Let’s talk Taxonomy
Tea is in the genus of Camellia, a group of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. The specific species for tea is Camellia sinensis which has two important varietals: sinensis and assamica.
All common types of tea, including white, green, yellow, wulong (oolong), puer, and black teas come from these two varietals.
..but it is a tad more complex.
Camellia taliensis is in the same genus Camellia and is occasionally used to make tea. Known as Dali tea (大理茶) tea, it is a Yunnan province large leaf varietal tea that grows wild.
Tea (camellia sinensis) appears to have originated in southwest China, possibly growing in parts of Myanmar. It’s hard to know everywhere it grew wild.
The two varietals of tea most likely split more than 20,000 years ago.
