New Jersey Tea

Scientific Name: Ceanothus americanus L.

New Jersey Tea

General Information
Usda Symbol	CEAM
Group	Dicot
Life Cycle	Perennial
Growth Habits	ShrubSubshrub,
Native Locations	CEAM

Plant Guide

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.

Status

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status (e.g. threatened or endangered species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

Description

General: Buckthorn Family (Rhamnaceae), Use soil moisture sensors to measure the soil moisture of New Jersey Tea., 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, @ PLANTS Distribution: For current distribution, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Web site, 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. Cultivars, Improved, and Selected Materials (and area of origin) These materials are readily available from commercial plant sources. Contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly Soil Conservation Service) office for more information. Look in the phone book under ”United States Government.” The Natural Resources Conservation Service will be listed under the subheading “Department of Agriculture.”

Fact Sheet

Uses

Wildlife: Rabbit, elk and deer browse New Jersey tea and turkey and quail eat the fruit. The small flowers attract numerous insects, especially bees, wasps, flies, and beetles. Butterflies and moths visit the flowers occasionally. These insects collect nectar from the flowers, although bees may also collect pollen. The caterpillars of the butterfly Celestina neglecta (summer azure) and the skipper Erynnis martialis (Mottled Duskywing) feed on the flowers, flower buds, and fruit of a variety of small woody shrubs including New Jersey tea. Ethnobotanical: Tribes of the Missouri River region used the leaves for tea and the roots for fuel on hunting trips. Tribes of the Great Lakes Bioregion ascribed great power to its treatment of bowel troubles. Although New Jersey tea was never listed in the U.S. Pharmacopeia, it was used by some physicians. New Jersey tea is a strong astringent (8 percent tannins) and contains an alkaloid that is mildly hypotensive. The leaves contain the flavonols afzelin, quercitrin, and rutin. It was used by colonists during the Revolutionary War as a substitute for tea even though the leaves contained no caffeine. Recently it was discovered that the roots contain a blood-clotting agent. Landscaping: New Jersey tea is a pretty shrub that can be cultivated for its fragrant white flower clusters and leaves for tea. Horticulturists have stated that it should be grown more as an ornamental plant especially in droughty sites.

Status

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status (e.g., threatened or endangered species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

Description and Adaptation

Adaptation

Adaptation

New Jersey tea distribution from USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database, General: Buckthorn Family (Rhamnaceae), This shrubby, upright, deciduous, native perennial grows to approximately 3 feet in height, It will tiller at the base, sending up multiple stems, Its stems are light green and covered with fine white hairs which become woody with age in the absence of fire or browsing by wildlife, Leaves are alternate and broadly oblong-ovate, up to 3 inches long and 2 inches wide, The underside of the leaf is light green and covered with fine white hairs, Use soil moisture sensors to measure the soil moisture of New Jersey Tea., The leaf margins are smooth to finely serrate, and slightly ciliate, The simple leaves have short petioles and three conspicuous palmate veins, From the axils of the upper leaves emerge long stalked clusters of numerous white flowers, These clusters of flowers are elongated and rounded, Each individual flower consists of a long slender tube terminated in five folded sepals, When the calyx opens five hatchet shaped petals with slender bases spread outward, while a large pistil and five stamens, with dark gray anthers emerge from the flower’s center, The flowers have a pleasant fragrance and bloom for about a month during early summer, Later, three small (1/4 inch)