Morphological Characteristics of the Germplasm Resources of Wild Tea Trees in Anxi County and Its Biochemical Component Analysis

In order to explore the germplasm resources of wild tea trees, the morphological characteristics of 20 older wild tea trees in Anxi County were observed and determined, and the biochemical composition was also analyzed. The results showed that the 20 older wild tea trees in Anxi County were mainly distributed in the areas over 400 m above sea level. Among the 20 wild tea trees, 12 were shrubs and 8 were arbors. The leaf length of tea trees was 6.00-10.00 cm and the leaf width was 2.00-4.00 cm, while there were 4 tea trees with the leaf length exceeding 15.00 cm. The leaf shape was mainly oblong, followed by lanceolate and least oval. The leaf color was mainly green and dark green, and only 1 tea tree had yellowish green leaves. There were 11 plants with flat leaves and 4 plants with rugose leaves. The leaf margin was mainly flat, and the leaf apex was mostly acute. There were few hairs on the bud leaves, while only 1 tea tree showed the characteristic of having more hairs. The variation of tea polyphenol content ranged from 15.65% to 41.79%, and there were 7 tea trees with high tea polyphenol content (>36%). The variation of tea water extract ranged from 17.78% to 47.49%, and there were 4 tea trees with high tea water extract (>45%). The variation of caffeine content ranged from 0.24% to 3.86%, and there were 4 tea trees with low caffeine content (<0.31%). The variation of amino acid content ranged from 1.78% to 5.48%, and there were 2 tea trees with high amino acid content (>5%). The ratio of phenol to ammonia varied from 0.32 to 2.60, and the ratio of phenol to ammonia of 20 wild tea trees was all lower than 8, which was suitable for the selection of green tea varieties. In conclusion, the 20 wild tea trees in Anxi County had diversity in tree morphology, leaf characteristics and biochemical components, and showed obvious single-plant specificity, which could provide excellent materials for the targeted and reasonable development and cultivation of tea tree varieties.