What does the black tea variety look like? is the tea a kind of tea tree?

If you want to drink good black tea, you must first understand the tea tree, the origin, the tea-making process and so on.

First of all, let's get to know the tea tree.

It is not difficult to wonder why the tea tree looks so much like the row of plants in my downstairs park when I have seen some friends in tea house's tea field. Are they the same thing?

Hey! Take this idea first. If there are friends who want to make tea from shrubs in the park, this idea is too big to have!

Tea tree is an evergreen tree of the family Camellia, whose scientific name is Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze can be roughly divided into lobular variety and large leaf variety.

The leaf length of lobular variety is about 5cm to 8cm and the width is about 2cm to 4cm. The leaflet variety is mainly planted in the hilly areas of China, Japan, Taiwan and other places. The lobular variety is generally referred to as the Chinese species.

The leaf length of the large leaf variety is about 12cm to 20cm and the width is about 5cm to 10cm. The main planting areas are India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Kenya and other tropical areas. The big-leaf variety is often called Assam.

The earliest tea trees are said to inhabit the Yanshan area and steep valleys of Wuyi Mountain in China, which are difficult for human beings to enter.

Cultivation and tea picking

Tea plant, which has the gene of Camellia family, is a particularly strong and hardy species among evergreen trees and can survive in a variety of climates. But the growth time is longer. Many tea house tea gardens use cuttings to cultivate a large number of tea trees of the same quality.

[start with the seed]

When the tea tree is born in a place with four distinct seasons, a bud emerges in summer. After flowering for 30 days, the flower bears fruit, which ripens and falls to the ground after 7 to 8 months on the tree. To cultivate tea trees, you must pick up the fruit and bury it in the soil to wait for it to germinate.

After soaking the ① seeds for a day, select the sunken part. The seed epidermis softens and grows in soil at depths of 2 to 3cm.

After 40 to 50 days of ②, the seeds germinate and new buds emerge from the soil. At this time, it is necessary to reduce the amount of sunlight to protect the saplings from direct sunlight.

After 3 to 4 months of ③, the roots hold on to the soil and have enough strength to support the stem. There will also be 3 to 4 leaves and a height of about 20 to 30cm.

After 2 to 3 years of ④, the height of the tea plant is about 1 to 1.5 meters, forming a trunk with a diameter of about a few centimeters, and many new buds and leaves. Tea can be harvested at this stage.

⑤ tea trees will continue to grow to 4 to 5 meters high, so they need to be trimmed to 1 to 1.2 meters suitable for picking tea. Tea trees are usually built for the first time two years after sowing, and then overhauled every 3 to 4 years.

Suitable climate, soil and planting area

Wind, fog and light will stimulate the tea trees and affect the taste and aroma of the finished black tea.

The characteristics of tea are significantly different with the altitude, soil and climatic conditions of tea trees.

Tea trees need to be planted in areas with annual rainfall of more than 1500 mm, but it is not the more rainfall the better. It takes at least three to four months of dry season each year to promote its growth.

Tea trees need more than 5 hours of sunshine a day and shade the rest of the day.

Tea trees are suitable for planting in subtropics between 40 degrees north latitude and 30 degrees south latitude. But there are exceptions. As long as the altitude is high enough and the temperature is cool enough, even African countries below the equator can grow tea.

The fertile soil suitable for growing general vegetables, coffee and so on is not suitable for growing tea trees. Tea tree is suitable for weak acid soil of 4.4 to 4.5, and it is a dry geology with good drainage.