This long wet winter has been great for the tea.  It just loves misty wet weather.  The most healthy and well-established plants have been growing fast and strong.  I’ve collected branches several times to make cuttings.  Community folks Heidi and Mary came by with her kids to get tea cuttings to start their own tea.  After that, it was time to prune all the plants even further down.  Experienced tea growers taught us that when the plants are young, they should be pruned down to encourage a strong root base and lots of branches, which should make for a thick full hedge later on.  Here’s how the field looks: