Table 3 The difference between MTGs and JMATGs

Landscape

Monoculture shrubs

Forest

Community composition

Monoculture tea planting

Arbor, shrub, herb, parasitic and epiphyte coexisting

Agricultural type

Intensive agricultural

Mixed agroforestry

Habit

Shrubs

Trees

Age

10–50 years

100–1000 years

Tea plant spacing/m

0.1–0.3^* / 0.19 ± 0.07^b**

1.5–7^* / 4.38 ± 1.59^a**

Species

Camellia sinensis var. sinensis or C. sinensis var. assamica

Camellia sinensis var. assamica

Tea plant height/m

0.62–0.95^* / 0.81 ± 0.11^b**

2.5–8.3^* / 5.06 ± 1.87^a**

Diameter of tea plant canopy /m

0.45–0.7^* / 0.57 ± 0.1^b**

1.2–4.5^* / 2.9 ± 0.85^a**

Tea plant trunk

No

Yes