Thea chinensis
Thea chinensis Sims.
The tea bush can be successfully grown from seeds. Mature tea seeds are dark brown, with a hard skin, and are very rich in oil. After ripening and until sowing, full-fledged (large and uniform) tea seeds are stored in wet sand at a temperature of 4-5 ºС. Before sowing, it is advisable to place hard tea seeds in water at room temperature for 2-3 days to swell; it is good to add a growth stimulator for germination. Then the seeds are wrapped in a cotton cloth and placed on a saucer with water; the water is regularly changed when soaking the seeds. Seeds are usually planted in winter or early spring in pots with soil (with a pH of 4.5-5.5), sowing in nests with seeds embedded to a depth of 3-4 cm; 4-5 seeds are placed in each pot. Tea crops are watered, covered with glass and placed in a warm place. The glass is wiped and turned over daily, the soil is aired. Tea shoots usually appear 30-45 days after sowing. In the first year, tea seedlings reach a height of 20-25 cm. As they grow, tea bushes branch out densely and form a large vegetative mass in the form of leaves and shoots, the creation of which requires a large amount of nutrients and water. Therefore, tea responds well to loosening, mulching, watering, and fertilizing. A tea bush is fully formed at the age of 7-8 years, lives for a hundred years or more.
In indoor conditions, the heat-loving and moisture-loving tea bush grows well, begins to bloom annually at the age of 4-5 years and bear fruit.

 

Eng.: Tea, tea plant. Suom.: teepensas, tee. Sven.: tebuske, te. Bot. syn.: Camellia thea Link, Thea bohea L., Thea cantoniensis Lour., Thea chinensis Sims, Thea cochinchinensis Lour., Thea sinensis L., Thea viridis L.