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Growing tea in America
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The tea plant (Camellia Sinensis) is finicky. It requires special growing conditions to produce tea worth drinking. They are:
• Tropical or subtropical climate
• Humidity
• Heat
• Rain
• Sandy soil
In addition to the climate conditions, producing good tea that is marketable requires inexpensive labor because of the sheer amount of time and care that goes into the process. It is no small wonder that American entrepreneurs and farmers have found it difficult, if not completely unsustainable, to produce marketable tea. Thus far, the only place that has been found to suit tea is the Charleston Tea Plantation on Wadmalaw Island in South Carolina. In 1960, tea plants were salvaged from the abandoned Pinehurst Tea Company in Summerville and moved to the current location on Wadmalaw Island.
In 2003, the Charleston Tea Plantation was purchased at auction by Bigelow. Bigelow offers tours of the grounds, which include 127 acres of tea plants as well as a tea factory. Bigelow sells tea from the Charleston plantation under the American Classic Tea brand.
The most recent tea growing endeavor is taking place in Skagit Valley. Richard Sakuma of Sakuma Farms began growing tea about 11 years ago and has experienced limited success in producing drinkable tea. At the Northwest Tea Festival, I tried a white tea from Sakuma Farms, and was disappointed both by the taste and the expense.
Local tea expert and co-owner of The Mad Hat Tea Company, Tobin Ropes, recently visited Sakuma Farms. He has made an 11 minute film on the farm, highlighting Richard and the challenges of producing tea in America. Make a visit to the Mad Hat Tea Company in downtown Tacoma for more information on this short but informative film. Don’t forget to buy a cup of tea.
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