Abstract:
Tea leaves contain unsaturated fatty acids, key precursors of volatile compounds
contributing to tea aroma quality. Tea is cultivated in areas with diverse environmental
conditions. Nitrogenous fertilizers influence tea yields and quality. A previous single site
study demonstrated that increasing nitrogenous fertilizer rates raised fatty acid levels.
However it is not known if the magnitudes and patterns of the responses are replicated in
different locations due to variations in growth factors. Nonetheless, there is a single
fertilizer rate recommendation in all tea growing locations in Kenya. This study assessed
possible variations in patterns and magnitudes of fatty acids in a single cultivar grown
under similar nitrogenous fertilizer rates in different locations. Trials were conducted in
five locations using clone BBK 35, receiving varying nitrogenous fertilizer rates. Fatty
acids in two leaves and a bud were quantified as methyl esters. The levels varied (P≤ 0.05)
with locations and increased (P≤ 0.05) with nitrogenous fertilizer rates. The rates of
increase differed with locations leading to significant (P≤ 0.05) interaction effects. Thus,
similar fertilizer rates in different locations result in different fatty acid levels, explaining
differences in tea aroma quality from different locations even with the same agronomic
inputs. The results demonstrate the need to develop region-specific agronomic inputs for
the production of same tea quality.
Keywords: Camellia sinensis, Fatty acids, Location of production, Nitrogenous fertilizer
application rates, Tea.
