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Tea Plant (Camellia sinensis) Breeding in Sri Lanka

  • Chapter
Global Tea Breeding

Part of the book series: Advanced Topics in Science and Technology in China ((ATSTC))

Abstract

Tea is one of the main foreign exchange earners of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka ranks as one of the largest exporters of black tea in the world. Sri Lanka is well renowned for its high quality orthodox type (95% of the total production) black tea in the international market. The name “Ceylon tea” or “Sri Lankan tea” has been regarded as a sign of high quality throughout the world for a long time and even today, as reflected by the prices. In order to maintain the position of “Ceylon tea” in the world and to serve the local tea industry, it is imperative to focus on efficient tea crop improvement strategies to develop grower acceptable tea cultivars. Commencement of the tea crop improvement program at the Tea Research Institute of Sri Lanka dates back to the 19th century. Since then many significant achievements have been made in developing new tea cultivars, with salient milestones over the years. Growers have benefited immensely by using the improved tea cultivars developed by the Institute, though certain improvements have yet to be accomplished using the modifications made in the current breeding program. This chapter highlights significant achievements in the areas of germplasm collection, characterization and evaluation, and their use in the tea breeding program, with prominence given to cost effective complementary strategies adopted in germplasm conservation and the holistic approach adopted in germplasm characterization. Tea breeding strategies, priorities and the significant contribution made to the industry by developing improved tea cultivars over the years are discussed, emphasizing the diverse needs of the growers in multiregional tea growing areas in the country. The chapter also focuses on the application of biotechnological tools for breeding and crop improvement, highlighting the recent advances made in the development of new technologies and their practical applications in facilitating conventional tea crop improvement programs. Overall, the chapter reviews the achievements, challenges and perspectives of tea breeding in Sri Lanka and overviews the future trends, aims and goals of breeding improved cultivars acceptable to the growers. There is a focus on producing improved tea cultivars that thrive better under changing environments to meet the ever-changing demands of the end-users. Future perspectives on the application of new technologies to address key challenges faced by the industry locally and globally, by focusing on the integration of advanced biotechnological tools and decentralized participatory approaches to the current tea breeding program are also discussed.

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  1. Plant Breeding Division, Tea Research Institute of Sri Lanka, Talawakelle, Sri Lanka

    M. Trixie K. Gunasekare

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Gunasekare, M.T.K. (2012). Tea Plant (Camellia sinensis) Breeding in Sri Lanka. In: Global Tea Breeding. Advanced Topics in Science and Technology in China. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-31878-8_4

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