Ecological characteristics of miang tea gardens (Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze var. assamica (J.W. Mast.) Kitam.) at Srinapan village, Rueang sub-district, Mueang district, Nan province

Abstract

The study of ecological characteristics of Miang tea groves at Srinapan Village, Rueang Sub-district, Muang District in Nan Province aimed to investigate the ecological characteristics of Miang tea groves in terms of soil properties by a comparative study of 4 land use areas, consisting of Miang tea grove areas, remnant forest areas, agricultural areas, and home garden areas. The study plots were selected by using the Stratified Random Sampling Method and the size of the sub-plots was 10 meters x 10 meters, totaling 3 sub-plots in each area (the duplicated number of the 4 mentioned areas were 1, 5, 3, 3 times, respectively). All types of perennials found in the Miang tea groves were identified and classified. Soil properties were studied from sample soils taking from surface soil (0-5 cm) and subsurface soil (20-25 cm). Chemical and physical properties of the soils were analyzed. It was found that chemical properties of the surface soil in the remnant forest and Miang tea groves had high pH value and was very acidic and the macronutrients were similar. Their micronutrients differed only slightly. Both soil hardness and soil moisture of the 2 areas were similar. Besides, chemical properties of the surface soil of the 2 mentioned areas were similar. As for the plant elements in Miang tea groves, it revealed that there were 14 species of plants, 14 genera, and 11 families. The Shannon-Weiner index was 0.16. There was not much diversity of perennial plants in the Miang tea grove areas because the tea plantation areas were managed by the owners of the plots. They did some pruning and opened spaces to have enough light in the tea grove areas.