Tea garden

hello all,

Next year I would really like to grow a tea garden for 1) medicinal purposes and 2) flowers make me happy. So I need some help.

As of right now on the list I have:
Roman & German chamomile
Dandelion root & flower
Calendula
Roses
Chocolate mint

Does anyone have any other recommendations for me? I’m all ears. TIA 😊

I'd like to grow Camellia sinensis someday. Would that grow well in your garden?

Stacie Kim wrote:I'd like to grow Camellia sinensis someday. Would that grow well in your garden?

It’s definitely an idea for the future, I’m not sure if it’s a suitable location but I love it.

i’m such a fan of growing tea camellia. i have several named varieties, and a few seedlings, and 12 more seedlings from my plants from this past winter. i’ve been playing around with processing for a few years, and might well do a little side-obsession-hustle tea farm at some point.

as to non camellia options…i don’t know what you like in a tea, or what your garden situation will be, but what about:
catnip
monarda
red clover
holy basil/tulsi

twigs from woody stuff like:
birch
sassafras
spicebush

spring tips from fir or birch or hemlock (the tree not the poisonous herbaceous plant)

For herbal tea I like lemonbalm and peppermint. Cherry sage is nice too, but I've had trouble keeping it alive. The prior two on the otherhand must be  contained or they will spread everywhere.

I made thyme tea once for a sore throat... it worked pretty well, but I can't say I really enjoyed it purely as an herbal tea.

I second monarda. I'm planning a spot to grow a lot more of it for next year. I didn't get to enjoy the flowers until late in the year cause I kept picking so much of it for tea. I found an approximately half and half mix of fermented and unfermented leaves makes the best tea.

Ceanothus velutinus makes a nice tea, as long as you pick the older leaves. The current year leaves are pretty bland. The flowering bush is nicest from afar. Up close the flowers are nothing special. But the spicy, resiny smell of the bush on a sunny day is one of my favourite things ever!

I meant to suggest roses, as well. They're a bit overpowering as a tea on their own, but are nice in a blend.

I want a tea garden. wonder if I could get clippings from these folks

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/08/23/488817144/america-s-only-full-time-tea-taster-talks-about-life-on-the-charleston-tea-plant

I'd recommend looking at your health needs and beginning your list there. For example, I have a mess of sub-clinical highly sensitive immune and inflammation issues, and clinical anxiety and OCD, so a lot of my herbal medicine focus is on components that are relaxing/soothing and anti-inflammatory. Some of my priorities for next year include chamomile, various mints, catnip, mullein, oregano, thyme, calendula, motherwort, meadowsweet, yarrow, basil tulsi, and stinging nettle. You might also experiment with things like ginger and turmeric, ginseng, ashwaganda, various fungi (cordyceps, lions mane), spruce tips, and willow, but depending on your region they may not be happy.

When I lived in a milder climate, I had a large lemon verbena plant right outside my door.  Heavenly relaxing scent as soon as I left the house.  Useful to give a little "lemon lift" to sauces and teas also.

I like Juniper's suggestion for looking for teas for your health needs.

Though it is good to plants the ones that you like the flavor of.

Teas that I make:

Yerba Mate, Ilex paraguariensis because I love the flavor.  You didn't mention where you are or your zone so I don't know if you would be able to grow it. It is a South American plant that contains caffeine and is used in commercial energy drinks and bottled iced tea.

Lemon balm because I love the smell of the plants and the tea is relaxing.

Ginger because it is good for an upset stomach though I am not fond of the organic tea that I bought because it is too mild.

Rosemary, it can be a large shrub though it smells wonderful. Rosemary can be used in cooking.  I make a tea to use as a mouth wash for its health benefits.

I have been growing camellia sinensis here for about 20 years.  No problems.

I grow lemon balm, mint, houtuynnia cordata, and I will put raspberry leaf, and hawthorn into my tea sometimes, but I didn't plant them for the tea.

John S
PDX OR

Jan White wrote:I second monarda. I'm planning a spot to grow a lot more of it for next year. I didn't get to enjoy the flowers until late in the year cause I kept picking so much of it for tea. I found an approximately half and half mix of fermented and unfermented leaves makes the best tea.

Jan, would you be willing to share your process for fermenting the monarda please? Sorry if you already posted it, I looked around but could not find it.