Grow Your Own Tea (Book Review)

I had this book in my wish list for more than a year.

I hadn’t read it because I thought that I should own a tea plant first.

But as you might expect, I forgot about both the book and the tea plant that I wanted to keep at home.

This book is written by Christine Parks from Camellia Forest Tea Gardens and Susan M. Walcott.

I was surprised by how comprehensive it is.

First the book starts with a brief history of tea. This includes the recent history of tea growing in the United States and the British isles.

Then the authors cover the topic of the tea plant itself.

The next chapters are the most interesting. It is the guide to growing and processing tea.

In the chapter of planning and planting, there are subjects such as the soil, when to plant, selecting and sourcing tea plants, growing from seeds or cuttings, etc.

I’m not experienced with gardening, much less with cultivating tea, but I didn’t find the information to be too technical or hard to follow.

Once you learn the basics, then the book shows you how to take care of tea plants: When and how to prune, water, and fertilize for each of the first years.

This section also covers the basics of weed and pest control.

After that we have a chapter of harvesting and processing. It’s very practical.

Finally, we have some miscellaneous information like gardening with tea plants, recipes, etc.

After reading this book, I became very excited about the thought of having my own tea plants and processing them myself into green tea.

This book isn’t just for tea farmers or commercial endeavors.

You can just enjoy taking care of your tea plant at home.

I bought the ebook version. Here’s the link.