Ceanothus americanus New Jersey Tea Seed and Plants
(se-a-NO-thus  a-MER-i-kan-us)

Easyliving Native Perennial Wildflowers
Native Wild Flower Seed for Home Landscaping & Prairie Restorations

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For other flowers visit the wildflower seed list or potted plant list, to order copy the orderform or email questions, comments, and orders for New Jersey Tea to john@easywildflowers.com  
      Ceanothus americanus New Jersey Tea potted plants are $5.00 each plus UPS shipping.
Shipping costs on New Jersey Tea plants are determined by your zip code and the weight of your order.  Please email us (include your address) for availability & shipping cost on potted plants.  
We accept payment by check or money order and through PayPal
Seed packets are available for Ceanothus americanus New Jersey Tea 

Ceanothus americanus, New Jersey Tea is an attractive small rounded woody shrub and is sometimes called Snowball because of its small plumes of fluffy white flowers that bloom in early to mid-summer. Its versatile showy flowers are attractive in the formal perennial flower bed and the prairie meadow.   New Jersey Tea grows best in well-drained average garden soil with full sun or partial shade but will tolerate dry, harsh conditions.  It is a larval food source for the mottled Dusky-wing, and Spring Azure Butterfly and is a nice addition to the butterfly garden. 

Leaves of New Jersey Tea plants makes excellent tea, and were used as a substitute for black tea during the American Revolution. Prepare the thoroughly dried leaves as you would oriental tea. The taste and color is similar. 

Native Ceanothus americanus New Jersey Tea Seed can be planted outside in the fall/winter for early spring germination.

Uses

Ethnobotanic: Tribes of the Missouri River region used the leaves for tea and burned the roots for fuel on buffalo hunting trips when fuel wood was scarce.  The roots of New Jersey tea were used by the Chippewa for pulmonary troubles and for constipation coupled with shortness of breath and bloating.  The Cherokee held the root tea on an aching tooth to ease the pain and consumed hot root tea for bowel troubles.

Description

General: Buckthorn Family (Rhamnaceae).  New Jersey tea is a native shrub ranging from 2-10 dm tall.  The leaves are broadly oblong-ovate, 5-10 cm long by 2.5-6 cm wide.  The leaves are wedge-shaped, tapering to a point at the base with a blunt tip.  New Jersey tea has a branched, racemose inflorescence (1-4 cm long) with flowers maturing from the bottom upwards.  The flower petals are dipper-shaped, 1-1.5 mm long, and white colored.

 Habitat: New Jersey tea is usually found in the sandy soils of open woodlands and prairies, and on rocky hillsides.

 Adaptation

New Jersey tea is fire-adapted.  It is typically top-killed by fire, but is a prolific re-sprouter from the surviving rootstock.  Where frequent fire occurs, New Jersey tea becomes a dominant species forming clusters among prairie grasses.

Establishment

New Jersey tea is a drought tolerant species that grows best in well-drained soils with full sun.  New Jersey tea is difficult to transplant, therefore propagation by seed is recommended.  Seeds should be planted outside in the late fall or early winter.  To improve seed germination for spring planting the seeds should be submerged in hot water (180 deg. F) and allowed to soak overnight as the water cools then planted outside.

 Pests and Potential Problems

New Jersey tea is susceptible to leaf spot and powdery mildew, however no serious insect or disease problems exist. 

New Jersey Tea is a native woody shrub occurring naturally in prairies, savannas, and limestone glades from Georgia to Texas, north to Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and Kansas.  Rhamnaceae (Buckthorn Family)

The map below shows areas where Ceanothus americanus New Jersey Tea plants grow wild but it can be planted and will grow over a much wider area than shown.  USDA plant hardiness zones 3 to 9.

Use the chart below for shipping charges on Ceanothus americanus New Jersey Tea flower seeds, to order copy the order form or email questions, comments & orders to john@easywildflowers.com
Please email for shipping cost on potted plants

The minimum seed order amount is $10, this can be a combination of different seeds.

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Easyliving Wildflowers
PO Box  522
Willow Springs,  Mo.  65793
phone-fax 417-469-2611 
We accept payment by check or money order and through PayPal

Ceanothus americanus New Jersey Tea Plant distribution map complements of USDA, NRCS. 2001. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.1
  (http://plants.usda.gov). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.