It was named by William Turner Thiselton-Dyer, the third director of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, because its country of origin was the Spanish colonial Viceroyalty of New Granada—present day Colombia.

It was introduced in Bogor (West Java, Indonesia) in 1875, and by 1888 large quantities of seed were already being distributed in South-East Asia.

[3] Erythroxylum novogranatense is a highland variety that is utilized in lowland areas.

[1] However, E. novogranatense is very adaptable to varying ecological conditions, and grows well in both humid and dry areas, and at low and higher altitudes.

In controlled environment studies, the optimum average daily temperature for leaf growth for E. novogranatense var.

novogranatense was found to be around 27 °C (81 °F), whereas leaf growth was generally higher at photosynthetic photon flux densities (PPFD) of 250 or 400 micromol per meter square per second than at 155 micromol per meter square per second.

Germination percentages of E. coca and E. novogranatense seed were found to decrease from around 95% and 89% directly after harvesting to 29% and 0%, respectively, after 24 days of storage at 4 m (13 ft).

Coca seedlings are usually sown in shaded nurseries and transplanted to the field when they are about one year old and 20–25 cm (7.9–9.8 in) tall.

The actual time of transplanting and the spacing of the plants varies with climatic factors and whether coca is interplanted or cultivated as a sole crop.

The basic physical difference between E. coca and E. novogranatense is that the E. coca (sometimes called E. bolivianum) has larger leaves that are elliptical, oval and broader near the middle (broad-elliptic) and darker green color above.

The E. novogranatense has smaller, narrower leaves, broadest near the apex (oblong-obovate), and bright green color above.

truxillense does not possess parallel lines either side of the central vein like all other varieties.