Tongmu Pass

Tongmu Pass is located in the picturesque city of Wuyishan in Fujian Province, at the very northern tip of the province. Traveling from downtown Wuyishan, passing through Xincun village and heading north, it is over 70 kilometers to reach Tongmu Pass. Known as the birthplace of the world's black tea, it is also a paradise for birds and a world of insects. While Wuyishan is very famous, Tongmu Pass is also well-known, but many people don’t know that Tongmu Pass is actually within Wuyishan. However, anyone who has been to Wuyishan will likely make the trip to Tongmu Pass to enjoy the stunning scenery of the home of the world’s black tea.

Tongmu Pass — the birthplace of Zhengshan Xiaozhong black tea. It is one of the eight great passes of Wuyishan, situated at the northernmost tip of Fujian. Crossing it leads into Jiangxi Province.

        Tongmu Pass lies in the fractured mountain pass of the Wuyi Mountain Range, at an elevation between 800 and 1,500 meters. The average annual temperature is around 14°C, with an average annual rainfall of about 2,000 mm, and frost periods lasting approximately 90 to 120 days per year. The area is mostly covered by pristine forests and is known by such titles as “Birds’ Paradise,” “Kingdom of Snakes,” “World of Insects,” and “Key to the Biodiversity Gene Pool.” It is shrouded in clouds and mist all year round, with high air humidity and short hours of sunlight.

        The soil in the tea gardens mainly originates from granite bedrock. The tea plantations are mostly distributed on the foothills and flatlands on both sides of the valleys, scattered from the valley floor up to hillsides at elevations of 200 to 300 meters. The soil is predominantly gray-brown. The mountain slopes are generally 30 degrees or steeper, with few terraced fields and no large contiguous tea plantations. The soil pH ranges between 5 and 6.5. The soil layer is deep, with topsoil sometimes exceeding 1 meter in thickness, and a humus layer of 5 to 10 cm. The soil contains broken rocks, numerous air pockets, and is highly permeable, which is beneficial for the growth of tea tree roots.