Theme - Gushu

„I had heard from other puer buyers that Ma Hei farmers now use pesticide & fertilizer to boost yields. But as we stood there critiquing this batch of Ma Hei tea, a large, multi coloured beetle crawled out of the leaf pile. “We call this guy the tea boss” Mr. Gao explained. “If he’s around, it’s a good sign!”“

„When examining maocha, the colour of gu shu leaves tend to be more highly contrasted with a bright white hairy bud/tip surrounded by a grey, open leaf wrapper, with dark black stem & leaves. By comparison, tai di cha is almost all black, due to the use of fertilizer, the leaves grow quickly and the buds have less white hairs.“

„ye sheng; 野生 - Wild, feral. Whilst there is still a comparatively large number of truly wild tea trees in Yunnan, most tea does not come from them, coming rather from arboreal trees.i.e. trees that were originally cultivated, but then left untended for many years, or bushes. “