Help neede with Mate gourd info

I could use some help from the "seasoned" Mate users: I tried seasoning my gourd I got in Argentina,and used mate & lemongrass
mixture for the first 12 hrs after the scraping (not much came up) I noticed that the gourd appeared to have sevetal cracks. I then did the
second 12 hours with a Old brazilian matte, and when emptied 1/2 the Gourd had turned an ugly green. Is this normal? Is it safe to use? or did I get ripped off at a tourist shop?
Thank you so much for any help/info you can give me.
Ed