A Cup of Tea

While the plant is indoors, keep it as cool as you can and make sure there is plenty of natural light but not direct sunlight. An East or West facing window is ideal. Outdoors your plants will do well in pots on a sheltered patio or in a partially shaded spot. Tea plants are hardy but whilst young they should be protected from severe frosts particularly when in a pot.

Keep your Camellia Sinensis well watered, the compost should feel wet to touch at all times. As your plant grows it can be repotted in a larger pot or even in the ground. All Camellia's like acid soil, so choose compost suitable for rhododendrons and heathers and other acid-loving plants.

Tea plants produce small fragrant flowers in winter and dark glossy leaves year round. To develop a more bushy shape you may wish to pinch out the top few leaves every now and then.

Once you have a sizable bush the leaves can be harvested fresh to make green tea or dried to make traditional brown tea.