Famous for our herdy mugs, we just had to do tea!

Herdy’s new forest garden tea is a high quality, single sourced black tea suitable for drinking at any time of the day. Amber gold in colour, its flavour is aromatic, refreshing and sweet.

We wanted to provide the best beverage experience at the same time as trying to find the best way of maintaining the farmed landscape in tea growing regions. Our journey took us to the legendary tea growing country of Sri Lanka, where tea plantations cover many of the hillsides.

After much exploring and discussions with experts we were impressed with the Forest Garden system. The Forest Garden system aims to create a tree-dominated landscape that is similar to the natural ecosystem of the area. This provides a viable habitat for local species of flora and fauna, many of which cannot survive in land under conventional tea production.

The tea crop is planted in between a variety of tall and medium sized trees. The trees provide shade and help retain moisture, and allow the build-up of leaf hummus in the soil, reducing the chance of erosion. Contour drains and rock terraces are also used to ensure that nutrient-rich top soil is not lost.

The plantation hillside is never entirely stripped of its vegetation. Instead, tea plants are replaced by hand, leaving the intermixed trees and grasses. Many of the trees and grasses are leguminous and fix nitrogen in the soil reducing the need for additional fertilisers. New tea plants are raised in the plantations’ own nurseries and are planted with organic compost and plant fibre to help provide soil nutrition and conserve moisture.

To achieve Forest Garden Product certification, growers must demonstrate that they are meeting EU Organic production standards and growing in a way that is agriculturally sustainable, conserves biodiversity and meets fair trade social principles.

Phew! Now put the kettle on, put your feet up and enjoy a cuppa.

INGREDIENTS: 100% Forest Garden Product Certified black tea in 50 recyclable, unbleached paper bags, sealed for freshness in a foil pouch.