Assessment of Pest, Soil, Yield and Tea Quality Affected by Organic Tea Cultivation Systems with the ‘Fushun’ Cultivar

Abstract

In this study, we examined the practicality of organic tea production systems with 'Fushun' over two years and examined its effects on pest occurrence, soil, yield, and tea quality. The organic tea production systems with 'Fushun' suppressed the damage caused by Empoasca onukii Matsuda, Adoxophyes honmai Yasuda, Tetranychus kanzawai Kishida, Aleurocanthus camelliae Kanmiya & Kasai, Discula theae-sinensis (I. Miyake) Moriwaki & Toy. Sato, and Pestalotiopsis longiseta (Spegazzini) K. Dai & Tak. Kobayashi. Through the organic tea production systems with 'Fushun' yields were equal to those of conventional cultivation and were higher than those with 'Yabukita' at all tea harvesting seasons. In addition, the first-flush kabusecha of organic tea production systems had a higher nitrogen content in tea than that of conventional cultivation. In other seasons, the green tea quality was almost equal to the conventional cultivation with 'Yabukita' throughout the year.