第2270期:Grow Your Own Tea Plants Year-round(1)

People who grow their own food are familiar with planting tomatoes, peppers, squash, herbs, berries and other common fruits and vegetables.
种植自己食物的人熟悉种植西红柿、辣椒、南瓜、草药、浆果和其他常见的水果和蔬菜。

However, they may not think of growing plants for drinks.
然而，他们可能不会想到种植用于饮料的植物。

Gardening expert Jessica Damiano recently wrote about plants you can grow to make tea. Damiano, who writes for the Associated Press, says that growing your own tea plants in the garden can provide enough leaves and flower buds to keep your tea pot filled year-round.
园艺专家杰西卡·达米亚诺最近写了一篇关于可以种植来制作茶的植物的文章。为美联社写作的达米亚诺说，在花园里种植自己的茶树可以提供足够的叶子和花蕾，让你的茶壶全年充满。

And the plant to grow, she says, is camellia sinensis (var. sinensis), also known as the “tea plant.”
她说，应该种植的植物是茶树（学名：山茶科茶属），也称为“茶树”。

These evergreen plants are easy to grow in any amount of sunlight, from deep shade to full sun. However, ideal growing conditions are part sun to light shade. They require well-draining soil with a slightly acidic pH.
这些常绿植物在任何阳光条件下都容易生长，从深阴到全日照。然而，理想的生长条件是部分阳光到轻微遮荫。它们需要排水良好的略酸性土壤。

Young plants will take about two years to produce enough leaves for tea. In five years, one plant should provide enough for an average tea drinker. If you need more tea, Damiano says to plant more camellia sinensis.
幼苗大约需要两年时间才能生产出足够的茶叶。五年后，一株植物应该能为普通的茶饮者提供足够的茶叶。如果你需要更多的茶，达米亚诺建议种植更多的茶树。

Camellia sinensis is called the “tea plant” because white, green, black, and oolong teas all come from this plant. Their differences come from harvesting practices and after-harvest treatments.
茶树被称为“茶树”是因为白茶、绿茶、红茶和乌龙茶都来自这种植物。它们的差异来自采摘方式和采摘后的处理。

For white tea, pick the flower buds before they fully open. Heat the buds in a pan over low heat, moving them often for about 10 minutes. Cool them and store in an airtight container.
制作白茶时，在花蕾完全打开之前采摘。用小火在锅中加热花蕾，经常翻动，大约10分钟。冷却并储存在密封容器中。

For green, black and oolong tea, pick two or three of the youngest leaves from each stem, along with the leaf bud from each stem tip. Do this every 10 to 12 days as new growth develops.
对于绿茶、红茶和乌龙茶，每根茎采摘两到三片最嫩的叶子，以及每根茎尖的叶芽。每10到12天进行一次采摘，以适应新生长。

Preparing green, oolong, or black tea all have different processes.
制作绿茶、乌龙茶或红茶都有不同的过程。

For making green tea, briefly steam leaves over boiling water. Then put the leaves on a clean towel and let them sit for five minutes. Roll up the leaves in the towel gently to remove extra water. Remove the leaves from the towel, separate them, and place them on a baking sheet.
制作绿茶时，将叶子在沸水上蒸一下。然后将叶子放在干净的毛巾上，静置五分钟。轻轻地将叶子卷在毛巾中以去除多余的水分。将叶子从毛巾中取出，分开并放在烤盘上。