Camellia sinensis is the
speciesIn biology, a species is:* a taxonomic rank or* a unit at that rank ....
of
plantPlants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. They include familiar organisms such as trees, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The scientific study of plants, known as botany, has identified about 350,000 extant species of plants, defined as seed plants,...
whose leaves and leaf buds are used to produce
teaTea is the agricultural product of the leaves, leaf buds, and internodes of the Camellia sinensis plant, prepared and cured by various methods...
. It is of the genus
CamelliaCamellia, the camellias, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are native to eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalaya east to Japan and Indonesia. There are 100–250 described species, with some controversy over the exact number. The genus was named by Linnaeus after the...
, a genus of flowering plants in the family
TheaceaeThe Theaceae is a family of flowering plants, composed of shrubs and trees. The Theaceae is part of order Ericales, in the branch of the dicots known as the Asterids. Some botanists include the family Ternstroemiaceae within the Theaceae while others do not...
.
White teaWhite tea is the uncured and unoxidized tea leaf. Like green, oolong and black tea, white tea comes from the Camellia sinensis plant. Oolong and black teas are oxidized before curing....
,
green teaGreen tea is a type of tea made solely with the leaves of Camellia sinensis that has undergone minimal oxidation during processing. Green tea originates from China and has become associated with many cultures in Asia from Japan to the Middle East. Recently, it has become more widespread in the...
,
oolongOolong is a traditional Chinese tea somewhere between green and black in oxidation. It ranges from 10% to 70% oxidation. It is among the most popular types of teas served in typical Chinese restaurants....
,
pu-erh teaPu-erh, Pu'er tea, Puer tea or Bolay tea is a type of tea made from a "large leaf" variety of the tea plant Camellia sinensis and named after Pu'er county near Simao, Yunnan, China....
and
black teaBlack tea is a variety of tea that is more oxidized than the oolong, green, and white varieties.All four varieties are made from leaves of Camellia sinensis. Black tea is generally stronger in flavor and contains more caffeine than the less oxidized teas. Two principal varieties of the species are...
are all harvested from this species, but are processed differently to attain different levels of oxidation.
KukichaKukicha , or twig tea, also known as bōcha , is a Japanese blend of green tea made of stems, stalks, and twigs.Kukicha has a mildly nutty, and slightly creamy sweet flavor. It is made of four sorts of stems, stalks and twigs of Camellia sinensis...
(twig tea) is also harvested from
Camellia sinensis, but uses twigs and stems rather than leaves. Common names include the Tea plant, tree, or shrub.
There are two major varieties that characterize this species (1)
Camellia sinensis var.
sinensis (L.) Kuntz and (2)
Camellia sinensis var.
assamica (Masters) Kitam.
Nomenclature and taxonomy of the variety and its cultivars
The name
sinensis means
ChineseChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
in
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
.
Camellia is taken from the Latinized name of Rev.
Georg KamelGeorg Joseph Kamel , also known as Camellus, was a Jesuit missionary and botanist to the Philippines. The genus Camellia was named in his honour by Carolus Linnaeus...
, S.J. (1661-1706), a Czech-born Jesuit priest who became both a prominent botanist and a missionary to the
PhilippinesThe Philippines officially known as the Republic of the Philippines, is a country in Southeast Asia with Manila as its capital city. It comprises 7,107 islands in the western Pacific Ocean....
(it is not uncommon for members of the Catholic Jesuit order to combine careers in scholarship with their religious work). Though Kamel did not discover or name the plant, Carl Linnaeus, the creator of the system of
taxonomyTaxonomy is the practice and science of classification. The word finds its roots in the Greek , taxis and , nomos...
still used today, chose his name for the genus of this tree to honor Kamel's contributions to science. Older names for the tea plant include
Thea bohea,
Thea sinensis and
Thea viridis.
List of the Cultivars
- Benifuuki
- Fushun
- Kanayamidori
- Meiryoku
- Saemidori
- Okumidori
- Yabukita
Description
Camellia sinensis is native to mainland
SouthSouth Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries on the west and the east...
and
Southeast AsiaManila
Bangkok
Ho Chi Minh City
Kuala Lumpur
Singapore
Yangon
Bandung
Hanoi
Surabaya
Taichung
Kaohsiung
Medan|-|}...
, but it is today cultivated across the world in tropical and subtropical regions. It is an evergreen
shrubA shrub or bush is a horticultural rather than strictly botanical category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall. A large number of plants can be either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
or small
treeA tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
that is usually trimmed to below two metres (six feet) when cultivated for its leaves. It has a strong
taprootTaproot is an enlarged somewhat straight to tapering plant root that grows vertically downward. It forms a center from which other roots sprout laterally.Plants with taproots are difficult to transplant...
. The flowers are yellow-white, 2.5–4 cm in diameter, with 7 to 8 petals.
The seeds of
Camellia sinensis and
Camellia oleiferaCamellia oleifera, which originated in China, is notable as an important source of edible oil obtained from its seeds...
can be pressed to yield
tea oilTea seed oil is an edible, pale amber-green fixed oil with a sweet, herbal aroma. It is cold-pressed mainly from the seeds of Camellia oleifera but also from Camellia sinensis or Camellia japonica....
, a sweetish seasoning and cooking oil that should not be confused with
tea tree oilTea tree oil or melaleuca oil is a clear to very pale golden hydrophobic essential oil with a fresh camphoraceous odor. It is taken from the leaves of the Melaleuca alternifolia which is native to the northeast coast of New South Wales, Australia...
, an
essential oilAn essential oil is a concentrated, hydrophobic liquid containing volatile aroma compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile or ethereal oils, or simply as the "oil of" the plant from which they were extracted, such as oil of clove. An oil is "essential" in the sense that it...
that is used for medical and cosmetical purposes and originates from the leaves of a different plant.
The leaves are 4–15 cm long and 2–5 cm broad. Fresh leaves contain about 4%
caffeineCaffeine is a bitter, white crystalline xanthine alkaloid that is a psychoactive stimulant drug. Caffeine was discovered by a German chemist, Friedrich Ferdinand Runge, in 1819. He coined the term kaffein, a chemical compound in coffee, which in English became caffeine...
. The young, light green leaves are preferably harvested for tea production; they have short white hairs on the underside. Older leaves are deeper green. Different leaf ages produce differing tea qualities, since their chemical compositions are different. Usually, the tip (bud) and the first two to three leaves are harvested for processing. This hand picking is repeated every one to two weeks.
Cultivation
Camellia sinensis is mainly cultivated in tropical and sub-tropical climates, in areas with at least 50 inches of rainfall a year.
However, it is commercially cultivated from the equator to as far north as
CornwallCornwall is a county of England in the United Kingdom, forming the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain. It is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Taken with the...
on the UK mainland. Many high quality teas are grown at high elevations, up to 1500 meters (5,000 ft), as the plants grow more slowly and acquire a better flavor.
Tea plants will grow into a tree if left undisturbed, but cultivated plants are pruned to waist height for ease of plucking. Two principal varieties are used, the small-leaved Chinese variety plant (
C. sinensis sinensis) and the large-leaved Assamese plant (
C. sinensis assamica), used mainly for black tea.
Indian Teas
Indian teas are generally classified by the region they are grown in; the three main tea-producing regions in India are
DarjeelingDarjeeling district is the northern most district of West Bengal state in eastern India. The district is famous for its beautiful hill station, Darjeeling, often referred as the queen of the Himalayas and Darjeeling tea and its aroma. Kalimpong, Kurseong and Siliguri, three other major towns in...
,
AssamAssam ) is a northeastern state of India with its capital at Dispur located in the Guwahati city. Located south of the eastern Himalayas, Assam comprises the Brahmaputra and the Barak river valleys and the Karbi Anglong and the North Cachar Hills with an area of 30,285 square miles...
and
NilgiriThe Nilgiri , often referred to as the Nilgiri Hills, are a range of mountains with at least 24 peaks above , in the westernmost part of Tamil Nadu at the junction of Karnataka and Kerala states in Southern India...
.
Because of the specific growing conditions
Darjeeling teaDarjeeling tea, tea from the Darjeeling region in West Bengal, India, has traditionally been prized above all other black teas, especially in the United Kingdom and the countries comprising the former British Empire. When properly brewed it yields a thin-bodied, light-colored liquor with a floral...
is considered by tea lovers to be the finest of the Indian teas. Unlike most other Indian teas Darjeeling uses the Chinese variety (
C. sinensis sinensis), which was brought to India in the 19
th century by British planters.
Assam is the largest producing area in India, at 473,000 metric tons annually. Assam has 271,768 hectares of tea gardens with 43,293 estates producing tea. The tea uses the Assam type plant native to Assam that the British planters began exploiting commercially in the 19th century.
Assam teaAssam is a black tea named after the region of its production: Assam, India. Assam tea is manufactured specifically from the plant Camellia sinensis var. assamica . This tea, most of which is grown at or near sea level, is known for its body, briskness, malty flavor, and strong, bright color. Assam...
has a rich taste (often described as 'malty')
http://www.teatalk.com/india/assam.htm and is frequently used as the basis for "breakfast" tea blends.
Nilgiri tea is grown in the South Indian Blue Mountain range. This growing region covers 62,039 hectares and has 62,145 tea estates. Annual tea production is approximately 120,000 tons.
Chinese Teas
The Chinese plant (sometimes called
C. sinensis var.
sinensis) is a small-leaved bush with multiple stems that reaches a height of some 3 meters. It is native to south-east China. The first tea plant to be discovered, recorded and used to produce tea three thousand years ago, it yields some of the most popular teas.
C. sinensis var.
waldenae was considered a different species,
Camellia waldenae by S.Y.Hu, but it was later identified as a variety of
C. sinensis. This variety is commonly called
Walden's Camellia. It is seen on
Sunset PeakSunset Peak or Tai Tung Shan is the third highest peak in Hong Kong. It situates on the Lantau Island with height 869 m above the sea level. Whilst the second highest Lantau Peak is on the island west, it stands on the other side of the island.It is in the Lantau South Country Park.-See...
and
Tai Mo ShanTai Mo Shan has the highest peak in Hong Kong, with an altitude of 957 m. It is located approximately at the geographical centre of the New Territories....
in Hong Kong. It is also distributed in Guangxi Province, China.
Medical uses
- The leaves have been used in traditional Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine, also known as TCM , includes a range of traditional medical practices originating in China. Although well accepted in the mainstream of medical care throughout East Asia, it is considered an alternative medical system in much of the western world.TCM practices include...
and other medical systems to treat asthmaAsthma is a predisposition to chronic inflammation of the lungs in which the airways are reversibly narrowed. Asthma affects 7% of the population of the United States, and 300 million worldwide...
(functioning as a bronchodilatorA bronchodilator is a substance that dilates the bronchi and bronchioles, decreasing airway resistance and thereby facilitating airflow. Bronchodilators may be endogenous , or they may be medications administered for the treatment of breathing difficulties...
), angina pectoris, peripheral vascular disease, and coronary artery disease.
Tea extracts have become field of interest, due to their notional antibacterial activity. Especially the preservation of processed organic food and the treatment of persistent bacterial infections are being investigated.
- Green tea leaves and extracts have shown to be effective against bacteria responsible for bad breath.
- The tea component epicatechin gallate
Catechin is a polyphenolic antioxidant plant metabolite. The term catechin is also commonly used to refer to the related family of flavonoids and the subgroup flavan-3-ols ....
is being researched because in-vitro experiments showed that it can reverse methicillinMeticillin or methicillin is a narrow spectrum beta-lactam antibiotic of the penicillin class. It was developed by Beecham in 1959...
resistance in bacteria like Staphylococcus aureusStaphylococcus aureus is the most common cause of staph infections. It is a spherical bacterium, frequently part of the skin flora found in the nose and on skin. About 20% of the population are long-term carriers of S. aureus. S...
. If confirmed, this means that the combined intake of a tea extract containing this component will enhance the effectiveness of methicillin treatment against some resistant bacteria.
See also
- Anna Russell, Duchess of Bedford
Anna Maria Russell, Duchess of Bedford was a lifelong friend of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, whom she served as a Lady of the Bedchamber between 1841 and 1847. She was also the originator of the British meal "afternoon tea."Anna was the daughter of Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington...
- Assam tea
Assam is a black tea named after the region of its production: Assam, India. Assam tea is manufactured specifically from the plant Camellia sinensis var. assamica . This tea, most of which is grown at or near sea level, is known for its body, briskness, malty flavor, and strong, bright color. Assam...
- Bubble tea
Bubble tea is a tea beverage typically served cold. It originated in Taiwan in the 1980s, first spread to nearby East Asian countries, migrated to Canada before spreading to Chinatown in New York City, and then to various spots throughout the West Coast of the United States.There are many variants...
- Chinese tea culture
Chinese tea culture refers to the methods of preparation of tea, the equipment used to make tea and the occasions in which tea is consumed in China....
- Chinese herbology
- Darjeeling tea
Darjeeling tea, tea from the Darjeeling region in West Bengal, India, has traditionally been prized above all other black teas, especially in the United Kingdom and the countries comprising the former British Empire. When properly brewed it yields a thin-bodied, light-colored liquor with a floral...
- Earl Grey
Earl Grey tea is a tea blend with a distinctive flavour and aroma derived from the addition of oil extracted from the rind of the bergamot orange, a fragrant citrus fruit....
, a blend of tea made with bergamot orangeThe bergamot Citrus aurantium subsp. bergamia synonym is the size of an orange, with a yellow color similar to a lemon, and has a pleasant fragrance. The juice tastes less sour than lemon, but more bitter than grapefruit. Because of the required weather conditions, citrus bergamot is only...
.
- English Breakfast tea
English Breakfast tea is a black tea blend usually described as full-bodied, robust, and/or rich, and blended to go well with milk and sugar, in a style traditionally associated with a hearty English breakfast...
- Flowering tea
A flowering tea, or blooming tea , is a small bundle of dried tea leaves and flowers bound together with cotton thread into a ball. When steeped, the bundle expands and unfurls in a process that emulates a blooming flower. Typically they are sourced from the Yunnan province of China...
, a type of tea that opens up when steeped
- Frederick John Horniman
Frederick John Horniman was an English tea trader, collector and public benefactor.He was the son of John Horniman, who established a tea business using mechanical packaging. In 1891, it was said to be the biggest tea company in the world.He founded the Horniman Museum in Forest Hill, south London...
- Genetic traceability
- Genetic reliability
- Gunpowder tea
Gunpowder tea is a form of green Chinese tea produced in Zhejiang Province of China in which each leaf has been rolled into a small round pellet. It is believed to take its English name from the fact that the tea resembles gunpowder pellets used for cannon...
- Green tea extract
Green tea extracts are herbal derivatives from green tea leaves . Containing antioxidant ingredients – mainly green tea catechins – green tea and its derivatives are sought-after amongst people who pursue health....
- The health benefits of tea
The health effects of tea have been examined ever since the first infusions of Camellia sinensis about 4700 years ago in China. The legendary emperor Shennong claimed in The Divine Farmer's Herb-Root Classic that Camellia sinensis infusions were useful for treating conditions including tumors,...
- Iced tea
Iced tea, also known as ice tea, is a form of cold tea, often served in a glass with ice. It may or may not be sweetened. Iced tea is also a popular packaged drink. It can be mixed with flavored syrup, with common flavors including lemon, peach, raspberry, lime, and cherry...
- International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants
The International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants regulates the naming of cultivars, cultivar Groups and graft-chimaeras...
- Irish Breakfast tea
Irish Breakfast tea is a full-bodied, malty brew. It is a blend of several black teas: most often Assam teas and, less often, other types of black tea....
- ISO 3103
ISO 3103 is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization , specifying a standardized method for brewing tea. It was originally laid down in 1980 as BS 6008:1980...
, a method of brewing tea according to the ISOThe International Organization for Standardization , widely known as ISO , is an international-standard-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations. Founded on 23 February 1947, the organization promulgates worldwide proprietary industrial and commercial...
.
- Japanese tea ceremony
The , or "the Way of Tea," is the ceremonial preparation and presentation of the powdered green tea known as matcha. The tea ceremony is highly ritualized and the manner in which it is performed or the art of its performance is known as . Zen Buddhism was integral to the ceremony's development,...
- Kahwah
Kahwah is a traditional green tea recipe that originates from Kashmir. It is made in parts of Kashmir administered by Pakistan and India, as well as throughout various regions of the countries.-Origins:...
Traditional Green Tea recipe from Kashmir
- Kaempferol
Kaempferol is a natural flavonoid that has been isolated from tea, broccoli, Delphinium, Witch-hazel, grapefruit, brussel sprouts, apples and other plant sources. Kaempferol is a yellow crystalline solid with a melting point of 276-278 °C...
a flavanoid found in green and black teas and associated with reduced risk of heart disease
- Korean tea ceremony
The Korean tea ceremony or darye is a traditional form of tea ceremony practiced in Korea. Darye literally refers to "etiquette for tea" or "day tea rite" and has been kept among Korean people for a few thousand years...
- Lapsang souchong
Lapsang souchong is a black tea originally from the Wuyi region of the Chinese province of Fujian. It is sometimes referred to as smoked tea...
- List of tea companies
- Masala chai
Masala chai is a beverage from the Indian subcontinent made by brewing tea with a mixture of aromatic Indian spices and herbs...
- Mate
Mate , also known as chimarrão or cimarrón, is a traditional South American infused drink. It is prepared from steeping dried leaves of yerba mate in hot water...
- Orange Pekoe
Orange pekoe is a term used in the Western tea trade to describe a particular grade of black teas . Despite a purported Chinese origin, these grading terms are typically used for teas from India, Sri Lanka, and countries other than China and Taiwan; they are not generally known within...
- Peppermint tea
Peppermint tea is a drink that is either a mixture of tea and peppermint or a tisane of peppermint alone. This drink is said to have health benefits. It is sometimes called mint tea, a phrase that could also refer to tea...
- Prince of Wales tea blend
The Prince of Wales is a royal tea blend typically served in the afternoon with scones. It produces a cup that is mild, but full bodied, with a bright liquor and strong smell....
- Rooibos
Rooibos, , Afrikaans for "red bush"; scientific name Aspalathus linearis) is a broom-like member of the legume family of plants....
- Samovar
A samovar is a heated metal container traditionally used to heat and boil water in and around Russia, as well as in other Central, South-Eastern, Eastern European countries, and in the Middle-East...
- Tasseography
Tasseography is a divination or fortune-telling method that interprets patterns in tea leaves, coffee grounds, or wine sediments....
, a method of divinationDivination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of a standardized process or ritual. Diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a querent should proceed by reading signs, events, or omens, or through alleged contact with a supernatural agency...
by reading tea leaves.
- Tea
Tea is the agricultural product of the leaves, leaf buds, and internodes of the Camellia sinensis plant, prepared and cured by various methods...
- Tea Classics
Tea as a beverage was consumed in China no later than the fifth century BCE. The earliest extant mention of tea in literature is in the Shih Ching or Book of Songs, written circa 550 BCE, although the ideogram used in these texts can also designate a variety of plants, such as sowthistle and...
- Tea production in Sri Lanka
- Tea tree
Tea tree or Ti-tree is a popular name that has been applied to a number of different, unrelated plants:*Camellia sinensis , from which black, green, oolong and white tea are all obtained....
is a name sometimes applied to a number of different plants unrelated to the tea plant.
- Tea tree oil
Tea tree oil or melaleuca oil is a clear to very pale golden hydrophobic essential oil with a fresh camphoraceous odor. It is taken from the leaves of the Melaleuca alternifolia which is native to the northeast coast of New South Wales, Australia...
is derived from Melaleuca alternifoliaMelaleuca is a genus of plants in the myrtle family Myrtaceae. There are well over 200 recognized species, most of which are endemic to Australia. A few species occur in Malesia and 7 species are endemic to New Caledonia....
which is native to AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
and unrelated to the tea plant discussed here.
- Thai tea
- Turkish tea
Turkish tea is a type of tea that is popular mainly in the Turkish-speaking countries. In Turkey, Turkish tea tends to be more popular than Turkish coffee among the younger generation.-Introduction:...
External links