Family: Fabaceae
Scientific name: Aspalathus linearis
Common name: Rooibos / Red bush
Origin: South Africa

Rooibos is a familiar red herbal tea from South Africa and is brewed from the needle-shaped leaves from this small shrub. The red colour of the tea does not come from the leaves, but actually from the fermentation process. When not fermented, the red colour does not appear and the resulting drink is green rooibos tea. Both types contain a very small amount of tannine compared to regular tea and thus makes rooibos tea suitable to drink before bed. In South Africa rooibos tea has been drunk since the 19th century, but was also known as a medicinal for thousands of years before. It was used for itch relief, exzeem and allergic reactions. Because of this it is also used in cosmetics products a lot. 
This species naturally occurs along the west coast and deals with dry hot summers and wet cool winters. So as a potplant it will do well in a sunny spot with occassional watering and with a cool, frost free winter. It can withstand a little frost for a while, but not for a whole winter. 

Sowing description: Scarify the small seeds with sandpaper and then soak in lukewarm water for 24 hours. Sow in a mix of sowing mix and sand (1:3) and only cover seeds very lightly with soil. Keep the soil continously moist and place container in a light place with a day temperature around 25 degrees Celcius and night temperature of 15 - 20 degrees.

Sowing time: Whole year
Difficulty: Intermediate
Minimum temperature: -5 degrees Celsius