The Council of Agriculture’s Tea Research and Extension Station (TRES) yesterday announced a new variety of tea called Taiwan Tea No. 24 that was developed from an indigenous tea plant dating to the Ice Age.
Known as the “Formosan landlocked salmon of Taiwanese tea,” Taiwan Tea No. 24 is the only purely indigenous variety of the Taiwan Tea series, station director Su Tsung-chen (蘇宗振) said.
Since 2000, the station’s Taitung branch has been conducting research on indigenous tea varieties on Taiping Mountain (太平山) in Taitung County’s Yanping Township (延平), he said.
Photo: Chien Hui-ju, Taipei Times
Using cutting propagation, researchers experimented with domestication, he said, adding that during the breeding period, they continued to explore the feasibility of growing tea plants native to mountainous regions on flat land.
The researchers searched for a native tea species on a mountain nearly 1,200m above sea level, said Yu Chin-an (余錦安), a research assistant at the station who worked on the project.
After 19 years, through various experimental procedures, single-seed selection and a series of comparative tests of superior strains, they have finally cultivated the plant, Yu said.
Taiwan Tea No. 24 is not only outwardly different from tea grown in the mountains in western parts of Taiwan, but also belongs to a different DNA group, the station said.
It is a variant of Camellia sinensis f. formosana and a plant left over from the Ice Age, it said.
It is highly resistant to disease and pests, and its advantages include having strong vigor and high yield, and tolerance to cold and drought, it added.
The aroma of the black tea it produces carries hints of mushroom, almonds and coffee, while the green tea has a citrusy flavor, the station said.
Analysis of its chemical composition showed that the caffeine content of Taiwan Tea No. 24 is far lower than that of Taiwan Tea No. 18 and other varieties, so drinking it would be unlikely to affect sleep quality, it said.
Its leaves contain high levels of free amino acids and relatively low levels of catechins, it said, adding that it can help “soothe the mind” and is less bitter.
The station is to apply for plant variety rights for the tea to initiate the process of technology transfer, it said.
Hualien and Taitung counties would be the first regions where the station promotes the variety, it said.
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
A total lunar eclipse, an astronomical event often referred to as a “blood moon,” would be visible to sky watchers in Taiwan starting just before midnight on Sunday night, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said. The phenomenon is also called “blood moon” due to the reddish-orange hue it takes on as the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, completely blocking direct sunlight from reaching the lunar surface. The only light is refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere, and its red wavelengths are bent toward the moon, illuminating it in a dramatic crimson light. Describing the event as the most important astronomical phenomenon
UNDER PRESSURE: The report cited numerous events that have happened this year to show increased coercion from China, such as military drills and legal threats The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to reinforce its “one China” principle and the idea that Taiwan belongs to the People’s Republic of China by hosting celebratory events this year for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the “retrocession” of Taiwan and the establishment of the UN, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in its latest report to the Legislative Yuan. Taking advantage of the significant anniversaries, Chinese officials are attempting to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan through interviews with international news media and cross-strait exchange events, the report said. Beijing intends to reinforce its “one China” principle
The presence of Taiwanese politicians at China’s military parade tomorrow would send the wrong message to Beijing and the international community about Taiwan’s sovereignty and democracy, a national security official said yesterday. China is to hold the parade tomorrow to mark the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II. By bringing together leaders of “anti-West” governments such as Russia, North Korea, Iran and Belarus, the parade aims to project a symbolic image of an alliance that is cohesive and unbending against Western countries, the national security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu
RSS