The year's plan starts in spring, and Spring Tea is the top priority in China's Tea production. Currently, various tea-producing regions across the country are entering the peak season for spring tea production. To effectively cope with disastrous weather and strictly implement COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control measures, the Department of Planting Industry Management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, together with the National Agricultural Technical Extension Center and the Expert Advisory Group on Tea of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, have formulated the following technical guidelines for spring tea production in 2025.

I. Strengthen Monitoring and Early Warning, Implement Disaster Prevention Measures

According to the Central Meteorological Observatory forecast, there will be widespread rainfall and temperature drops in southern regions, with some areas experiencing heavy rain and local areas having heavy downpours. Most regions will see temperatures drop by 4–8°C, and in some places, the drop may exceed 10°C. The tea regions must take effective measures to mitigate the impact of heavy rain and low temperatures. First, provide meteorological information services. Closely monitor weather forecasts and the sprouting of tea buds, promptly disseminating information through various channels such as the internet, radio, and television, and organizing tea enterprises and farmers to implement disaster prevention measures. Second, organize the timely picking of spring tea. Before the arrival of heavy rain and cold air, organize the harvesting of suitable tea gardens to avoid losses. Third, implement cold and frost prevention techniques. Cover the canopy: For tea gardens on slopes prone to frost damage, cover the tea rows with straw, miscellaneous grass, or shade nets before the temperature drops below 4°C to reduce the cooling effect and prevent freezing. Soil irrigation: During a cold wave, irrigate the soil to increase humidity in the tea garden, reduce the fluctuation in soil temperature, and mitigate damage to the roots of tea plants. Water spray to remove frost: If frost forms on leaves or branches, immediately spray water on the tree canopy to wash off the frost on leaves and new shoots, thus reducing freeze damage. Install anti-frost fans: Where conditions permit, install anti-frost fans in tea gardens to enhance air circulation near the ground and prevent frost damage.

II. Strengthen Post-disaster Management, Reduce Losses from Disasters

For tea gardens affected by frost and disasters, post-disaster management measures should be implemented to quickly restore tree vigor. First, prune and trim trees at the appropriate time. When the temperature rises and stabilizes, for flat-topped tea gardens, if the degree of damage is minor (only the buds 3–5 cm below the picking surface are frozen), pruning depth should be 3–5 cm; if the damage is severe (both upper and lower dormant buds are frozen), deep pruning should be performed promptly, with a depth of 8–10 cm. Second, apply fertilizer in a timely manner. For severely damaged tea gardens, nutrients should be replenished promptly to promote the recovery of tea trees. Fertilizer types should include nitrogen fertilizer, supplemented by phosphorus and potassium fertilizers, and organic fertilizer where possible. Third, timely irrigation and soil mounding. For young tea gardens and tea nurseries that have been affected, soil should be mounded around the base of the plants, and where feasible, nurseries should be irrigated to ensure adequate water supply for tea seedlings.

III. Strengthen Organizational Services, Promote Increased Production and Efficiency

Localities should organize each tea region to carefully prepare for the start of spring tea harvesting to ensure a smooth opening and orderly progress of spring tea production. First, clear tea gardens in advance. Remove weeds, dead branches, and fallen leaves from tea gardens, and clear paths within tea gardens to ensure that roads into the gardens and operational pathways are passable, guaranteeing the smooth collection and rapid transportation of fresh tea leaves. Second, arrange picking reasonably. Keep abreast of the sprouting situation of different varieties in different producing areas, and according to the start date of harvesting, arrange labor, provide pre-harvest training, and try to pick at the right time, starting with early budding gardens and later with late budding ones, picking lightly in weak gardens and heavily in vigorous ones, to ensure the quantity and quality of spring tea. Third, organize purchases and processing. Guide Tea processing enterprises to thoroughly clean processing workshops, maintain equipment, conduct health checks on processing personnel, and promote clean processing. Work with relevant departments to standardize the purchase and transportation of fresh leaves, urge tea enterprises to implement “premium price for premium quality,” and promptly organize the purchase of fresh leaves to improve processing quality and increase the income of tea farmers. Fourth, strengthen post-harvest management of tea gardens. Guide the application of appropriate nitrogen fertilizer to harvested tea gardens to promote the growth of new shoots and lay a nutrient foundation for abundant summer and Autumn Tea harvests. Install devices such as insect traps and pheromone lures in tea gardens to monitor key pests like tea loopers, gray tea geometrids, Green Tea leafhoppers, etc., encourage socialized and professional unified pest control services in tea gardens, and comprehensively promote green pest and weed control technologies to improve the green production level of tea gardens.

IV. Strengthen Pandemic Prevention and Control, Ensure Safe Production

Recently, COVID-19 has been sporadically spreading in multiple locations, and while tea regions focus on spring tea production, they must strictly comply with pandemic prevention and control requirements to ensure that spring tea production and pandemic control are both carried out without compromise. First, strengthen the management of tea-picking labor. Employers should register information about tea pickers, provide transportation services, and monitor their health to ensure that personnel are healthy and their travel history is traceable. For tea pickers crossing regional borders, strictly enforce nucleic acid testing measures to prevent the spread of the pandemic. Second, scientifically organize picking. In tea gardens, divide workers into zones based on their location, stagger the delivery times of fresh leaves from different zones, and avoid gatherings of people. Reserve and distribute epidemic prevention supplies to ensure sufficient masks, disinfectants, and other materials are available and used appropriately, and ensure personal protection for all personnel. Third, strengthen management of tea markets and factories. Guide tea markets and factories purchasing fresh leaves to improve and implement personnel management, logistics control, and emergency response plans, and implement staggered trading schedules to avoid gatherings of people. When entering markets and factories, strictly enforce measures such as temperature checks, QR code scanning, mask wearing, and maintaining a distance of one meter.