Tea looks back on a rich tradition reaching back to the ancient times and continues to gain in importance in the modern world. The tea shrub was already mentioned in Chinese literature as early as 2,700 B.C. In 500 A.D., Buddhist monks brought tea to Japan. In 621 A.D., Buddhism became the national religion of Japan and green tea developed to being the Japanese national drink. Around 1600, tea first came to Europe thanks to the famous Dutch East-Indian Compagnie. Afterwards, the English followed, founding an own East-Indian Compagnie and took over the tea monopoly for many years to come.

This changed 1773 with the Boston Tea Party. American citizens protested against the high tea taxes imposed by the English colonial rulers. The tea cargo of three English tea clippers, which were anchored in the harbour, was thrown overboard. The American War of Independence commenced and this “tea war” led to the USA to become the world power it still is today. In 1869, the Suez Canal was opened for ships, which brought an end to the competition of the high tariffs imposed on English tea clippers upon their journey home from China to London. Tea has developed from being a regional tradition into a popular beverage which is enjoyed around the world in many different flavours and using manifold preparation methods.

Tea, a tree-like plant, is maintained shrub-like for the tea cultivation by regular pruning. Tea belongs to the species of the camellia. The Evergreen shrub has got dark, ridged, leather-like leaves.

The flower is white or rose-coloured; the fruit is small with a hard shell, similar to a hazelnut. Nowadays, its reproduction is rarely done through pollination but rather vegetative, where cuttings are grown on the high-yielding parent shrub.