Camellia sinensis is a hardy plant that is most commonly used to produce tea. The Camellia sinensis tea plant is an evergreen shrub belonging to the flowering plant family Theaceae. Common names for the tea plant include tea bush and tea tree.
This plant is slow-growing and easily maintained. Unlike many other Camellia species, it is heat and drought tolerant and can perform well in full sun. The plant is adapted to subtropical to tropical climates, with optimal growing temperatures of 18 to 30°C during the growing season and the ability to withstand temperatures from −16 to 40°C.
The plant can grow up to 30 meters high. To make harvesting easier, tea cultivators prune the tea plants and keep them about waist height. Leaves are oval and pointed at the tip; usually 5-10 cm long, shiny, dark green above. Leaf margin finely dentate (serrated).
Flowers are white, fragrant and up to 4 cm diameter, with five petals. The fruit is a 3-angled capsule with three seeds and is surrounded by persistent sepals.
They thrive in warm, humid climates with annual rainfall of 1,250 to 6,000 mm, favor humidity levels of 80 to 90% and elevations up to 2,000 m above sea level.
Camellias are susceptible to viruses and some fungal diseases such as dieback, cankers, flower blight, and root rot.
Tea plant - Camellia sinensis
