Monday, September 7, 2009

Recycle Those Green Tea Leaves

By Cindy Anderson

For over 4,800 years, green tea has been used as a drink. Indeed, ancient civilizations learned about the benefits of consuming green tea long ago. Our own scientific community has now verified the healthy benefits of drinking green tea by teaching us exactly what ingredients in this beverage do what. But what you probably do not know is that your used green tea leaves can be used in many ways around the home.

After you are done using the tea leaves to make tea, put the leaves in a strainer and drain out all the water. Next lay them out on a blanket and set them in the sun for 2 days. You should flip them over after a day. What you will end up with is used and dried tea leaves. These leaves are very useful. Below is a list of things you can do with these incredible tea leaves.

Carpet Cleaning - With your hands, crush the dried leaves into little pieces and then sprinkle them on your carpet. These crushed leaves will absorb odors and fight bacteria. After several minutes vacuum them up.

Gardening - Tea leaves can be crushed and mixed in with the dirt at the base of your plants. They help irrigate the dirt allowing nutrients and water to flow to the roots. They also provide a source of nitrogen which will help them grow faster.

Deodorize - Crushed tea leaves are great for deodorizing practically anything. You can use them on almost any bad smelling area in your home such as where your pets lay or sleep. You can even put the crushed tea leaves in a bowel and put it in your refrigerator uncovered for a few days to clear out any bad smells. If you want to get a strong smell off your hands such as the smell of onions or garlic, rub your hands with the crushed tea leaves.

Pillows - Some people swear that green tea helps them sleep. It might be the aroma that does this. So try making a pillow from the dried tea leaves. Rumor has it that green tea pillows will help you sleep better. The tea leaves will give off a light scent but not enough to keep you awake. You will need to open up your pillow and air it out once a week to let the moisture that comes from your breathing out of the pillow.

Puffy Eyes - Put your crushed tea leaves into a small cotton bag and run it under water. Let the excess water run off then place the cotton bag over your closed eyes for several minutes a day to make those puffy eyes go away. Here is another idea. You can also make your own skin products with your used green tea leaves. You have no doubt seen green tea skin products everywhere because of green teas antioxidant and healing ingredients. Save your money and make your own skin cream from your used green tea leaves.

These are just some of the ways you can take your used green tea leaves and use them in useful ways around your house. If you have discovered your own use for used green tea leaves around your house, write to me and let me know. If your idea is a good one, I will include it in the list above.

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