Comparison of Soil Properties and Organic Components in Infusions According to Different Aerial Appearances of Tea Plantations in Central Taiwan

Abstract

The soil properties, climate, type of management, and fermentation process critically affect the productivity and quality of tea. In this study, tender tea leaves were collected from central Taiwan, and organic components in their infusions as well as physical and chemical soil properties differentiated using aerial photographs where good (G) and bad (B) growth exhibitions were determined. Eleven physical and chemical soil properties as well as five compounds in tea infusions were analyzed to determine the main factor that affects the growth of these tea trees. The Fleiss’ kappa statistic results revealed that the wet aggregate stability, pH, and exchangeable potassium content exhibit the most significant effect, with scores of 0.86, 0.64, and 0.62, respectively. Soil quality calculated using the mean weight diameter based on 11 soil properties revealed that ~67% of the total score of G is greater than that of B. Generally, contents of total polyphenols (51.67%) and catechins (51.76%) in the infusions of B were greater than those of G. In addition, significant positive correlations between the free amino acids content and soil properties, including pH and copper content, were observed. However, a negative correlation between the free amino acids and flavone contents and most of the soil properties was observed. The survey data set obtained from this study can provide useful information for the improved management of tea plantations.

Comprehensive Analysis Revealed the Specific Soil Properties and Foliar Elements Respond to the Quality Composition Levels of Tea (Camellia sinensis L.)

“…Our finding according to the result of the PCA correlation revealed that free amino acids might be enriched by increasing soil pH, exchangeable Ca, exchangeable Mg, total Mn and, total Cu level in the suitable range as well as by decreasing soil EC value, a result that was similar to the previous study [55]. Consequently, soil pH is the foundation of tea plantation management [56].…”

Effects of Biochar Application on Enzyme Activities in Tea Garden Soil

“…Data from the control group ( Figure 2 ) showed that the soil pH without biochar decreased over time because tea trees had the function of acidifying soil ( Tongsiri et al, 2020 ). In the 5th, 8th, and 11th months after the use of biochar, the pH of the biochar treatment group was higher than that of the control group, which was in accordance with the previously reported results ( Hailegnaw et al, 2019 ).…”

Analysis of Characteristics in the Macro-Composition and Volatile Compounds of Understory Xiaobai White Tea

“…These indicate that understory planting improves the growth environment of tea plants and the quality of tea. In addition, the nutrient status of the soil also has an important impact on the quality of tea, 11.0% nitrogen (N), 1.65% phosphorous (P), and 3.7% potassium (K) are reported to be necessary nutrients for tea [ 26 ]. As shown in Figure 1 B, the organic matter, total nitrogen, and available nitrogen contents under shading were significantly higher than those in CK, other factors did not show a uniform pattern in the shaded and unshaded groups.…”