Geographic Environment
Wuliang Mountain has always been a famous ancient tea mountain and an important source of premium Pu'er tea in the upper reaches of the Lancang River Basin. 
Wuliang Mountain, formerly known as Mengle Mountain, has an average elevation of 1,800 meters. It is named after the meaning "standing so high as to be immeasurable," and is located in the western part of Jingdong Yi Autonomous County, Pu'er City, Yunnan Province. The Wuliang Mountain range extends from north to south, with its main ridge lying between Nanjian and Jingdong counties. Its branches extend to Zhenyuan and are divided into two by the Mengdong River at the source of the Donggualin Stream in Zhenyuan. The branches east of the Mengdong River pass through Zhenyuan, Jinggu, Ning'er, Pu'er, and Jiangcheng, all the way to Xishuangbanna, which forms the six major ancient tea mountains on the eastern side. The western branches are shorter, covering the Dachaoshan Town in Jingdong, Zhentai Township and Banpan Town on the west bank of the Mengdong River in Zhenyuan, and Jinggu Township, Minle Town, and Bi'an Township in Jinggu. The main peak, Bijia Mountain, is located within Jingdong County, with an elevation of 3,374 meters.
Towering and majestic, the Wuliang Mountain range extends for hundreds of miles. Situated at the intersection of the Hengduan Mountains and the Yunnan Plateau, it is in a transitional zone between the northern and southern subtropical regions, creating a "four seasons on one mountain, different weather every ten li" vertical climate. This also leads to significant variations in the flavor and taste of tea from different smaller mountains within the Wuliang Mountain range.
With abundant light and heat resources, ample rainfall, fertile soil, and mist shrouding it in all seasons, Wuliang Mountain is dotted with ancient tea gardens. Thanks to the mild, humid, and misty climate, the tea trees have a long growth cycle, resulting in tea leaves rich in nutrients, high in amino acids, and with moderate polyphenol content, forming a common characteristic of mellow taste and lasting aroma.
History of the Tea Mountain
The Wuliang Mountain area has a long history of tea production. The "Barbarian book" written by Fan Chuo in the Tang Dynasty recorded, "Tea comes from the mountains around Yinshengcheng, scattered and harvested, with no cultivation method. The Meng barbarians boil it with pepper, ginger, and cassia bark to drink..." Here, "Yinshengcheng" refers to the present-day Jingdong County in Pu'er City, where the main peak of Wuliang Mountain is located. During the Tang Dynasty, the Yinsheng Jiedushi Prefecture was established here, which was also an important trade distribution center of the Nanzhao Kingdom at that time.
Also known as the "Yunnan Gazetteer" and "Southern Barbarian Gazetteer," the "Barbarian book" comprises 10 volumes and is the earliest historical literature with a clear record of Pu'er tea in Yunnan. The ancient Yinshengcheng was situated among the Wuliang Mountain ranges.
According to legend, tea cultivation on Wuliang Mountain began in the Three Kingdoms period, with tea varieties and cultivation techniques introduced by Zhuge Liang during his southern expedition. Until the Nanzhao period of the Tang Dynasty, the Yi people continued cultivating and using tea trees on Wuliang Tea Mountain. By the Qing Dynasty, the tea gardens on Wuliang Mountain covered more than 100,000 mu (about 16,600 acres), producing over 3,000 tons of fresh tea leaves annually. In addition to local processing, the tea was also transported to Menghai and Yiwu for processing into various types of Pu'er compressed tea, which were then sold domestically and internationally.
In the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China period, due to social unrest, poor sales, heavy taxes, and other factors, the six major tea mountains in the north gradually declined. Meanwhile, the Wuliang Tea Mountain area in the Lancang River Basin gradually became the center of Pu'er tea production, with its status becoming increasingly prominent. The tea produced here was processed into various types of compressed tea, which was then sold to Tibet through Myanmar and India, or to Southeast Asia through Myanmar and Thailand. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Wuliang Tea Mountain area experienced a heyday in tea trade, with "merchants and travelers filling the roads and horse caravans blocking the routes." To this day, it remains an indispensable and precious gem among Yunnan's tea regions.
Ancient Tea Tree Resources
Wuliang Ancient Tea Mountain has preserved many valuable ancient tea tree resources. In the early 1950s, there were many ancient tea trees with diameters exceeding 30 centimeters and heights of 3-5 meters in the Wuliang Mountain area. In December 1951, staff from the Yunnan Tea Research Institute, led by a local hunter, ventured deep into the mountain valleys and discovered an ancient tea tree with a height of 5.5 meters and a base trunk diameter of 1.38 meters. Although aged, this ancient tea tree, dubbed the "Tea Tree King," was still lush and flourishing.
In the mid-1980s, as the road leading to the ancient tea mountain where the Tea Tree King stood was completed, more experts, scholars, and visitors came to Wuliang Mountain to observe, explore, and admire the Tea Tree King, taking pride in witnessing its majestic presence. News of the discovery of the Tea Tree King started to spread within China, but due to the difficult journey at the time, few people ventured to visit it. After comprehensive multidisciplinary investigations and studies, it was conservatively estimated that the Tea Tree King was over 800 years old, a cultivated "Ancient Tea Tree King," and a living testament to the earliest cultivation and utilization of tea trees by the Chinese nation, contributing to the well-being of humanity.
The pristine and serene natural ecology, the centuries-old mountain charm, all reflect the profound historical and cultural heritage and natural beauty embodied in Wuliang Mountain. This "aristocrat" of tea hidden in the primeval forest has captivated more and more tea enthusiasts. by human cultivation as a living witness to the earliest use of tea trees by the Chinese nation for the well-being of humanity.