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by Maxwell Fernando

Originally tea was an exclusive Chinese possession that resisted all attempts to have it transplanted in other soils. Tea drinking habits too were exclusively Chinese, and they had to be changed to suit local conditions in the countries of its later adoption.

The first reference to tea was made in 1782. Though in the negative Johann Christian Wolf, a British journalist in reported the species "Tea" was not to be found in Ceylon. Although there is no conclusive evidence of its existence in the country.

Wolf joins Tellent a British classical writer in discussing the attempts made by the Dutch to grow those aromatic varieties. The London Observer of July 25, 1802 had the following to say "An attempt had been made by a naturalist of eminence to cultivate the tea plant in the island of Ceylon but the experiment had been a total failure.

In 1805 James Cordiner, a naval officer had mentioned that he had seen the tea plant growing wild in Trincomalee and that the soldiers had been seen indulging in a beverage made from the dried leaves of this plant. This decoction according to him had been preferred to coffee. This species of cassia, then referred to as "wild tea" has confused many others and led them into believing it to be the real tea. Captain Robert Percival, in an account of the island written in 1803 had expressed similar views but without any authority.

These various references no doubt gives the impression that the subject of tea had been discussed freely in the country.

The species in its present form and falling into the category of Camellia Sinensis was ever found growing wild in the country however is yet to be proved.

Tennent on better authority maintains that the leaves of the Rannawara (Cassia Auriculate) were infused in the South of Ceylon as a substitute for tea and was referred to as "Matara Tea Tree". In the "Century Directory" the Ceylon tea tree is classified as Eloeodendrom Glaucum. Doctor Henry Trimen, in his handbook of "Flora of Ceylon" describes it as a small tree growing from the cost to Dimbula with leaves similar to that of tea but strongly serrated. It seems however certain that a tea tree had been growing in the Botanical Gardens at Kalutara before 1824.

Truths and fallacies regarding the growth of the tea plant in Ceylon were finally resolved in 1886 by R. Henry Trimen who succeeded G. H. K. Thwaites as the Director of the Royal Botanical Gardens. A report forwarded by him provided the information to clear up the matter.

The genuine bath of tea seeds to reach Ceylon was in December 1839. It was all planted at the Royal Botanical Gardens, Peradeniya. These seeds were obtained from the Calcutta Royal Botanical Gardens and were identified as the "Indigenous Assam Tea'. Thereafter two further batches of tea plants were obtained. The first batch of 205 plants arrived in February 1840 followed by a further lot of 30 plants in April 1842. They were all planted in Nuwara Eliya.

By accident he met in London E. F. Gapp to whose care the plants had been sent. He was at that time tutor to the son of Sir. A. Oliphant, Chief Justice of Ceylon. He informed that in October 1842 he received the plants from Mooyari at Nuwara Eliya about thirty in number and cleared a piece of jungle for them on Sir Anthony's land. They were doing well when he left the island a few years after Gapp thinks the ground was somewhere in the neighbourhood of the present Queens Cottage. Some of the Nuwara Eliya plants were put out near Essex Cottage, now Naseby tea plantations and it may be worth a search to discover whether these plants are still in existence.

The part played by the private sector comes into prominence from thereon. The introductory care taken by the Worms Brothers in the promotion of coffee and then tea cultivation in the country cannot at this stage be disregarded. "The Warms Brothers belong to a remarkable family," says Ukers in his book. All about Tea. The eldest, Solomon was the first Baron de Woons, son of Benedict Worms of Franfort-on-Main and his spouse was the eldest sister of the Baron de Rothschild.

The brothers were born traders and adventurers. They were both members of the London Stock Exchange. The spirit of adventure made Maurice to set sail East in 1841 and Gabriel followed him the following year. They set themselves up in shipping and banking business with Maurice looking after the planting end in the up-country. He inaugurated the planting enterprise in the country with some Chinese cuttings which he brought home after a voyage in 1841.

They had in 1841 attempted to raise the Chinese tea plant on a perfectly prepared clearing on Rothschild Estate, Pussellawa and later on Labookellie on the slopes of Ramboda Pass. Manufacture was undertaken with the assistance of a Chinese tea maker. The project was abandoned due to high costs involved which often exceeded sterling pounds 5 per pound.

The 2000-care Rothschild Estate at Pussallawa was well known for its fullness and efficiency and was considered a model for others to review. For over twenty five years Rothschild tea was the standard for quality in Mincing Lane. With the start made at Pussellawa they soon reached out and opened Keenakelle in Badulla, Meddecombra in Dimbula, Thotulagalla in Haputale, Condegalla and Labookelle in Ramboda and Norwood in Dickoya with the total holding of 7318 acres. They held these properties for twenty four years and sold them to the Ceylon Company for sterling pounds 157,000 considered a record transfer of European owned assets.

Many other planters too tried growing tea as a subsidiary crop to coffee but all failed due to the high cost involved in its manufacture. Very little headway was made during the initial stages to expand its cultivation. Though the first attempt at manipulating the leaf was a total failure, the tea plants flourished well.

In the meantime P. D. Millie claims to have planted tea in Pundaluoya in 1861. David Baird Lindsay too says that he had obtained Assam tea seeds in 1864 and had them planted in Rajawella, Dumbara. His team manufactured from trees six feet tall were unsparingly condemned in Mincing Lane and very little was heard of the Dumbara teas thereafter.

In a much quieter way and as early in the field the then proprietors of Loolecondera Estate, Hewaheta, G. D. B. Harrison and W. M. Leake and later the Anglo Ceylon and General Estate Company Ltd., who under the careful management of Taylor were able to acquire the highest eminence among Ceylon teas.

Taylor on Harrisons's orders collected tea seeds from the Peradeniya Gardens and planted them along the roadsides in 1866. Further W. M. Leake being the Secretary of the Planters' Association was able to influence the Governor to send Arthur Morice an experienced coffee planter on a mission to India to inspect and report on the Assam tea districts. The report that followed was well accepted by the planting community.

This report persuaded Leake to order for his firm M/s Keir Dundas & Company, a consignment of Assam hybrid tea seeds in 1866. These seeds were handed to the care of Taylor who in turn planted them in a clearing of twenty acres. Expansion of tea cultivation thereafter was accelerated and the two Botanical Gardens were hard pressed to supply the industry with the required planting material.

In almost four year's Taylor was able to sell his teas in the Kandy market. The samples forwarded to London too were well reported on and this convinced them to extend their cultivation further. Taylor being a perfectionist was involved in the manipulation of the leaf so as to obtain the best possible results. He was lucky to have served under Jenkins, an Assam tea planter who knew all the complexities of tea manufacture.

He was able to draw on his knowledge and before long Taylor too became an expert tea maker and began to produce teas equal to Assam varieties in preparation and quality. The company continued to import Indian tea seeds on a regular basis and Loolecondera teas began to be classed as being equivalent to the best in the world.

Loolecondera soon was acclaimed the showpiece in local tea planting. In 1888 the twenty-year tea bushes were reported to be growing vigorously and in 1891 Taylor himself reported that the "tea field were as good as ever, giving the same crop. It had been fertilised only once with caster cake in the beginning of 1885".

Taylor died on May 2, 1892 and his successor G. F. Deen reporting on the same fields twenty-seven-years later had the following to say, "They are still full of vigour, showing no signs of decay and up-to-date the oldest tea fields have been giving yields at the rate of 471 pounds of made tea per acre.

It is still flushing and yielding well".

Whilst on this subject mention must be made of the other famous coffee estate that went over to tea. There was Delta Estate, adjoining Rothschild on the one side, owned by Rev. James Glenie and Captain Harry Bird's Black Forest where F. R. Sabonadiere, the founder of Sabonadiere & Company, Colombo resided.

By mid 1875 tea was growing in thirteen districts out of the thirty-seven plating districts then recognised.

There were no tea plantations north of Kandy and none on the Uva side. Hewaheta no doubt is indicated as the oldest stronghold of the tea plantations but what is most significant is the rate of development that took place in the districts of Nuwara Eliya and Yakdassa. In 1875 when James Taylor had planted 100 acres tea in Loolecondera in Hewaheta lower. Jenkins on Hope in Hewaheta upper had expanded the tea coverage to 136 acres.

In most cases estates opened in the Nuwara Eliya district had been mainly for growing tea and it is only for this reason that it had acquired the proud title of a "Tea District". The leading planter in this district was I. A. Rossiter who in 1875 owned 203 acres. He remained the owner and Superintendent of Fairyland (35 acres), Hazelwood (18 acres) and Oliphant (150 acres) with Alston Scott & Company as agents.

He also owned Florence in Yakdessa comprising 100 acres of prime tea. He had been operating extensively in the purchase of suitable tea lands and among them was Ratnillakelle which he named the "Great Western" Estate. Other plantations were Pedro (35 acres) owned by F. Bayley and Tullibody (50 acres) owned by G. Armitage both under the supervision of E. A. Watson.

The Ceylon planter had much to learn and he did it with undiminished anxiety and consecration. This led him to install in place of coffee, a speedily spreading and rewarding industry that helped to win back his earlier losses.

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