About Tea  »  Growing Tea

Growing Tea

There are several key factors that contribute to the flourishing of the evergreen Camellia Sinensis. They are elevation, climate, and soil. Tea grows best in mountains with high elevations above sea level. Many of the worlds best teas, Darjeelings, high-grown Ceylon, and Chinese green teas, are grown at 4,000 feet (1,220 meters) above sea level. The optimal climate for the growth of tea is sunny days, moist and cool nights and clean and fresh air. The quality of the soil is equally critical to its growth. The high elevation and cool nights contribute towards slow growth which aids in more concentrated flavor in the tea leaves. However, depending on the local climate and weather conditions of a given year, the quality of the tea can vary from year to year.

The tea trees are pruned to shrub height. Pruning helps to produce concentrated growth of young shoots. At appropriate times during the season, the top one or two new shoots or flushes are picked by hand. The new shoots are plucked three to four times during a given season. However this varies from climate to climate.

Once the tea has been picked, it is the processing of the tea leaves that produces the variety of teas. Not only the elevation, climate, soil, maintenance, picking, and processing of teas, but the way it is packaged, transported, and stored also affects the final taste and quality of any tea.

Tea is grown in many parts of the world. While China, India, and Sri Lanka (Ceylon) are the most well-known producers of tea, tea is grown in other parts of the world as well. In China tea is grown mainly in the following regions: Anhui, Fujian, Guizhou, Guangdong, Guangxi Zhuang, Hainan, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Hupeh, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Zhejiang. In India the most famous tea comes from Assam, Darjeeling, and Nilgiris. The finest teas of Sri Lanka come from the regions of Nuwara Eliya, the Uva Highlands, and Dimbula. Tea is also grown in Africa (Cameroon, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, and Tanzania), Australia, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Russia, South America (Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, and Peru), Turkey, Vietnam, etc.

Black tea is grown primarily in China, India, and Ceylon. Green tea is grown mainly in China, Japan, and Korea. Oolong is grown only in Taiwan and China.

While tea from India and Ceylon are known by the name of the estate or region in which the tea is harvested, Chinese teas are identified often by the method of tea production. Teas produced in other parts of the world generally do not make it to the international market for various qualitative and economic reasons.

Tea is a universal drink with particular local customs, rituals, and style within each cultural context. However, the way of preparing tea remains relatively the same.

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