Ivan tea, or fireweed, is perhaps one of the most common plants in Russia. It grows on fresh sandy and loamy soils, in coniferous and mixed forests, along country roads, in meadows and clearings, in dry sandy places, often on edges, near crops, near water, on damp soil, on drained peat bogs, even along railway embankments and ditches. It is difficult to find a person who would not know what Ivan-chai is. Elegant pink fields, “dressed up” by this plant, can be found almost everywhere.