UK's only tea garden taking off at home and overseas
Tregothnan Estate is seeing its efforts to grow tea in an unexpected place pay off, as Britain's only tea plantation makes inroads in the UK and abroad. The idea to grow tea was born when the estate manager noticed a flower, originally from north India, bloom earlier in the special microclimate of the farm than in India. Since 2005, Tregothnan Estate expanded tea plantations by 6,000 bushes annually. This year's tea harvest is expected to come in at about 10 tons and produce 35 distinct varieties. The company enjoys a growing following at home, as Brits continue to transition from traditional "builder's tea" to herbal, green and specialty teas. More recently, these exclusive British teas caught the eye of Chinese tea connoisseurs and the company now plans to open a teashop in Shanghai by November, followed by a chain of teahouses in the UK.