Camellia sinensis - the tea tree or plant (edible)

Camellia Sinensis, also called tea tree, tea plant or tea shrub, is part of the Camellia family with evergreen foliage (Evergreen). The leaves are glossy green with jagged edges. Flowering is usually prevented during cultivation by harvesting the leaves, forcing the plant to constantly produce more buds.

The leaves, buds and fruits are used for the preparation of tea, but also as a component in some medicinal preparations. The developing fruit has a green skin (which turns brown when ripe) and a single round of seeds. The seeds can also be used to obtain tea tree oil.
The different teas made from the Camellia plant have a wide range of medicinal properties and can be consumed either as a hot or cold drink.

Cold resistance: up to -15°C

If you decide to plant Camellia sinensis outside, it is necessary to choose a location away from wind/blizzard/air currents and to protect the plant in the first years.

The tea tree is successfully cultivated in outdoor plantations in areas with temperatures that do not frequently drop below - 10°C, or in protected areas / cold greenhouses. Although technically it lasts up to -15 °C, long-term exposure to such temperatures can cause significant damage to the plant.

The plants available at this moment in the horticultural trade are generally descendants with a significantly improved resistance to cold - currently, there are plantations even in mountainous areas, at very high altitudes, where the weather is not very friendly. Such plantations were established with the aim of obtaining plants with certain characteristics - for example, due to the low temperatures the plants grow more difficult, but the caffeine content is higher and more specialties of black tea can be obtained.

Height with pots included: approx. 20-30 cm
Pot diameter: 10-12 cm
See the full care guide on the blog.