What preparatory work should be done for planting Tea trees in an area where no tea trees have been grown before?

(1) Clear the Ground

Clear scattered trees, brushwood, weeds, rubble, and grass from the ground and remove them from the garden. All trees that are part of the protective forest belt along roads and ditches around the planned garden should be retained. Any uneven terrain should be leveled and improved.

(2) Deep Plow the Soil

The key to developing a gently sloping Tea Garden is deep plowing and soil improvement. The depth of cultivation has a significant impact on the growth of tea trees, and the depth depends on the nature of the soil. If the soil is loose and deep, the depth can be slightly shallower; if the soil is shallow and compact, it should be deeply cultivated to a depth of more than 60 centimeters. For uncultivated virgin land, the process is divided into initial cultivation and subsequent cultivation. The initial cultivation depth is generally required to reach more than 60 centimeters. After deep turning, the soil clumps do not need to be broken up, which helps retain heat for maturation and improves the effect of deep cultivation.

Development of Tea Gardens on Different Terrains:

(1) Development of Flat and Gently Sloping Tea Gardens

When developing the garden, proceed from top to bottom according to contour lines, which is beneficial for soil and water conservation and tea garden management. It is advisable to combine initial cultivation with subsequent cultivation. First, cultivate the entire area to a depth of about 30 centimeters, then plan the contour rows and dig planting rows to a depth of 60 centimeters. Remove roots and stones, refine the soil, and apply sufficient base fertilizer.

(2) Development of Terraced Tea Gardens

For mountainous areas with slopes steeper than 5°, terraced tea gardens at the same contour level must be constructed. The terraces should be built at the same contour level but with varying widths, with the outer edge higher than the inner edge and an outer embankment and inner ditch. Each terrace should connect to a path, and all ditches should interconnect. The minimum width of a terrace should not be less than 1.5 meters, and the height of the terrace wall should not exceed 2 meters. The maximum length of a terrace should not exceed 70 meters, and the slope of the terrace wall should ideally be between 60° and 70°. The surface soil layer on the slope should be retained on the terrace or in the planting ditch. Terraces can be built using turf bricks, gravel, or earth embankments. The terrace edges should be 20 centimeters higher than the garden, and as they are built, the core soil should be excavated, forming a higher outer edge and a lower inner edge. After the first layer is completed, the surface soil from the upper layer is dug down and used to level the lower terrace, then the second layer is built, followed by filling the second terrace with soil from the third layer, and so on.