Uses for Used Loose Leaf Tea
Nothing beats the freshness of loose leaf tea. However, after brewing leaves you may ask yourself “What can I do with these leaves?” Even if this is not what you ask yourself read how you can reuse and recycle this naturally versatile plant.
First and Foremost- Good to the last drop!!!
- Good quality loose leaf can be re-infused several times Steep your tea and then pour ALL of the liquor off the leaves into your cup or serving pot. This practice allows you to then re-infuse your leaf with more hot water over and over again. Brewing tea in this way is also the trick to keeping your green teas from turning bitter or your black teas from becoming burnt tasting.
Uses for Cleaning:
- Spread well drained used leaves on hard surface floors and then simply sweep clean. This will get thick grim off your floors, leaving them like new!
- Place used leaves in a tightly tied clean rag and use to polish your wood furniture. Watch it shine like never before!
- Use to clean frying and sauté pans. Using tea leaves will help eliminate orders and keep your hands soft at the same time!
- Clean streaky mirrors. Make sure (of course) that your tea leaves are cool and use to clean glass. Then wipe the mirror with a soft cloth for finishing touches.
Prevent Rust:
- The tannin contained in green tea reacts with irons and forms a film on the surface. By wiping iron kettles or iron pans with used tea leaves the worry of rust is gone!
Gardening:
- Adding leaves at the base of your roses helps with pesky pests! This acid loving plant will bloom even longer with a nice big pile of used leaves worked into the soil around them. Both my grandmother and father have used this method and it really works!
Personal Hygiene:
- Do you have foot odor? Tea’s anti-bacterial affects makes it a perfect choice for your shoes. Dry leaves by roasting in a pan, then wrap them in a piece of gauze to tuck into an old clean sock. Place the very dry leaves in your shoe closet or right into gym shoes for extra smelly relief.