Only the two tender leaves and bud of each of the several young shoots of the tea plant are necessary for the production of the best grades of tea. Each new growth of young shoots are hand-picked at intervals of 8 to 10 days throughout the year. However, during the process of picking by workers of varying skills and agility, some mature leaves and stems are unavoidably harvested. Consequently, several grades of tea are produced, with each grade reflecting the leaf quality harvested.

It takes as much as five pounds of the harvested leaf to produce one pound of “Black Tea”