Albert's Greenhouse

Spring has sprung and fall has fell. Winter is here and it's colder than ... usual.
So this week, Albert's greenhouse reviews a vacation to China and Japan last fall.

Tea is the national drink of much of Asia, especially China. Each taxi driver in Shanghai seems to be equipped with a mug of hot tea. Tea is offered at the slightest excuse as a sign of hospitality. Even on our short trip, we shared tea with a shopkeeping in Kyoto, sat down to talk over tea with family in Niigata, bought bottled iced tea in a basement grocery store, and of course extracted a can of tea from a japanese vending machine.

The most famous tea is likely Chinese green tea, and the most famous Chinese green tea is probably Longjing or Dragonwell tea. It's grown near Hangzhou a few hours outside of Shanghai.

Tea leaves are the young terminal leaves of a special type of Camelia bush which are picked by hand, quickly roasted to stop oxidation ( if you don't quickly do this, you get oolong and then black tea rather than green ), and then dried and packaged. Tea comes in many types and grades depending on the age of leaves and when they are picked, as well as where they are grown.

Tea plants need moderate temperatures, and good drainage in order to make the best tea. They are often grown on terraces on mountainsides where they get the benefit of the morning mists. Just as each place you travel may have a local wine or liquor, and a local food specialty, each tea growing region has a famous local tea. The terraces to the right are near the city of Lianyungang, China.

Tea is supposedly full of antioxidants, caffeine and all sorts of good stuff. Personally, I drink it because it tastes good, warms me up on a cold day, and connects me with places like this.

You can sometimes get seeds of tea plants from The Banana Tree, but I've never been successful with germination. Maybe it's time to give it another try.