Human beings consume more tea than any other substance except water and air, and it is perhaps the most social of all drinks.
Originating in the mountains of the Eastern Himalayas, tea has been exported across the world and has engendered vast changes to the patterns of our social lives: as a ritualised aesthetic in Japan and China and a mainstay commodity for the British empire where it created tea houses, new roles for women, and new forms of decorative arts.
Anthropologist Alan Macfarlane, in his book, Green Gold: the Empire of Tea, even suggests that the expansion of British imperialism was fundamentally fuelled by the extra energy of tea drank by British colonials with milk and sugar. For more interesting tea tid-bits, check out his website which has links to his various books, some delightful film clips detailing the production and consumption of tea, as well as reminiscences of his mother and the tea plantation in India where he was born.)
- Haidy
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
dear haidy,
is it possible (or advisable) to grow tea plants in your home? do they come from seeds? what tea types would be best suited for this? this is the first i'm thinking of it, so i've got a million questions...maybe you can point me in the right direction. thanks!
Heather!
Some hasty thoughts (although I'm not at all an expert on growing tea at home!)
Tea grows in temperate, frost-free, zones that are warm (with cooler mornings) and wet. I have friends who plant tea in their window boxes just for the finely fragrant white flowers that blossom in the spring.
Tea Plants take about three years to mature, growing to a height of about 1 metre, but if you're prepared to wait that long, and have the space and soil, there's nothing to stop you growing tea in a greenhouse (or even bringing the tea-pots inside during a New york winter).
Ask about Camellia Sinensis ( at your local garden centre or plant store..Buy cuttings rather than growing from seed, that will cut the waiting time down, and means that you wont need to worry about germination...
So whilst it is definitely possible to grow tea at home - remember you need to then need to pick and process the leaves in order to actually get tea, and if you're imagining producing a bag of dried tea, you'll need quite a few leaves. However, one or two plants should produce a few good cups. Pick the youngest leaves and the leaf bud, leave them to dry in the sun or indoors for a few hours, and then dry them in the oven for 20 mins or so. (Green tea will need to be steamed first before drying)
Also remember - you can certainly grow a enough plants to make a variety of herbal teas - chamomile, lemon verbena, mint and so on, which make lovely fresh cups, picked straight from the plant and infused in boiling water.
i love this musing on tea. it alway sends me on a tailspin of lovely (caffeinated) memories.
my father's family is russian jew, and hence he takes his tea weak with lemon and sugar, and drinks great pots of it instead of coffee. my mother, whose parents were from scotland and england, is also a tea lover but takes it black or with a spot of milk. and of course, being the good child, i am passionate for tea taken both ways (not to mention the occasional earl gray tea with steamed cream and brown sugar in lieu of dessert).