CAMELLIA BLOSSOM TEA
CAMELLIA BLOSSOM TEA
These blossoms produce one of the healthiest teas in the world, a flower tea that is the closest herbal tea to actual tea. Camellia Blossoms are well known for their high polyphenolic content, providing anti-inflammatory, antiarthritic, antibacterial, antiangiogenic, antioxidative, antiviral, neuroprotective and cholesterol-lowering effects. The saponins in Camellia Blossoms are traditionally used for their immunotoxin affects.
Bryn Hill is the only farm in Australia producing the rare Camellia Blossoms, sustainably grown on our tea plantation in Tropical North Queensland. |
An infusion of tea flowers is unlike the taste of any tea. Camellia Blossom tea is pale yellow with a mellow, fruity taste and subtle sweetness. It is delicious on its own or ideal for blending with other green or white teas, or herbs. A perfect refresher at any time of the day-hot or iced.
Camellia Blossoms are an ideal alternative to tea leaves for caffeine sensitive tea lovers as they contain only very low traces of caffeine (one half of one percent by weight). |
Due to the popularity of tea these days, it is possible to locate just about any type of tea at a supermarket or specialist tea shop-from inexpensive black teas to organic, single origin, loose leaf white teas and everything in between.
Wouldn't it be great if you could make your own tea? Well, you definitely can. Along with a growing appreciation for high quality, artisan tea is an enthusiasm for local produce, especially do-it-yourself gardening and food production. In many areas of Australia, and indeed the world, it is possible to grow your own tea plants, harvest the leaves and/ or flowers, and create your own tea from your back garden. |
Although Camellia sinensis is predominantly grown for tea, it is actually an amazingly versatile plant. The beautiful fragrant, white flowers from Camellia sinensis are abundant throughout Autumn and early Winter and, when picked and dried, produce a delicious and healthy flower tea. This tea is quite rare, and is only produced by Bryn Hill in small quantities each year since is is hand harvested.
Also, an incredibly healthy cooking and cosmetic oil (tea seed oil, not tea tree oil!) can be produced from the seeds of the Camellia sinensis plant. This oil has been used for centuries in many parts of Asia, particularly in Southern China for cooking. Camellia sinensis plants can also be planted to form great hedges, which can be grown to any height and look very attractive with their smooth, evergreen leaves and pretty flowers. Tea plants also grow well in large pots or containers, but still require their soil acidic, well mulched and very well drained. |
During Autumn and early Winter, Bryn Hill harvests a small quantity of tea seeds for sale to gardeners and nurseries who would like to grow tea plants from seed.
The propagation of tea plants from seeds is not complicated. Only freshly harvested seeds should be used as older seeds lose their moisture, and therefore their viability, the longer they are stored. To ensure optimum freshness, tea seeds are only available from Bryn Hill between March and June each year. The tea seeds produced at Bryn Hill are Camellia sinensis var. assamica, the variety used to produce black tea in Tropical North Queensland, Australia, since 1886. Tea seeds can also be pressed to make an incredibly healthy oil, used for centuries in Southern China and other parts of Asia for cooking and in beauty products. |
Bryn Hill's Camellia Blossom Honey is harvested from our tea plantation in Topaz, Tropical North Queensland, Australia. Camellia Blossoms, full of healthy nectar and pollen, are produced by our tea plants throughout late Autumn, just before the plants go into hibernation for the winter. Camellia Blossom Honey is very rare.
Most tea plantations do not have bushes that grow tall enough to produce tea flowers as flowering is prevented during cultivation by harvesting the leaves, forcing the plant to constantly make more leaf buds for tea. Tea seeds can also be pressed to make an incredibly healthy oil, used for centuries in Southern China and other parts of Asia for cooking and in beauty products. |
The final stage of honey processing involves pasteurisation, where the honey is heated to about 70°C. Pasteurised honey lasts longer in its liquid state than unpasteurised honey, thereby appealing to the average retailer and consumer. Of course, this heating destroys important nutrients, enzymes, phytochemical and even flavours naturally present in honey.
Bryn Hill's Camellia Blossom Honey is cold pressed by hand, not spun by centrifuge. Our honey remains at the temperature it was in the hive, and is never pasteurised, thereby retaining an amazing amount of nutrients. |