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Ericaceae
Labrador Tea
Rhododendron groenlandicum
Wilderness spirit, northern healing, boreal sweetness.
- Family
- Ericaceae
- Genus
- Rhododendron
- Native to
- Northern North America
- Bloom season
- Spring, Summer
- Type
- Evergreen shrub
- Height
- 30–90 cm (1–3 ft)
- Sunlight
- Full sun to part shade
- Soil
- Acidic, peat, wet
- Water
- High
- Hardiness
- 2–6
- Lifespan
- Long-lived perennial
Did you know
- Labrador tea is one of the few rhododendrons used as a beverage—the leaves were brewed by Indigenous peoples across the boreal forests of Canada, Alaska, and northern Europe long before any European tea reached North America.
- During the American Revolution, Boston colonists boycotting British tea brewed Labrador tea as a patriotic substitute—it has a delicate spicy-floral flavor like a cross between green tea and chamomile.
- The leaves have rust-colored fuzz on their undersides that helps trap heat and protect against wind in arctic and subarctic conditions—an evolutionary parka.
- Modern research has confirmed Labrador tea contains antioxidant compounds and small amounts of grayanotoxin—safe in moderation but potentially toxic in large quantities.
- Inuit and Cree peoples used dried Labrador tea leaves as the bedding of choice for newborn babies—the leaves repelled insects and gave a sweet pine-like fragrance to the cradle.
Color meanings
0
wilderness spirit
1
northern healing
2
boreal sweetness