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Correa alba - Andrews.

Cape Barren Tea

Author	Andrews.	Botanical references	154, 200
Family	Rutaceae	Genus	Correa
Synonyms
Known Hazards	None known
Range	Australia - New South Wales, Tasmania.
Habitat	Sandy and rocky habitats by the coast[154, 157, 200].
Edibility Rating	1 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	0 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen Shrub growing to 1.5m by 1.5m.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. The plant prefers acid and neutral soils and can grow in very acid and saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Habitats

Woodland Garden; Sunny Edge; South Wall By; West Wall By;

Edible Uses

Edible Uses: Tea.

The leaves can be used as a tea substitute[2, 177, 183]. They are pleasantly aromatic with a sweetish flavour[144, 154].

Medicinal Uses

None known

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Requires a freely draining lime-free peaty soil or a sandy soil rich in organic matter and a sunny position[1, 200]. Another report says that plants do best in a well-drained, rather poor soil with some limestone[260]. Plants are very resistant to salt spray[157]. This species is hardy to at least -7°c in Australian gardens[157], though this cannot be translated directly to British gardens due to our cooler summers and longer, colder and wetter winters. Plants can tolerate at least short-lived frosts down to about -5°c in Britain[200] and they can be grown on a sunny wall in the milder parts of the country[1, 166]. In S. Cornwall they succeed as free-growing shrubs[1].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a greenhouse. Fresh seed usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 20°c[164]. Stored seed can be difficult to germinate, leaching with water can help, or perhaps a short burst of fire will initiate germination[260]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a shaded frame[200]. Cuttings are generally quite easy to root[260].

Links

This plant is also mentioned in the following PFAF articles: Trees and Shrubs for Shelterbelts: B-C.

Permaculture.info Details of this plant in the Permaculture.info project, a community plant and permaculture database.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[144] Cribb. A. B. and J. W. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana 1976 ISBN 0-00-634436-4
A very good pocket guide.

[154] Ewart. A. J. Flora of Victoria. 0
A flora of eastern Australia, it is rather short on information that is useful to the plant project.

[157] Wrigley. J. W. and Fagg. M. Australian Native Plants. Collins. (Australia) 1988 ISBN 0-7322-0021-0
A lovely book, written in order to encourage Australian gardeners to grow their native plants. A little bit of information for the plant project.

[164] Bird. R. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 4. Thompson and Morgan. 1990
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. A good article on Yuccas, one on Sagebrush (Artemesia spp) and another on Chaerophyllum bulbosum.

[166] Taylor. J. The Milder Garden. Dent 1990
A good book on plants that you didn't know could be grown outdoors in Britain.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[260] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Conservatory and Indoor Plants Volumes 1 & 2 Pan Books, London. 1998 ISBN 0-330-37376-5
Excellent photos of over 1,100 species and cultivars with habits and cultivation details plus a few plant uses. Many species are too tender for outdoors in Britain though there are many that can be grown outside.

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