Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-07-07
TEA FROM WILD PLANTS
FRAGRANT BEVERAGES MADE
FROM AMERICAN HERBS.
Hemlock Leaves and Arbor Vitae Make
. Strong and Palatahls
Drink

Picnickers and those who go a-campsnG
these summer days and forget to take their
tea caddies along may find In the woods
many a substitute for the fragrant Bohea
wherewfth to brew a steaming cup to add
cheer to a cold luncheon. Indeed, 1t has
not been so very long since Chinese tea was
luxury not easily afforded In the remoter
rural Nistricts of our country and recourse
was had habituaiiy to native herbs or
shrubs Of the forest for makeshfts. Then.
too. In the stormy days preceding the
| American revolution. when the colonists
werc In turmoil over tine stamp taxes levied
by the mother country. IT was considered
unpatriotic TO drink tea that had paid trib-
ute to the government and the so-caIled
liberty tea was the popular drink.
This no doubt was made from variety
OF herbs, but certainly frosn that four
leayed ioosestrife. a plant that Is abundant
In almost every woodland. 1t grows a foot
or two high and may be recognized by its
| simple upright stem. upon which the leaves
are set In whorls of four or sometimes
five, the yellow star-iike flowers being pro-
duced In June on Long, slender stalks from
near the base of the leaves
New Jersey "Tea"
During the revolution the native leaves
| most extensively used for tea were probably
those of the so-called New Jersey tea-a low
bush that grows everywhere I'm dry wood
lands and bears in June and July a pro-
fusion of delicate white bloom. An infusion
| OF the leaves boils a clear amber color and
In looks Is as attractive real tea; but the
taste, though astrtngent is by no means
lively. Some effort has been made within
comparatively recent years to revive the
use OF this plant as a substitute for tea on
4 commercial scale. The leaves are said ia
contain nearly 10 per cent of tannin Hem
leaves NJ ha
have also played a part in the making of
rustic tea. The arbor vitae Is a tree that
| grows Wild in great abundance in northern
woods. and the old-time Maine lumbermen
used frequently to resort to its leaves for
tea when other heritage failed them for the
purpose 1t was thought to be especially
nVlsorating. as witness the ancient couplet.
| "a quart of arbor vitae
10 make him strong and mighty
The Checkerberry.
The little plant whose scarlet berries
ABOUT the size OF peas. are sold under the
name or teaberries by fruit vendors on
our city streets is another herb which
| was long ago turned to use for tea.
! whence the common name by which we
know 1t in Pennsylvania New England.
ers. for some unknown reason. call il
checkerberry. The foliage is very aro-
| matte. and people who are fond of a dash
or spicneSs in their drink have some
| t1mes employed its flavor in real tea. 1t
Is near of kin and similar in taste to the
creeping snowberry. a small delicate vine
abundant in great boys and mossy woods
| OF the north and of the Allegheny region
| and which is also approved by mountain
palates as a good stock for tea
| Thoreau. In THE Maine Woods" tells of
MS lndian guide bringing it into camp one
night and recommending it the best of
| all plants for tea. 1T had slight check
| erberry flavor he records and we both
agreed that it was really better than the
| black tea we had bought. We thought it
a good discovery and that it might well be
! known as tea plant than the snowberry
Is the Labrador tea. or Ledum IatifeIium
of botanists. which grows in cold bogs and
mountain woods from Pennsylvania north
ward The leaves. which emit a slight but
| not unpleasant fragrance when bruised. are
tough and leathery. and densely clothed
| STEPPED they give a wild gamy sort of taste
10 hot water, and the resultant drink sug-
Sests a poor grade of black tea
The Sweet Fern.
Sweet fern. which is so abundant a
| growth everywhere on sterile hills and by
mountain roadsides. is another famous tea
, plant. being often known as mountain tea.
During the war of the rebellion its use
for tea was particularly prevalent in the
southern states. and many a confederate
lady who had been reared I'm luxury vas
reduced to drinking this poor substitute
! for her Oolong or fiowery Pekoe. The TO-
mage and flowers of all the goldenrods are
endued with astringent principle and
are moderate ly stimulant, SO that their
suitability for the manufacture of a domes-
| tic tea was recognized by American coun-
| try folk as long ago as the days when
| George III was king over them
One species, the fragrant leaved golden
ROD, known sometimes as Blue Mountain
| tea, possesses. in addition the flavor of
| licorfce. Drunk piping hot in the wilder
| ness II makes pleasant feature i'm a camp
| ers limited bill of fare. This especial va
| riety of goloenrod begins to bloom quite
! early In the summer, and is easy of recog-
| milton even by the non-botanical because
| of the licorice-iike perfume which the shiny
leaves give off when rubbed 1t is a very
| common species in the pine barrens of New
Jersey.
| Most. If not all. of these plants are more
| or less astringent, and contain considerable
| fannie acid in their make-up-qualities
| which go far to make real tea the popular
beverage that it is. A great deal of the
| palatability of such rustic teas depends
| upon their being served quite hot When
lukewarm they usually lose their life and
| become more or less mawkish.