Newsletters
A tea tree that has remained unpruned for approximately 70 years in Türkiye's Rize province has grown to a height of 5 meters, drawing visitors and prompting researchers and local residents to call for its formal protection.
Located on land owned by Hasan Bekir in Yanikdag village, part of Rize's Cayeli district, the tree is expected to be considered for official heritage status and potentially brought into local ecotourism projects.
Professor Turan Yuksek, a faculty member in the Landscape Architecture Department at Recep Tayyip Erdogan University, carried out an examination of the tree and its surrounding environment.
Yuksek said tea trees of this size were extremely rare in the eastern Black Sea areas where tea farming is widespread. Researchers have identified only two comparable trees in Rize during their inventory studies.
His team collected samples from the site and carried out ecological, soil, and landscape planning and design assessments. The findings and proposed project for the area were later published.
The tree has also become a point of interest for villagers and outside visitors, with researchers considering ways to turn the surrounding area into a location for photography and special occasions.
Yuksek said the tree had gained monumental value because of its age and could serve as evidence of how tea cultivation developed in Türkiye.
"When we look at that tree, we think it has witnessed Rize's climatic changes and survived until today as a valuable genetic resource," he said.
Protecting the tree and carrying out further research could provide information about the development of tea plants in Türkiye while also turning the site into a tourism resource, according to Yuksek.
Hasan Bekir said the tree had survived since his grandfather, Ali Bekir, established the tea garden approximately 70 years ago.
Bekir explained that he had chosen not to cut down the shoot because it had been left behind as a family memory. Although part of the tree was damaged by snow, it has grown to around 5 meters in height, while its trunk has reached approximately 70 centimeters in diameter.
He said the family could not look after the tree alone and called on the relevant authorities to step in because of its historical importance.
Bekir added that he would welcome its registration as a monumental tree, an official heritage designation that would provide formal protection.
Village resident Mehmet Cakiroglu said the tree appeared to date back to the period when tea was first introduced to the area, based on accounts passed down by older generations. He added that the tree had apparently never been harvested and said formal registration would help preserve it.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
1 min read
1 min read
