The ancient Tea garden of Baiying Mountain is located on the west bank of the Lancang River, in the middle slopes of Mount Dabing, Manwan Town, Yunnan County, Lincang City. It is the most diversified ancient tea garden discovered to date in terms of tea tree varieties. Here, one can witness the entire transformation process of tea trees from wild to cultivated. From the foot of the mountain to its mid-slopes, ancient tea trees are scattered among villages and fields, creating a landscape where tea is present within and around villages, and ancient tea trees cover the mountainsides. For centuries, tea trees have spread from hilltops to homes, coexisting with people in an unbroken cycle.

Tea King Er Gazi of Baiying Mountain

Thanks to the superior ecological conditions of the Lancang River basin, tea trees can absorb large amounts of nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. According to samples tested by the Tea Research Institute of the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Baiying Mountain tea contains 32.69% tea polyphenols, 195.072 milligrams of catechins, 4.39% Caffeine, and 45.27% water-soluble extracts. Baiying Mountain is home to 12 tea tree varieties and over two million ancient tea trees, including the Ben Shan, Heitiaozi, Er Gazi, Baiya Zi, and Baiya Kou varieties, among others, ranging from wild, cultivated, to transitional types. The diverse genetic makeup of Baiying Mountain's tea trees represents the unique domestication and cultivation methods of Yunnan tea trees. The coexistence of “small clusters,” “individual trees,” and “mixed growth with other plants” serves as a microcosm of tea cultivation history and a living fossil of tea tree origin and evolution, earning it the accolade of a “natural museum of tea tree evolution” from Chinese and foreign experts.

The Lancang River basin where the ancient tea garden of Baiying Mountain is situated was also visited by Xu Xiake, whose travels are chronicled in his “Diary of Travels in Yunnan,” occupying nearly ten thousand characters. Based on existing Ming and Qing historical records, the Lancang River ferry mentioned in Xu Xiake's writings is the oldest known crossing on the river, serving as a crucial transportation hub for trade and exchange along the southern Tea Horse Ancient Road during the Ming dynasty and beyond.

In 2016, Lincang City included 12,400 mu (approximately 826 hectares) of ancient tea gardens centered around Baiying Village in its first batch of protected cultivation-type ancient tea gardens, designating a core protection area covering 810 mu (approximately 54 hectares) for special protection. On May 13, 2025, the Baiying Mountain Tea Tree Evolution Natural Museum was inaugurated, becoming China's first natural museum dedicated to tea tree evolution. This marked the entry of the ancient tea trees of Baiying Mountain into a new phase of resource protection, scientific research, development, and brand promotion. In 2024, the Baiying Mountain Tea Tree Evolution Natural Museum in Manwan Town, Yunnan County, was officially recognized and awarded the title of “Social Science Popularization Demonstration Base” by the provincial government of Yunnan.