Lippia Javanica (zumbani) commonly known as Fever tea or lemon bush, its crushed green plant leaves have a pleasant, refreshing, minty, lemon flavor. It is also excellent for bringing down fevers hence its name fever tree. Zumbani is caffeine free and high in potassium which makes it ideal in regulating blood pressure. It is also high in magnesium and iron which are vital elements. The tea also has anti-oxidant properties due to its relatively high phenolic content.
It is a woody shrub reaching two meters. It is a wild herb and interestingly it can be grown at home as well. Saving yourself from moving around in the wild searching and harvesting the natural shrub, it can be harvested right in your backyard as well. This is best grown from cuttings when the temperatures are high towards the rainy season. Zumbani tolerates most soils but prefers full sun and well-drained soils. The plant should be pruned regularly to encourage bushing.
The leaves have a lemon smell when crushed. They are harvested before they dry up. Afterwards, the leaves are dried away from direct sunlight- usually under a shed to avoid loss of nutritional properties. Upon drying, water is sprinkled on the leaves to give them color. Two or three weeks later, they will be ready for processing into tea through grinding.
