Abstract
The soil pH of tea garden was acidic (4.6 - 5.3) with organic contents ranging between 0.91% - 1.09%. Available po- tassium concentration was predominantly found in the range of 167 - 208 mg/kg followed by the nitrogen (150 - 189 mg/ha) and phosphorus (42 - 169 mg/kg). The Fe content was the one of the predominant heavy metal in soil (5494 - 5627 mg/kg) followed by Mn (245 - 435 mg/kg), Zn (30 - 111 mg/kg) and Cu (22 - 51 mg/kg). The concentration of toxic heavy metals Pb, Ni, and Cd in tea leaves, made tea and its infusions were too low. The level of most abundant essential heavy metals in tea infusion was Zn ranging from 0.09 - 0.52 mg/kg followed by Mn 0.10 - 0.42 mg/kg. The level of Fe and Cu was ranging from 0.068 - 0.073 mg/kg and 0.007 - 0.04 mg/kg in tea infusion respectively. The levels of all es- sential and the toxic metals were thus obtained were compared well with the other parts of the world.
Highlights
Tea (Camellia sinensis L.) is a perennial shrub, which is grown commercially in about 30 countries
The level of most abundant essential heavy metals in tea infusion was Zn ranging from 0.09 - 0.52 mg/kg followed by Mn 0.10 - 0.42 mg/kg
The values of percentage recoveries for the studied micronutrient and toxic metals in the tea leaves samples were ≥80 except Mn and Cu (Table 2)
Summary
Tea (Camellia sinensis L.) is a perennial shrub, which is grown commercially in about 30 countries. The major tea exporting countries of the world are Kenya, China, India, Indonesia and Sri Lanka [1]. It is one of the most popular beverages in the world [2,3,4,5,6] and is a rich source of some essential dietary metals [1,7] and metal-binding polyphenols [8]. Its growth is favoured in acidic conditions, with pH values ranging from 4.5 to 6.0 [10] It will grow in soil pH as low as 4.0, soil pH higher than 5.6 is considered unsuitable without pH adjustment of the soil. Soil with pH higher than 6.5 are not amenable to treatment for commercial tea growing [11]
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