The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1874-01-09
Tea Culture in Georgia.

AS we happened to know that our eli
mate suits the tea plant, we commend
the following letter to the Rural New
Yorker to the attention of our readers
was very much gratifed on hearing
that you were pleased with the samples
of tea sent you. AS you requested
me to write to you again, have
thought that an account of our expert
ence in tea culture might be interesting
to you, and to some of your readers, as
several. persons, since reading your no.
tice of my tea, have sent to me for seed,
and inquired as to how the plant was
cultivated.
When the United States government,
through the agency of Mr.. Fortune, in
troduced the Chinese tea plant (THeG
Bohea) into this country, and distrib-
uted them by the aid of it's Senators
into various sections of the land, my
father had fifty plants sent to him.
They arrived in good order, growing in
genuine Chinese soil, and were from
three to four inches-high. We put
them at once in larger pots, with fresh,
rien soil around them, but were very
careful not to disturb the ball of earth
which surrounded their roots. During
the first summer, they were kept in a
partial shade and watered freely when
ever necessary. They grew off h. uti-
! fully, and by the next winter were from
| eighteen TO twenty-four inches high,
and looked very healthy In the month
of January we planted them out in our
vegetable garden, five feet apart each
way. They grew remarkably well, not
one dying, and stood both the cold OF
winter, and the heat of summer as
well as our native plants. When three
years old, we made our first gathering
of leaves. We had the directions Mr..
Fortune gave, for the preparation OF
tea, and we were particular in follow
ing them closely. OF course we had
none of the conveniences which are
used in China, but we tried to initiate
them as nearly as possible. We plucked
the leaves in the afternoon and
spread them out upon a table until
next morning. We then rubbed them
| in our hands, and dried them in com
mon Dutch oven, stirring all the time
with the hand to prevent scorching the
leaves. Each turn was dried in five
minutes, and then taken out and rolled
again. This process of rolling and dry.
ing was continued until they appeared
perfectly dry. It was then put in glass
jars and kept well secured from the air
In about three months time we bega1
using it, and were delighted with oul
success. OF course all our friends mus
have drawing and each one pro
nounced it most excellent. Since tina
time we have made our own tea every
spring, and we consider it so far supe
rior to the imported tea, that we FIND
no pleasure in drinking the latter.
We made quite mistake in placing
our, tea plants five feet apart, for the.
have grown so large that it is impossi
bic to walk between them, and they ar
about ten feet high. These bushes pro
duce seed every season in great album
dance. From these seeds we now hay
between fifteen and twenty Thousand
plants of various sizes, and we continu
to plant the seeds ont every fall, a
soon as they ripen. Many of them fal
to the ground, and come up thickl.
; under the parent tree. We have quit
a grove set out, ten feet apart, and iron
these we are now collecting the most O
our leaves.
The climate in this latitude suit
them perfectly, and there is no NOR
trouble in cultivating them than ther
is with the apple or peach. When
plantation is once established it lasts
life time, and after the bushes are thre
years old, they require only the weed
to be kept out of them for they shad
around their roots SO perfectly as
kill out the grass. If our governmer
would again become interested IN mai
4 ing tea one of our staple productions
we would, in a few years, be quite II
. dependent of Chinese production.
I Mrs. r. I. ScREvEN.
Mcintosh, Liberty Co., Georgia.
Tim FrppCr on STrNYJcFTT ON Flour