What Is Gushu Tea?

Everyone knows tea, and tried it atleast once in their life. But there are many misconceptions about tea. Firstly, tea doesn’t grow as a shrub naturally in neat rows it is a slow growing tree that grows wild in the forest. Before tea became a global commodity it grew wild. Empty your mind and discover gushu tea, ancient tree tea.

1. What Does “Gushu” Mean?

The term Gushu (古树) comes from two Chinese characters:

  • Gu (古) = ancient
  • Shu (树) = tree
Gushu Tea refers to tea made from ancient tea trees more specifically greater than 100 years old typically 100–300+ years old, and in rare cases approaching 1,000 years old.

The common misconception is that tea is grown as a uniform row of waist high pruned bushes. It’s a familiar image and largely true for most products but this is not how tea was originally harvested and grown. With industrialisation and the commodification of tea this is the case however tea was originally grown in forest gardens within biodiverse ecosystems, thriving as part of a balanced, natural environment.

Hmong Girl Under towering 600 year old Ancient Tea Tree
Whilst they may look dramatically different Gushu Tea Trees are the same plant species (camellia sinensis) as plantation tea bushes. The difference is only in the age of the tree, size and the way they are grown and managed. Gushu Tea Trees produce the same black, green, white and oolong teas you enjoy.

2. The Meaning of “Cha” (茶): A portrait of man in harmony with nature

The Chinese characters paints a picture of co-existing harmony between the earth, people and forests.

It combines three key elements (radicals):

Cha in Chinese Characters
  • 艹 – grass or plant (top)
  • 人 – a person (middle)
  • 木 – a tree or wood (bottom)

Together they form a portrait of humans living in harmony with plants and forests. This symbolism is a stark juxtaposition to plantation tea production and the wider modern model of agriculture focused on extraction and efficiency. Gushu cha embodies the original spirit of cha— a relationship of coexistence.

3. Gushu Cha vs Plantation Tea

While both come from the same plant species, the growing conditions create two entirely different expressions of tea.
Gushu Tea (Ancient Tree Tea) Plantation Tea
Grows in natural forests Grown for yield and efficiency
Often intercropped with other vegetation Same-aged, same-height plants
Grown without chemical fertilisers or pesticides Often treated with fertilisers and pesticides
Exists within balanced, biodiverse ecosystems Produced as monocultures
Grown from seed rather than cloned Propagated through cloning for uniformity
Deep root systems penetrating far into the earth Shallow root systems limited by cultivation
Absorbs deep-soil minerals unavailable to younger plants Accesses only surface-level soil nutrients
Naturally resilient to drought and disease More vulnerable, reliant on human intervention
Harvested selectively by hand Often mechanically hedged and harvested
An example of the biodiversity within some ancient tea gardens

4. Are Gushu Tree Tea Organic?

Most gushu teas do not carry formal organic certification. Organic certification systems are designed for large commercial farms and are often too costly or impractical for small artisanal producers, despite the fact that they are grown without pesticides or synthetic fertilisers. In practice, gushu teas are grown with traditional methods grown wild or semi-wild akin to organic farming practices however they are not officially certified.

5. How are they picket: Hand-Picked in 3D

Harvesting gushu tea is physically demanding as pickers often:

  • Climb trees balancing on branches

  • Hold onto branches with one hand to maintain balance and pick with the other
  • Leaves are harvested at different heights and proximities
  • Rarely do pickers wear any safety equipment
  • Navigate uneven forest terrain.

This is not factory-line agriculture. Every leaf is selected by hand, often by families who have cared for the same trees for generations.

Hands clung
Bare feet to tightly grip the tree
Hmong girl in the palm of the tea tree
Gentle hands do hard work 😉

6. Ethnic Communities: The Ancestoral Stewards of Tea

For many communities, tea is more than a drink—it is a way of life. For generations, many ethnic groups such as the Dao, Hmong, Phu Noi, Dai, Hani, Akha have acted as custodians of the ancient tea tree forests and gardens. Under their care, the seeds have spread, survived war, empires and modernization.

Tea remains central to their cultures, used in:

  • Rituals and ceremonies
  • Hospitality and daily life
  • Traditional medicine
  • Spiritual and ancestral practices
A Dao girl beneath the grave of her ancestors amongst the tea gardens

An example of an ethnic group and their connection with the tea trees.The Dao are born bathed in tea water, drink tea for sustenance, have tea in their rituals and ceremonies, follow teas harvest and rely on the tea tree for their livelihood and when they pass they are burnt with the fallen branches of the tea tree and their ashes are returned to the foot of tea trees)

Why Does Age Matter in trees

7. Why Gushu Cha Is Rare

  • Gushu is limited by nature itself
  • Overharvesting damages the tree, so harvests are limited to a few times per year.
  • Many trees are protected or sacred
As global demand grows, true gushu tea becomes increasingly rare—and increasingly important to protect.

8. Why does tree age matter?

  1. Slower Growth

    Older tea trees (Gushu) are valued because age changes how a tree grows, feeds, and expresses itself in the cup. As trees mature, growth slows, allowing leaves to accumulate more minerals, resulting in greater depth, richness, and complexity than faster-growing young trees.

  2. Deeper Roots

    Old trees have deeper and broader root systems. These roots reach mineral layers unavailable to younger plants, drawing a wider range of nutrients into the leaves, further enhancing flavour complexity.

  3. Growth in semi-wild and wild

    They are usually only lightly managed forests in high altitude, biodiverseareas

9. What Does Gushu Cha Taste Like?

While flavor varies by region, altitude, and processing, gushu cha often shares these qualities:
  • Deep complexity
  • Strong sweetness (hui gan) that returns even after ingesting
  • Low bitterness, even when brewed strong
  • Long-lasting lingering finish
  • Evolving taste across multiple infusions

Many people notice that gushu tea doesn’t just taste different—it feels different it has cha qi

10. Cha Qi (茶气) of gushu Cha

One of the most profound qualities of gushu cha is its cha qi—the felt life vitality of tea.
Ancient tea trees grow slowly over decades or centuries. Their roots reach deep into mineral-rich soil, absorbing the full complexity of the land. This depth of growth translates into a tea that carries grounded, enduring energy.  Personally when drinking gushu I have a flowy state of mind where I am very creative yet concentrated in what I’m doing whilst being very alert.

Drinkers often describe gushu cha’s cha qi as:
  • Warming and centering in the body
  • Clearing and focusing for the mind
  • Expansive yet calming, rather than jittery
  • Lingering long after the last cup
This is why gushu cha has traditionally been valued by monks, meditators, and tea enthusiasts.

Why We Care about Gushu Cha at Bhava Cha

When you drink gushu cha, you are not just drinking tea.
It is:
  • Rooted in local communities
  • Grounded in tradition
  • Steeped in history
  • Infused with life

At Bhava Cha we believe these qualities are what help us become found in flow. 

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