Last year, the teacher published an article titled ‘160 year old narcissus tree’, and the students’ reactions were still very polarized. One side was envious and wanted, while the other side questioned whether the tea tree’s age was reliable or not?
Some students still leave messages in the background saying that with the advancement of technology, it is possible to accurately calculate the age of plants with just a small branch. Today we will rationally talk about how to calculate the age of tea trees.
Jianyang Shufang Shuixian Garden Forest like Tea Trees
Due to the fact that there are indeed many storytellers and even storytellers in the tea industry, let’s take a look at the statement of the forestry department, which has no direct economic connection with the tea industry. Coincidentally, China’s forestry department has just completed the second census of ancient and famous trees in 15-21.
The census results show that there are a total of 5.0819 million ancient and famous trees within the national census scope, including 1.2213 million scattered trees and 3.86066 million clustered trees. There are 987500 scattered ancient trees in China with an age of 100-299 years, 160300 with an age of 300-499 years, and 68200 with an age of over 500 years, accounting for about 5% of all ancient trees.
There are a total of 5 famous ancient trees over 5000 years old, all of which are located in Shaanxi. 5000 years is actually more than the recorded history of China, so how is the age of these trees confirmed?
Jianyang Shufang Shuixian Garden narcissus branches
According to authoritative personnel from the national forestry department, there are several ways to determine the age of ancient and famous trees in this census:
The first method is to search for clues from historical records by consulting literature, which is particularly effective for ancient trees planted in temples, ancestral halls, palaces, key residential buildings, or other important buildings. The second method is to determine tree age by comparing the relationship between trunk diameter and age of the same tree species under similar climatic conditions through technological means. According to the authoritative source, in this census, the age of ancient trees over 5000 years old was comprehensively determined through the above two methods.
In this census, methods such as needle puncture, growth cone, and CT testing were also used. However, due to the potential harm caused to ancient trees by detection methods such as acupuncture and growth cones, they are less commonly used on high aged or high economic value ancient trees.
For ancient tea trees, comparing the diameter of plants under the same climate may still be useful for trees, but for small trees and shrubs of tea trees, the diameter of the trunk can only reflect the age of the tree within a certain age or to some extent.
Even due to the structural reasons of tea trees, the most authoritative method commonly used to determine plant age is counting annual rings, which is not particularly effective on tea trees. Therefore, determining the age of tea trees is more often done by consulting historical records or speculating through interviews.
1. Records about ancient tea trees
In fact, there are relatively few records of individual tea trees in Chinese historical literature. For example, Beiyuan Gongcha, which contributed more than half of the written records of Chinese tea gardens, has almost no records of a single tea tree. At most, there is a sentence that says “thousands of green jade branches, plucking spiritual buds”, which is in line with our collectivist tradition.
It was not until the Guangxu period that Guo Baichuan’s book “Min Chan Lu Yi” began to systematically focus on individual varieties and old trees of tea trees. In addition to the differences in techniques such as race and flower fragrance, the Record of Fujian Production also records the differences in tea varieties such as narcissus, oolong, and green snow bud. For ancient tea trees, it especially records that “iron Arhat and falling willow are all Song trees, and there is only one.”
Ghost Hole Falls Willow Mother Tree
The research on ancient tea trees or various mother trees did not begin to be valued until the late 1930s to early 1940s. Liao Cunren, Lin Fuquan, Zhang Tianfu and a group of tea scholars all recorded many records in Mount Wuyi at that time point. Different from Lin Fuquan’s relatively rational problem of only recording the form and avoiding the age of trees, Liao Cunren’s article Wuyi Rock Tea recorded the age of some tea trees.
For example, he recorded that the trunk of the Dahongpao was covered in moss and the tree was aging for at least 70-80 years. The more interesting record is Bai Jiguan. He said that “Bai Jiguan: a ghost cave produced in the back of Huiyuan Pit, which was said to have existed in the Ming Dynasty (but it was specifically mentioned in Wuyi Mountain Annals and not mentioned)”. It can be seen that literature records were also a key assessment basis for determining the age of tea trees at that time.
White cockscomb mother tree
What’s even more interesting is that in the first year of the Republic of China, when the Qing Emperor abdicated, his white comb gradually withered, and those who did good deeds were said to have completed their duties. Afterwards, they sprouted and branched from the nearby trunk, thinking it was auspicious clouds. The tea tree is now six or seven feet tall, “which means that this white cockscomb mother tree hung around the 1910s, but later new branches emerged from the side. This revived tea tree is quite common in the group, but how to calculate its age is indeed a difficult problem.
Around 1940, there was a peculiar record about ancient tea trees, which was discovered by the invading Japanese army in the Gaomi area of Shandong province. The phrase “thick three hugs, high five zhang” was published in the Japanese magazine “Tea” at that time. But this big tea tree later disappeared without a trace.
2. The oldest tea tree in China
Due to climate and environmental factors, Yunnan has a total of 1 million ancient trees, the highest in the country. The resources of ancient tea trees are also the largest in China, accounting for 97%. The oldest, largest, and tallest ancient tea trees are all located in Yunnan.
Jinxiu Tea Ancestor from Jinxiu Village, Fengqing County, Lincang
The oldest tea tree among them is not the well-known Banzhang Tea King, but the ancestor of Jinxiu Tea in Jinxiu Village, Fengqing County, Lincang. This tree is the world’s oldest cultivated tea tree.
The tree has a height of 10.6 meters, a width of 11 * 11 meters, a diameter at breast height of 1.85 meters, and a girth of 5.82 meters. According to experts’ speculation, the age of the tree is 3200 years. Have you watched the recently released movie ‘Fengshen’? This tree predates King Wu’s conquest of Zhou by over 100 years.
Jinxiu Tea Ancestor and Ancient Tea Tree Protection Plaque from Jinxiu Village, Fengqing County, Lincang
The auction price of this tea tree reached 3.5 million yuan/kg in 2015, and the price of picking ten kilograms of fresh leaves in 2021 was as high as 10.68 million yuan
3. Ancient tea trees in the Wuyi region
Although there are not many ancient tea trees in Fujian, they are expensive. Most of the ancient tea trees are concentrated in Nanping, where Mount Wuyi is located, which is also the location of Beiyuan tribute tea.
According to the data provided by Nanping Forestry Bureau, the number of ancient and famous trees listed for protection in the non urban planning area of Nanping City is 41427, including 4 scattered ancient tea trees, 1 in Baizhang Village, Xiaoqiao Town, Jianou City, 1 in Lukou Village, Nanya Town, and 2 in Tianxin Village, Wuyi Street, Mount Wuyi City.
There are three ancient tea tree groups, namely, the century old Oolong Ancient Tea Tree Group in Guilin Village, Dongfeng Town, Jian’ou City, the Dahongpao Ancient Tea Tree Group in Tianxin Village, Wuyi Street, Mount Wuyi City, and the Narcissus Ancient Tea Tree Group in Shufang Village, Shufang Township, Jianyang District.
The oldest ancient tree among them is the millennium narcissus of Baizhangyan, which is planted on the edge of Baizhangyan Baizhang’an. The tree is 4.3 meters high, with a width of 6.3 * 6.3 meters and a circumference of 1.8. According to experts, the age of this tree is estimated to be 1200 years, which was planted during the Five Dynasties period. It is also the only tea tree in Fujian with a thousand years of age.
Baizhangyan Ancient Tea Tree
I am also quite puzzled about this matter. How did Beiyuan leave only one tea tree in such a large area back then?
01 The most famous ancient tea tree in Mount Wuyi
The most famous and expensive ancient tea book is undoubtedly the Mother Tree Dahongpao.
The purebred Dahongpao mother tree on the cliff of Jiulongke
There is always a lot of controversy about these mother trees when we talk about them, such as whether these few trees on the cliff are real or whether they have died and been replanted before?
As a young person, the teacher does not understand these controversies, and all other controversies may be options to add points to the mystery of this big red robe mother tree.
02-The largest single mother tree in the Zhengyan production area
The largest mother tree I have seen in the Zhengyan area so far is the centenarian mother tree, which was introduced in Luo * *’s book “Wuyi Rock Tea Name Collection”.
It is located under a cliff deep in the old wolf’s den of Huiyuankeng, with the three characters “Hundred Year Fragrance” engraved on the rock wall, but in simplified Chinese, it was carved around the 1980s. However, the base of the tea tree was planted separately with stones and soil in ancient times.
Centennial Fragrant Mother Tree
The mother plant of tea tree has a history of hundreds of years, and its growth is vigorous. When we interviewed in 2017, the tree was 3.5 meters high and about 3-4 meters wide. It is also one of the only two listed ancient trees in Tianxin Village during the forestry bureau’s census.
03-The largest single parent tree in Mount Wuyi
The largest single mother tree in Mount Wuyi is Zhengbaihao, which is located in Lingyang Village of Langu.
According to Luo * *’s “Wuyi Rock Tea Name Collection”, Zheng Baihao is recorded as “the mother plant of the tea tree is 5.9 meters high, the crown width is 6.3 meters, the diameter of the main stem base is 16.9 cm, and the tree is over a hundred years old. It is the largest existing mother plant of the tea tree. In the local area, it is also known as” tea girl “and has been introduced and cultivated This is also one of the few mother trees in Wuyi Mingcong that clearly records the age of the tree.
At present, Zhengbaihao is widely cultivated in Langu, and local tea farmers have used it to make many black and white teas.
Zhengbaihao Mother Tree in Lingyang Village, Langgu
In addition to these long famous ancient tea trees, there are also many other old tea trees that have been certified by experts in recent years, such as the Zhenghe Dabai Mother Tree, which is believed to be 400 years old by experts.
The Xiaobai Mother Tree Garden in Jianyang is also recognized by experts as an old tea garden that has been continuously planted for over a hundred years, similar to the Jianou Centennial Oolong Garden.
Jianou Centennial Oolong Tea Germplasm Resources Protection Area
In addition to the old tea trees certified by authoritative experts for their age, there are also many old and large tea trees scattered throughout Fujian. For example, we have also seen wild tea trees with a height of 3-4 meters in Guanyang, Fuding, and many unknown wild large tea trees waiting for us to weed in Nanping.