mancha).
On average, 300,000 tons of Mate are produced each year. Mate employs 400,000 people to cultivate, prepare and distribute it to Latin America, the Middle East, North America and the European community, where it is known as the. Brazil and Paraguay (leading exporters of mate) - some production still comes from wild stands-most of which is found in the humid depressions of the foothills. Most of the mate in commerce today, however, comes from large cultivation projects in Paraguay and Uruguay.