China is the homeland of tea．It is believed that China had taa-shrubs as early as five to six thousand years ago，and human cultivation of teaplants dates back two thousand years．Tea from China,along with her silk and porcelain, began to be known the world over more than a thousand years ago and has since always been an important Chinese export．At present more than forty countries in the world grow tea with Asian countries producing 90% of the world's total output．All tea trees in other oountries have their origin directly or indirectly in China． The habit of tea drinking spread to Japan in the 6th century, but it was not introduced to Europe and America till the 17th and 18th centuries．Now the number of tea drinkers in the world is legion and is still on the increase. Next page