Tea fields are also maintained during winter

During the winter months, tea plants grow very little, if at all. So this is the time to work on maintaining the fields, such as in the wood park, for example. The term “wood park” denotes an area planted with bushes from which cuttings are taken. The plants are therefore chosen with great care. Each parent tea plant, like here in the wood park at Namring Tea Estate (India), can provide between 50 and 300 cuttings a year.

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The lifespan of a tea plant: between 30 and 50 years

Everything comes to an end. When a tea plant no longer produces many leaves, it is replaced. The lifespan of a tea plant is quite variable, generally between 30 and 50 years, although China claims to have some that are a thousand years old.

The trunk and roots of the tea plant burn well, and heat the oven in which the tea leaves are dried after oxidisation, for example.

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Tea is not just a drink, it’s a whole way of life

Over time, as its leaves are picked and its growth hindered, the tea plant becomes stronger. Its trunk thickens and new branches appear, while the bush is maintained at a height of about a metre. The plants mesh together to form what is known as the “plucking table”, comprising branches so dense that you can lie down on them with no difficulty at all.

I don’t need to tell you, who are kind enough to accompany in my peregrinations throughout the year, how one can find a sense of serenity by taking time out every day to savour tea. But perhaps you didn’t know that you can find wellbeing with tea in a different way, by diving into the tea plants and taking a nap on their branches.

Tea is not just a drink, it’s a whole way of life. It is what makes me feel good. For 2012, I hope we can all find in tea the feeling of relaxation and serenity that we need. Together, let’s enjoy tea!

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A Christmas basket filled with tea leaves

I am well aware that at the moment, everyone is looking forward to the imminent arrival of a certain somebody dressed in red and bearing a sack filled with wonderful things. I truly understand! This plucker dressed all in red and wearing her apron, is taking great care as she plucks the most delicate leaves of the tea plant before she places them in her basket.

If her slender ankles appear down your chimney, make sure you give her a warm welcome and put the kettle on. It’s time to honour the contents of that famous basket: it’s time for a cup of tea!

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Snakes also live among tea plants

A few weeks ago I introduced you to a creature which, while not exactly loveable, is highly admirable. On my French blog, someone said it might belong to the Nephila family, others said it could be one of the Theridiidae or Nicodamidae families. After seeing the many comments you left, I’ve decided to introduce you to another creature today. Equally elegant, I encountered it recently after it slid silently between the branches of a tea bush, just level with my waist. Tea bushes are planted close to each other to make harvesting easier, which means that when you decide to venture into the middle of the field, your feet are completely hidden from view. So you walk looking straight ahead, moving as best you can. You don’t take any notice of the many beasts living in these humid conditions.

Here in Assam, while I was holding back the branches of the shrubs to clear my path, the man behind me stopped me suddenly because he’d seen something yellow near my left arm, undulating beneath the foliage. Once I’d got over my surprise, I turned my head slowly, moving as little as possible so that the animal would never imagine I was anything other than an ordinary tree trunk, to avoid stressing it unnecessarily.

A few minutes later, my companion showed me this fine-looking snake on the end of his stick so that I could take its photo, and now I’d like to know its name. It was as beautiful as a rare jewel and as supple as a necklace, and it gleamed like gold. Before leaving us, overcome by shyness, the snake took the time to make something resembling a heart shape with its body, a way of asking us to respect all the love that nature offers us.

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