Tea

USED tea bags or tea leaves can deter some pests from wreaking havoc on your prized plants. Tea leaves should be placed at the base of your plants and also the surrounding soil. Pests such as aphids, caterpillars, snails and slugs are said to be kept at bay.

Rose bushes love used tea leaves. Collect used tea leaves and then spread around the base of your rose bushes. They enrich the soil and your rose bushes will thank you by producing plentiful blooms.

Tea is undoubtedly Britain’s favourite brew and it has been clinically suggested that drinking tea rehydrates the body as much as water, with added benefits.

Tea contains disease fighting flavonoids, which are associated with protecting the body against heart disease, as well as some cancers.

It was thought that tea was a dehydrating drink, but in fact, this is not the case. It does prevent the body from absorbing iron efficiently from food, so it is best to avoid drinking it around mealtimes.

Black tea has zero calories; the addition of milk and sugar gives it calorific value. Having four cups of tea a day with milk can provide sufficient amounts of calcium, zinc, vitamins B1, B2 and B6, as well as folic acid, potassium and manganese.

Green tea comes from the same plant as black tea. Both teas are primarily the leaves from Camellia Sinesis; it is the processing that the leaves go through that create different teas. Black tea is made up of leaves which are fully oxidised, whereas with green tea, the leaves are lightly steamed before being dried. Both teas contain the same amount of flavonoids; green tea has the simple flavonoids called catechins, while black tea – because of the oxidation process – contains more complex flavonoids called theaflavins and thearubigins. Catechins, which are essentially antioxidants in green tea, have been shown to help protect eyes against glaucoma and other eye diseases. Here are some recipes that include tea as an ingredient.