Rooibos Botany Aspalathus linearis is a perennial shrub that will only grow in one place on Earth: the Cedarburg Mountains above the Cape of Good Hope, South Africa.

This is a semi-arid region with sparse winter rains and intensely hot summers. Climate and topography closely resemble the high plateaus of the American southwest.

Rooibos performs an important role in this ecosystem. It belongs to a family of plants, the legumes, that increases soil fertility through partnerships with beneficial microbes on their roots. These same roots are capable of finding deep water sources to stay healthy during the long dry season.

Rooibos is an ideal sustainable crop for this region: it is native, it requires no costly irrigation or fertilizers, and it has a long tradition of use by the local inhabitants. Rooibos tea is harvested during the summer (Southern Hemisphere). Most of the tea is picked manually. The tea is then bruised and cut using tobacco cutting machines. At this stage, Rooibos is still green. Fermentation is essential in order to enhance the flavor of the tea. Rooibos is fermented in mounds and then spread out to dry in the sunlight. Fermentation turns the tea red. Rooibos' nick name "red bush"does not apply to a live plant since it is green until it is fermented. In the final process Rooibos is sterilized by steam, dried in commercial dryers, sifted and packaged.

The Health Benefits of Rooibos... With its many positive attributes, Rooibos tea is a great choice of drink for health conscious people. Rooibos tea contains no caffeine, colors, additives or preservatives, making it a natural beverage. According to studies conducted in South Africa and Japan Rooibos has been shown to aid in health problems such as insomnia, irritability, headaches, nervous tension, and hypertension. Studies also show that this tea relieves anti- spasmodic agents, which can relieve stomach cramping and colic in infants.

In South Africa Rooibos has been used to treat allergies such as hay fever, asthma and eczema very effectively. It is also used to treat irritated skin. Rooibos is brewed and placed directly on infected areas. Rooibos contains anti - oxidants which can help slow the aging process and boost the immune system. Rooibos is a great thirst quencher and is an excellent beverage for active people, including children. This tea contains no oxalic acid, making it a good beverage for people prone to kidney stones. Rooibos contains the minerals, copper, iron and potassium, calcium, fluoride, zinc, manganese, alpha- hydroxy ( for healthy skin ) and magnesium ( for the nervous system ) are also components of this tea. In South Africa pregnant women and nursing mothers drink Rooibos because it contains no caffeine.

Nutrient Function in the Body per 200ml
Iron (Fe) Essential for transport of oxygen in the blood 0.07 mg
Potassium (K) Assists certain metabolic functions 7.12mg
Calcium (Ca) Necessary for strong teeth and bones 1.09mg
Copper (Cu) Assists certain metabolic processes 0.07mg
Zinc (Zn) Necessary for normal growth and development of healthy skin 0.04mg
Magnesium (Mg) Assists a healthy nervous system and other metabolic processes 1.57 mg
Fluoride (F) Necessary for strong teeth and bones 0.22 mg
Manganese (Mg) Assists metabolic processes and bone growth and development 0.04 mg
Sodium (Na) Necessary for fluid and acid -base balance 6.16 mg.

How to prepare your Rooibos Tea

Prepare Rooibos as you would any other loose tea, but the difference with this tea is, the longer you allow it to steep the more anti-oxidants are released into the tea.

Hot tea brewing method:

• Bring freshly drawn cold water to a near boil.
• Place 1 teaspoon of Rooibos for each cup into the teapot.
• Pour the hot water into the pot, cover and let steep for 2-4 minutes.
• Pour into your cup, add milk and sugar to taste.

Iced tea brewing method: (to make 1 liter/quart):

• Place 5 teaspoons of Rooibos into a teapot or heat resistant pitcher.
• Pour 1 1/4 cups of freshly boiled water over the Rooibos.
• Steep for 5 minutes. Fill a serving pitcher with 1/4 of cold water.
• Pour the Rooibos into the serving pitcher straining the leaves.
• Add ice and top-up with cold water. Garnish and sweeten to taste.

Rooibos Recipe

• South African fruit cooler 1 tsp. of Rooibos tea
• 1/2 fresh orange
• 1 tsp. - sugar- if needed
• 1 glass filled with ice
• Boil water
• Boiling water over Rooibos tea and steep 2- 5 min
• Pour tea into a glass filled with ice, squeeze 1/2 orange and stir.

ENJOY

Please note: It is not our intention to prescribe or make specific health claims for any of our products. Any attempt to diagnose and treat an illness should come under the direction of your health care practitioner.

At Kellys Apothecary and Tisanes we endeavour to provide our clients with the best quality teas and herbs, we search our organic, wildcrafted or protected species. Along with providing the best quality herbs and teas we also grow and harvest a selection of our herbs.

Due to the cost of providing organic, natural, protected and wildcrafted herbs and teas, we are unable to give a wholesale price of our herbs and teas, but we will offer bulk purchase discounts.

Bulk Discounts: Purchase: 2-5 kilos, 10% discount Purchase: 6-15 kilos, 20% discount Purchase: 15 plus kilos, 30% discount

Some of our herbal blends are not listed on our website so please contact Judy Kelly, CHT for more information.