TeaTeaFamily
The tea plant
is a member of the camellia family of plants. Tea is a
drink made by pouring boiling water over dry leaves from the tea
plant. It is said that tea was discovered in 2737 BC by a Chinese
Emperor when the leaves of the plant fell into a pot and flavoured
the water boiling in it.
The tea plant
Tea is an evergreen plant that grows in warm tropical places like
Indonesia. The plants 
do not produce the necessary
shoots in cold places. The best tea is grown on low hills about
900-2000 metres high because the plant grows more slowly in the
cooler air, which increases the flavour. The flowers of the tea
plant are small, white and smell sweet. From each flower, three
seeds are formed. .................................................................Tea plantation
Plantations
Tea is grown
commercially in large plantations, or farms. New plants are started
from cuttings. After about a year, the 20cm high seedlings are
moved to the fields, where over 6 000 plants grow in each hectare.
Wild tea plants grow to about 9 metres tall, but on a plantation
they are pruned and kept at a bit over 1 m high.
Within about 4-5 years the plants mature and produce a flush, or growth of new shoots, which are several leaves and a bud.
The
flushes are picked by hand. Mechanical harvesters have been developed
for flat land, but the best quality tea is hand picked.
After picking, the leaves are processed in factories on or near the plantation.
Processing the
tea
The
leaves are processed differently to produce the three main kinds
of tea: black, green and oolong.
Black tea is made by spreading the leaves on shelves called withering racks. Air is blown over them to remove moisture, then they are crushed between rollers to release their juices. They are placed in a fermenting room where the leaves change to a copper colour in controlled humidity, then they are dried in ovens and turn black.
Green tea is made by steaming the leaves in large vats, which prevents them from changing colour. The leaves are then crushed in a machine and dried in an oven.
Oolong tea is made by only partly fermenting the leaves, giving them a greenish black colour.
Grades of tea
Tea leaves are graded according to size. The leaves are shaken
through screens with different size holes to sort them into sizes.
The largest leaves are selected for loose tea and the smallest
for tea bags.
Teas from different countries or areas each have different tastes and quality. To make the best tea, tea companies blend a number of different teas to develop a particular flavour.
Acknowledge this source in your bibliography like this:
A Trip to Indonesia (2001).
[Online], Available: www.kidcyber.com.au
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updated 4 February, 2001