Tea garden of Lincang qualified to vie for GIAHS

The old tea garden of Mengku in Shuangjiang, Yunnan

A new tentative list of Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) of China was published by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in Beijing last month.

The  old tea garden system located in Shuangjiang, a county belonging to Lincang city, Yunnan province, was identified by the list as a qualifier for further selection.

Initiated by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, the GIAHS seeks beautiful landscapes that convey significant agricultural, ecological and cultural values in a global scale.

Covering 12,700 mu (about 850 hectares) of land over different altitudes, the tea garden has been considered a natural museum of biodiversity and a living gene bank. 

Experts from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences further proves that this garden in Shuangjiang remains some of the most intact old tea tree species worldwide that still grow on highlands.

Their value for scientific research cannot be underestimated.

Local females collect tea leaves from a tree near village. 

The local residents there, for centuries, have created a culture where tea is treated as a beverage, medicine and even food ingredient.

Tea is also a vital source of revenue for them.

According to data, more than 80% farmers in Shuangjiang work as tea growers, and with a total output of 13,038.7 tons, their income reached 5774 yuan per capita in 2018.

Ethnic females pick tea leaves.

Old tea trees in Shuangjiang 

The township government has also played a crucial role in protecting old tea trees and promoting tea culture.

They hope that tea growing could enrich the local community while strengthening the social-economic development of the county as a whole.

Three girls in ethnic dresses join a tea art competition. 

Reporting by Li Chunlin, Kang Huaiyong and Wang Shiming (yunnan.cn); trans-editing by Wang Jingzhong