Tea-leaves Picking Festival of Wuliang Mountain in Nanjian County, Dali

Chinese Name: 南涧无量山采茶节
English Name:Tea-leaves Picking Festival of Wuliang Mountain in Nanjian County, Dali

Nanjian Yi Autonomous County, located in the southern part of Dali Prefecture and nestled in the longitudinal valley area of the Hengduan Mountains, is renowned for its favorable natural conditions for tea cultivation. Historically, it has been one of the original production areas for Yunnan Pu’er tea, with Nanjian green tea being especially famous, making it a tea-producing region in Dali Prefecture.

In March, when the spring tea buds emerge, I was invited to attend the Nanjian Wuliang Mountain Ten Thousand Mu Ecological Tea Garden Tea Picking Festival. The event was a delightful experience, including tea mountain tours, tasting of spring tea, trying local dishes, and immersing in Yi ethnic customs.

Tea Picking Ceremony: On April 11, amidst the joyful Yi songs and dances, the “Thousand-Year Tea King” ancient tea tree in Gud Village of Wuliang Mountain Town welcomed this year’s spring tea picking.

Key Highlights:

• Tea Industry Significance: The tea industry is a pillar of Wuliang Mountain Town’s economy. The town has 30,100 mu of tea gardens and over 10,000 ancient tea trees. The concentrated ancient tea trees are primarily found in Baoping Village, De’an Village, Xinzheng Village, and Gud Village. The oldest ancient tea tree, known as the “Thousand-Year Tea King,” is about 1,200 years old. It is located at an altitude of approximately 2,100 meters in Gud Village and stands about 16 meters tall, with a canopy spreading over 20 square meters and a base circumference of about 2.1 meters.
• Tea Production and Quality: Each year, numerous tea enthusiasts visit Gud Village to admire the “Thousand-Year Tea King,” participate in tea picking, tea making, and tea tasting. The “Thousand-Year Tea King” tea, processed manually, is known for its durability, rich flavor, and strong aroma. It is considered high-quality ancient tree tea, generally priced between 6,000 to 8,000 yuan per kilogram.
• Recent Developments: In recent years, Wuliang Mountain Town has focused on developing its tea industry, aligned with Nanjian County’s goal of becoming a “Green and Beautiful Tea Region” and a model for agricultural-tourism integration. Leveraging its unique geographical and resource advantages, the town has expanded its tea industry through tea garden construction, ancient tea tree protection, and product promotion. Efforts are aimed at creating a “one village, one product” model, extending the tea industry chain, and exploring tea-tourism integration.

  As of now, Wuliang Mountain Town has 19 initial tea processing sites, 13 tea processing enterprises, 3 refined processing factories, and 2 tea trading markets. In 2023, the tea production in Wuliang Mountain Town reached 2,149.65 tons with a value of 32,330.86 million yuan, making tea a significant contributor to rural income.

• Wuliang Mountain Tea Valley: The Wuliang Mountain Tea Valley, centered around Gonglang Town’s Fengling and Longping Villages, covers 2 townships and 9 village committees. It features a tea plantation area of approximately 30,000 mu (with over 5,200 mu certified as green and organic tea gardens). The annual tea production is nearly 2,000 tons, involving over 7,000 households and 23,000 people. The valley consists of 6 tea enterprises, 6 tea gardens, 2 refined processing sites, 19 initial processing sites, 11 tea cooperatives, and 3 state-level modern agricultural estates. It is an important node on the “Tea Horse Road” and a hub for raw tea collection in Dali, Pu’er, and Lincang.

Future Goals:

Nanjian County aims to become a model for tea-tourism integration and rural revitalization. The county emphasizes:

• Green and Organic Base Construction: Developing green and organic tea bases.
• Ancient Tea Tree Protection: Protecting and utilizing ancient tea trees.
• Green Processing and Branding: Promoting green processing and creating green tea brands.
• Industry Integration: Combining tea production with tourism, building a comprehensive tea-tourism project, and developing scenic routes that connect tea gardens and enhance ecological value.

By focusing on these areas, Nanjian County seeks to transform tea regions into scenic areas, tea mountains into financial assets, and tea farmers into stakeholders, demonstrating a successful model of industry integration and rural development.