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Drinking tea is not just for your grandmother anymore. Tea is a popular drink that is enjoyed by millions of people across the world. Certain kinds of teas are good for relieving symptoms of health problems too. Teas are also good for acquiring a calming effect on the nervous system, and they taste good too!
There are several types of teas available, such as black teas, green teas, spiced teas, raspberry tea, mint tea, goldenseal tea, orange tea, and chamomile tea, just to name a few. Some black teas are chock full of caffeine and are a good way for some people to get their eyes open in the morning. On the other hand, though, chamomile tea is an excellent drink for calming and soothing your jangled nerves.
To begin growing your tea, you will need to dig up a space in your back yard just like you were going to grow a vegetable or flower garden. Till the space up well to make sure that the soil is broken up and is loose. Decide what kinds of tea that you would like to plant. It would be helpful to visit a local nursery that sells plants at this point. You will need to find out what kind of tea plants wil grow well in the region that you live in.
After you have decided on what type you want to grow, purchase them and then take them home and plant them as soon as possible. Dig a hole for each plant. Make sure the holes you dig are large enough for the plant's roots to fit into it without bending the roots. Give your plants plenty of water and make sure to weed them periodically.
When the leaves of the plants are mature, you can harvest them. Make sure to get enough stem with the leaves. Some leaves, like the black tea variety, can be air dried in a dry, cool place in your home. Simply tie the stems together with a piece of string and hang them upside down. When they are completely dried, you can crush them and then store them in an airtight container.
Then, to use the leaves to make tea, you can use a tea strainer or a tea ball. Simply place a couple of teaspoons full of the dried tea, (more or less, depending on how weak or strong of a taste you like), into the strainer and place it in a cup full of boiling water. Let the tea steep for a couple of minutes. Again, this will depend on how weak or strong of a taste that you like for your tea to have. Remove the tea ball or tea strainer from the cup of water and your tea is ready to drink if you like it plain. Or, you may choose to add sugar, an artificial sweetener, milk, cream, or the juice from a fresh lemon to the cup of tea. Honey is another sweetener that is good to use in tea. It's natural goodness adds a sweetness that tastes smooth and delicious. How you drink your tea is, of course, completely up to you. Be sure to store the leftover tea leaves in an airtight container so it will stay fresh cup after cup.
You can make an entire pot of tea by bringing a pot full of water to a boil. Be sure to start out with cool water for a better pot. Then, using a non-metallic tea pot, measure out a couple of tablespoons of the dried tea leaves and place them inside. Then, fill the pot with boiling water and let it steep several minutes. Taste it to see if it is the strength that you prefer. If not, you may let it steep for a longer time. Strain the tea using a piece of cheese cloth and enjoy.
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