Homesteading - Yaupon Tea
For people that live in the Southern States yaupon trees are a big pain on fence lines and an over all a nuisance on properties. Yaupon trees are a Holly plant that produces a natural caffeine that has been used for making tea for thousands of years by natives. When we moved onto our property I was clearing huge amounts of this plant from all over the property to build pens and fences for livestock. The goats really seemed to like eating it and now I know why. Being a Holly plant at first we were concerned because many Holly plants are not good for consumption and many goat sites will list Holly as toxic for goats except the Yaupon, Ilex vomitoria. While doing research for our livestock I also learned that Yaupon is the only natural caffeine in the United States and can be used for making tea.
They start as a small individual tree but before to long they become a huge mess growing in all directions.
The new smaller ones will start to grow all around the outside of the larger ones creating a large mass and tight shrubs all tangled together. In the spring it produces small white flowers and then red berries all over. They actually did this right before Christmas this year if that tells you anything about how the weather has been acting.
The amount of caffeine and antioxidants is similar to that produced by green tea. Yaupon tea can be steeped or brewed like coffee. It is lower in caffeine then coffee but higher in theobromine which is a stimulant also found in dark chocolate producing a cleaner more focused buzz and also lowering blood pressure along with acting like an anti inflammatory. There are many other health claims made about Yaupon tea and overall it has a smooth flavor that is easy to enjoy. It seems each batch can produce a different flavor depending on the age of the leaves along with how long you roast them and also on what temperature you use. It can produce a clean green tea style flavor and sometimes a nutty flavor. We have not tried the many different way to produce the tea yet but the fastest and easiest is to roast the leaves in the oven for six to ten minutes and toss them into a coffee machine. As fast as the Yaupon grows it produces an almost unlimited local resource for use right here in our backyard.
Many companies are starting to produce Yaupon tea now and it seems to be becoming the new crazy. You may have even had it and not known it. Next time your in the store take a look and see if you can't locate a container of Yaupon tea on the shelves.
References for Yaupon tea. https://www.naturalnews.com/033646_yaupon_holly_antioxidants.html
https://www.organicfacts.net/yaupon-tea.html
http://www.nutritionaloutlook.com/sports-energy/yaupon-only-caffeine-source-native-us-has-potential-explode
https://www.thinking-drinking.com/blog/yaupon-historic-tea-reborn
Sounds like this tree would make a good perimeter plant the way it grows. I read an amazing article by @mountainjewel about hedges and she mentions the art of weaving a perimeter hedge. The photos were incredible and the tangle of the yaupon make me believe it would be well suited to weaving. Although, that would take an amazing amount of dedication.
The tea sounds amazing and like a nice alternative to coffee. I like the idea of
I can't lie though, the idea of accidentally consuming the wrong Holly plant is a little nerve wracking. 😝 Great article. -Aimee
It will make a great perimeter hedge but it will quickly outgrow the area producing more and more thick brush around the original one creating a heavy dense undergrowth and you can't even move threw. They are a major pain on fence lines.
Hmmm... That does sound like a major pain. I wondering how commercial growers manage the quick and tangled reproduction. -Aimee
Any chance you could get some close up photos of the leaves and stems for identification purposes? I have never heard of Yaupon tree. I want to add this to my private collection of plant identification because from your post, there should be some in Metro Atlanta, lol.
I have probably seen them a hundred times and just never thought about what it was so I never took the time to find out.
They are still smaller leaves growing so they look a little more ruff on the edges. Seasons are so off this year with full bloom in the winter and cooler temps in spring. Here is a picture off google that is when they are adult plants in berry blossom.
Look up Ilex vomitoria and maybe you can find some better close up images to make sure you have the correct holly plant since other types of holly you do not want to consume. Hope this helps. Not sure when they will start to flower again with the seasons and temps the way they have been.
The weather has been so strange this year. It is almost May and it is still way too cool. I was very late getting my tomatoes planted this year but they have yet to sprout because it is still getting too cool at night.
I live south of Atlanta. This time of the year we normally are using the attic fans to cool the house and only occasionally have to turn the air on. But it is staying too cool to use the attic fans except on about 3 days it went about mid 70's. Its got everything messed up, including allergies!
My brother love the tea. We don't have any growing too close to us, that we know of. But when we go down into Oklahoma, which is pretty frequently, we sometimes stop to grab some on a roadside for him to take home and enjoy. I've never tried it, but I guess I'll have to soon. ☺
I wonder if something similar exists here in Oz
I would be interested to know if you find out. Natural local caffeine was all it took for me since I am more of a tea drinker then coffee anyways.