Anyone grown tea in the UK? (real tea, not alternatives to tea!)

[OllieC]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7571542.stm

Anyone know where I can obtain a Camellia Sinensis bush?

[OllieC]

[Ishard]

Dunno but when I get my small holding Im gonna grow some.  ;D :D

[OllieC]

Unless I've misunderstood it, one bush gives 4 cups a day for 4 months. So 3 bushes would be enough for most households to have a continuous supply of top quality organic tea...

[betula]

The growersare in cornwall,more temperate climate.Would it grow anywhere?

[pg]

This teaophile spent a long time hunting for some Camelia Sinesnis Sinensis to buy. Eventually, as of the end of last year, I found an ebayer who sells small tea plants. They seem to come up quite regularly.

I bought two 3" high plants, both arrived safely and are healthy.

I kept mine in pots on the bathroom windowsill over the winter (they like a coolish but damp environment) and transferred them to large pots outside this spring. My plan is to plant them in the ground and give them space to 'bush' out.

If you do get a tea plant just remember they want to be trees! The image of tea bushes you see on tea packets are brought about by trimming and plucking of the leaves.

Chinese Camelia Sinenis will withstand very hard frosts - the Chinese have tea plantations very high up in the mountains. But the advantages of frost hardiness is off-set by a coarser texture leaf (in my opinion). The tea plants purchased on ebay were your more normal Indian-type tea.

It can withstand some frost - Taylors of Harrogate have tea plants growing next to their carpark up in Yorkshire and I saw a local newspaper story the other week where the catering manager at a Shropshire college was planting tea bushes.

Planting-wise - treat as other Camellias. Tea is a woodland plant and so lots of leaf mould should keep it happy.

Hope this helps.

[tonybloke]

Ive got one growing from seed this year. (part of propagation college project).  ;)

[GrannieAnnie]

Tempting, very tempting. 
But how to grow the bergamot orange to make it Earl Gray...hmmm.