Farmers pick buds of Juyan tea in Jinhua, Zhejiang province. [Photo/Tide News]
The tea picking season has begun at the Wuzhou Juyan Tea Base in Lutian village in Jinhua, Zhejiang province, as tea farmers have recently been busy picking tea leaves, Tide News reported on April 3.
Wuzhou (ancient name of Jinhua) Juyan tea dates back to the Qin and Han dynasties (221 BC-AD 220) and reached its peak during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911). It's among the oldest tribute tea varieties in China.
The making technique of the Juyan tea, together with that of Longjing tea and some other reputed tea varieties in Zhejiang, was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2022.
"At an altitude of 500 meters with abundant rainfall, dense forests, and significant day-night temperature variations, Lutian village provides favorable conditions for Juyan tea," explained Pan Jintu, an inheritor of the heritage.
Warmer temperatures early on this year followed by recent rain and snow have ensured adequate moisture at the tea tree roots, promoting nutrient accumulation and resulting in an earlier picking season and anticipated higher quality.
Since the tea garden's maximum output is 600 kilograms annually, the scarce tea is highly valued, with market prices remaining stable.
Pan said that the tea picking is now underway to ensure a steady market supply of this esteemed variety.
