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Summer 2022

News from the

Tea Gardens
At Camellia Forest

Greetings and happy summer,

Workshops
Summer is a busy time in the tea garden, so this letter is
INTRO TO THE TEA GARDEN
a bit shorter than some. We hope you will take some Saturdays, 2-4pm
time to sit back, and relax with a cold-brew tea while July 9, July 23
you can read about the news from the gardens at

Camellia Forest, events and workshops, summertime HARVEST AND PROCESS

tea gardening tips, and browse our short summer (sold out)
reading list. Sundays, 10am-3pm
July 10, July 24
We have a few spaces left in our Tea Garden Intro

classes in July, which include a curated walk through Events

the gardens, talking all about the tea plant and planting

requirements, followed by discussion of all your tea PICK YOUR OWN

gardening questions while we taste some of our teas (with completion of harvest & process
made here at Camellia Forest. workshop or prior experience)
August 4, 7, 11, 14
Sign-up info will be emailed to workshop
Dates for the fall planting workshops will be announced
participants
shortly. Sign up here to join our waiting list and get first
choice for registration. Also, mark your calendars for Camellia Forest
our Fall Tea for All open house, October 30th.
Nursery & Tea Gardens
Best, 620 NC Highway 54 West;
Christine Chapel Hill, NC 27516
Contact us: teaflowergardens@gmail.com
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New Patreon Series

GROW YOUR OWN TEA
We are proud to announce the launch of a new
Patreon series on Harvesting and Processing Tea,
inspired by our in person workshop. From your own
garden at home, learn to harvest your tea plants and
process for green, white, and black tea.

The series contains a mix of casual and tutorial based

videos, with written content to read alongside. The
whole series is available as a pdf and link for our
Patreon 'Gardeners' tier, which you can download to
keep (though we ask you don't share it or republish
to other sites).

The processing steps are based on my own
experiences, scientific studies, and all that I’ve
learned from various teachers and books about best
practices. They are modified towards small-scale
production and can be carried out by everyday
gardeners using inexpensive equipment that you
might already have in your kitchen.
We thank you for your support on Patreon and
hope to continue growing our community on the
platform.
After 5 years of planning, research, and writing
we’re still celebrating! Published in 2020, we are
honored that booklist named it “the guide of
guides to growing tea.” Available at Camellia
Forest (signed copies by request/at in-person
events)
SPEAKING OF TEA
We love spreading the word about growing local
tea. Last month, I had a great time preparing and
talking about tea gardening with the Herb
Society of America. In researching their
organization, I discovered a great “Herb of the
month” feature on Camellia sinensis from June
2021. They’ve got a really impressive educational
mission and opportunities – check them out!

As we head into the busy spring and summer

harvest season, we’ll be spending most of our
time talking to the tea plants, volunteers,
students, and visitors.

a screenshot from our video on harvesting tea

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What's been happening in the gardens?

Late spring was uneventful (no late freezes this year) and we made some amazing first flush
teas (including a new black tea scented using magnolia blossoms - Magnolia Breeze). Now,
with the second flush, we are as busy as ever. One of our favorite garden activities is taking a
break to taste and enjoy tea in the shady grove. We love sharing tea in the garden during our
tours and workshops, and want to give a shout out to all of our June participants - we had a
great time and enjoyed meeting you all. While our July workshops are full, there are still a
few spaces in the intro to the tea garden sessions.

In the garden, our plantings from this past

spring are faring well in the partial shade,
though not so much in full sun (especially
where the irrigation failed).

We have started a new garden under the

pine woods. Special plants include Assam
seedlings from crosses with Rosea, which
tend to have striking pink flowers and
beautiful new growth.
Harvesting tea with workshop participants

Some of these we have already started to clone and are now potting-up for future plantings.
Sales of these plants are a bit further off, after we have an idea of how they fare in the garden
during the next few years.

Near our forest plantings, we have also enjoyed watching our cover crop of Sudan grass
flourish, as we prepare for another new planting next year. Last but not least, the flower
garden is bursting with blooms, including Bee Balm and Lavender for our tea blends.
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Tea Garden Tips

In the middle of summer, sometimes weather can be an issue. If it is dry, remember to regularly
water young plantings for at least the first couple of years. For older plants, watering is more
effective than fertilizer at encouraging new growth for harvesting.

Now is a good time to fertilize - until the end of July, if you haven’t already. A balanced fertilizer
such as Hollytone or a top dressing of vermicompost will usually suffice. Before throwing excess
fertilizer on a struggling plant, first conduct a soil test to make sure your pH is not too high. If it
is, add sulfur (we like the pelleted form).

If you have some plants that are overgrowing, July is the last time (until winter) that you will want
to do any pruning. A lot of new growth in late summer may be more susceptible to frosts later in
the fall.

Last, but not least, now is a great time to start planning for planting. If you are in a warmer
climate, especially, you may want to start preparing your beds for fall planting! If you live
somewhere cooler, you can still plant tea in the summer - just have a plan for regular watering
during the hottest months of summer. This goes without saying that all young plants need care
throughout the summer to prevent them drying out.

Don't forget to water, fertilize, and prune your tea plants if needed
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Summer Reading List

We love reading, especially on a cool evening after summertime rain showers. Here we share
a few of the books on our reading list, in no particular order:

Darjeeling: The Colorful History and Precarious Fate of the World’s Greatest Tea
by Jeff Koehler (Bloomsbury, 2015). This entertaining book skillfully weaves both the
history and contemporary developments in the Indian tea industry.

Tea History Terroirs Varieties, by Kevin Gascoyne et al., The Camellia Sinensis Tea
House (Firefly Books, 2011). I revisit this book repeatedly for it’s extensive descriptions of
teas from around the world. Newer editions exist.

Tea: a Nerd’s Eye View, by Virginia Lovelace (VU Books, 2020). Full of lots of little
factoids and more citations (references) than most books, there is lots to digest here.

A Tea Lover’s Travel Diary, by Jason C.S. Chen (Tea Master Books, 2010). Deeply
focused on two types of oolong, this book illustrates the amazing diversity in how these teas
are made. With as many pictures as words, it also allows armchair travelers like myself a
chance to dream. Now, if only I had someone to pick and process all my tea while I fly across
the world learning about my favorite teas.

Connect teaflowergardens.com

“Come, let us have some tea and

With Us teaflowergardens@gmail.com

continue to talk about happy things."
@camelliaforesttea
― Chaim Potok

@CamelliaForestTeaGardens