578 
the warmest part of a green-house. They will soon begin to 
make young wood. From the time they begin to make their 
young shoots till they have finished their growth give them plenty 
of water. They may be kept in the vinery or peach-house until 
they have formed their flower-buds, when a few of them may be 
removed to a colder place, such as behind the stage of a green- 
house, for the Caméilias are fond of being shaded during strong 
sunshine. In three or four weeks after, a few more of the 
Caméllias may be brought out of the peach-house, and put into 
a colder situation. This may be repeated three or four times, 
which. will make as many different successions of flowering. 
Those that are wanted to come into flower early may remain in 
the warm house until they are beginning to flower, when they 
should be taken to a cold place, as the coldest place in the green- 
house, then give them plenty of light only, and they will open 
their flowers well, and stand long. A Caméllia cannot stand 
heat when in flower, indeed they seldom open their flowers well 
when in heat, at all events the flowers soon fall off. Those that 
are kept all the summer in the vinery will come into flower by 
the Ist or middle of October, and a pretty large plant, having 
perhaps 50 or 100 flower-buds, will continue in flower till the 
month of January. Those plants that are removed early from 
the vinery will now be in flower, to succeed those that were in 
flower in October, and have now done flowering. These last 
should be immediately taken into the heat; they will make 
their young wood early, and they may remain in heat till they 
come into flower, which will perhaps be a month earlier next 
year. By attending to shifting the Camellia plants from the 
warm-house to the cold, a regular succession of flowers may 
be had from the first of October to the middle of July.” 
The plants produce better flowers from November to April 
than in the summer months, although they are sometimes to be 
had all the year round. Caméilias delight to be kept damp all 
the summer months, and a little shaded from the strong sun. 
Give them plenty of water all the time they are making their 
young shoots; they may also get a gentle sprinkling over the 
leaves once every week during the summer months, except when 
they are inflower. Caméllias will stand a great deal of cold and 
heat without bemg much injured, but they will not form many 
flower-buds without some artificial heat. 
XXVII. THE'A (altered from Tcha, the Chinese name for 
tea). Lin. gen. no. 668. D.C. prod. J. p. 530. 
Lin. syst. Monadélphia, Polyéndria. Calyx of 5 sepals. 
Petals 5-9, disposed in 2 or 3 rows, cohering at the very base. 
Stamens almost unconnected to the very base. Anthers roundish. 
Style trifid at the apex. Capsules 3-berried or 3-seeded ; the 
dissepiments are formed from the edges of the valves being bent 
inwards. (Geert. fruct t. 95.)—Beautiful evergreen shrubs, with 
shining laurel-like leaves, and largish, white, axillary, stalked 
flowers. 
1 T. vrripis (Lin. spec. 735.) leaves elliptic-oblong, serrated, 
3 times longer than broad; flowers of 5-sepals, and 5-7-petals, 
axillary, solitary, erect; fruit nodding, dehiscent. h.F. Na- 
tive of China and Japan. Letts. mon. t. 1.—Black. herb. t. 
351. (but with the flower red.) T. Bohéa stricta, Ait. hort. kew. 
ed. 2. vol. 3. p. 303. T. Chinénsis, Sims, bot. mag. t. 998. T. 
Chinénsis, var. a viridis, D. C. prod. 1. p. 530. Caméllia viridis, 
Link. enum. 2. p. 73. Théa Cantonénsis, Lour. coch. p. 339. 
—Lodd. bot. cab. 227.—Woodv. med. bot. suppl. 116. t. 256. 
Leaves pale-green. Flowers spreading, white, fragrant. 
All the different kinds of teas brought to this country from 
China are the produce of Théa viridis, and the whole differences 
depend upon soil and climate, and the different ages and periods 
at which their leaves are gathered, and different modes of drying. 
Dr. Lettsom observes, that a green-tea planted in the Bohea- 
1 
TERNSTRŒMIACEÆ. XXVI. Camerura. XXVII. Tues. 
tea country will produce Bohea-tea, and on the contrary that a 
plant brought from the Bohea-tea country planted in the Green- 
tea country will produce Green-tea. The plant loves to grow 
in valleys, at the foot of mountains, and upon the banks of rivers, 
where it enjoys a southern exposure to the sun, though it endures 
considerable variation of heat and cold, as it flourishes in the 
northern clime of Pekin, as well as about Canton, and it is ob- 
served, that the degree of cold is as severe in winter as some of 
the southern parts of Europe. However, the best tea grows in 
a mild temperate climate, the country about Nankin producing 
better tea than either Pekin or Canton. In Japan the tea is 
planted round the borders of fields without regard to soil or 
situation, but as the Chinese export great quantities, they plant 
whole fields with it. The plants are raised from seeds sown 
where they are to remain. Three or more are dropped into a 
hole 4 or 5 inches deep; these come up without any further 
trouble, and require little culture, except that of removing weeds. 
The leaves are not collected from the cultivated plants until 
they are 3 years old, and after growing 7 or 10 years they are cut 
down, in order that the numerous young shoots that will then 
rise may afford a greater supply of leaves. The best time to 
gather the leaves is while they are small, young, and juicy. The 
first gathering of tea leaves, according to Kæmpfer, commences 
‘about the latter end of February, when the leaves are young, 
and unexpanded. The second collection is made about the be- 
ginning of April, and the third in June. The first collection, 
which only consists of fine tender leaves, is most esteemed, and 
is called Imperial tea. The second is called Tootsjaa or Chinese 
tea, because it is infused and drank after the Chinese manner. 
The last, which is the coarsest and cheapest, is drank by the 
lower class of people. Besides the three kinds of tea here 
noticed, it may be observed, that by sorting these the varieties 
of tea become still further multiplied. The tea-trees that yield 
often the finest leaves grow on the steep declivities of hills, 
where it is dangerous, and in some cases impracticable to collect 
them. The Chinese are said to vanquish this difficulty by a 
singular contrivance. The large monkies which inhabit these 
cliffs are irritated, and in revenge they break off the branches 
and throw them down, so that the leaves are thus obtained. 
The leaves should be dried as soon as possible after they are 
gathered. The buildings or drying houses contain from 5 to 
10 or 20 small furnaces, about 3 feet high, each having at the 
top a large flat iron pan. There ‘is also a long low table, covered 
with mats, on which the leaves are laid and rolled by workmen, 
who sit round it ; the iron pan being heated to a certain degree, 
a few pounds of fresh gathered leaves are put upon it, the fresh 
and juicy leaves crak when they touch the pan, and it is the 
business of the operator to shift them as quick as possible with 
his bare hands, till they become too hot to be easily endured. 
At this instant the leaves are taken off with a kind of shovel, 
like a fan, and thrown on the mats before the rollers, who, 
taking small quantities at a time, roll them in the palms of theit 
hands in one direction, while others are fanning them that they 
may cool the more speedily, and retain their curl the longer. 
This process is repeated two or three times, or oftener, before 
the tea is put into the stores, in order that all the moisture of 
the leaves may be thoroughly dissipated, and their curl more 
completely preserved. On every repetition the pan 1s less 
heated, and the operation performed more slowly and cautiously. 
The tea is then separated into the different kinds, and deposited 
in the store for domestic use or exportation. The country 
people cure their tea-leaves in earthen kettles, which answer 
every necessary purpose at less trouble and expense than the 
process described above, and they are thus enabled to sell it 
cheaper. After the tea has been kept for some months, it 38 
taken out of the vessels in which it was stored, and dried again 
