Whether white, green or black, every type of tea comes from the same plant: Camellia sinensis, literally “Chinese camellia”, a reference to its geographical origins.
This shrub belongs to the camellia family and should not be confused with the Australian tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia), a member of the myrtle family. The tea plant originates from south-western China, particularly Yunnan. It is cultivated for its leaves, which are dried and processed with varying degrees of oxidation to produce tea.
A shrub
Depending on the variety, wild tea plants can reach heights of 3 to 15 metres. On tea plantations, bushes are usually pruned to around one metre to make it easier to pick the upper leaves, which receive plenty of sunlight and contain compounds such as caffeine, tannins and amino acids.
Like many tropical crops, tea plants alternate between vigorous growth and periods of rest known as dormancy. Growers aim to encourage growth without exhausting the plant and causing an excessively long dormant period.
Tea plant flowers and leaves
Camellia sinensis produces five-petalled white flowers, though growers often prevent them from developing. The flowers form hard-shelled fruits containing seeds, which can be planted or used to make tea-seed oil, a cooking oil used in China for centuries. Its oval leaves can grow up to 25 cm long.
Unlike fruit trees, tea is grown chiefly for its new shoots — a bud and the two leaves just below it — rather than its fruit or seeds. These leaves are harvested and processed to make green tea and then, depending on further processing, the different types of tea we know today.
The colour and character of a tea depend on how its leaves are processed after picking.
We have this remarkable and precious shrub to thank for one of our favourite hot drinks!