Nature & Wildlife · Hill Country
Life Among the Tea Plantations
Emerald terraces wrap the hills of Nuwara Eliya, Dimbula and Uva. Tea shaped this landscape — and the lives of the communities who tend it.
6 min read
An educational feature from the Nature & Wildlife collection.
01
From coffee to tea
In the 19th century the hill country was planted with coffee until a leaf disease devastated the crop. Tea took its place: in 1867 James Taylor planted tea commercially at Loolecondera Estate near Kandy.
02
Making Ceylon Tea
Leaves are hand-plucked, then withered, rolled, oxidised and dried in factories that often stand on the estate itself. Growing regions are distinguished by elevation, giving each its own character.
03
Hill-country communities
Plantation workers were largely brought from South India during British rule. Their descendants — the Malaiyaha or Indian Tamil community — have shaped the culture of the hills, with their own temples, festivals and traditions.
04
Tea and identity
‘Ceylon Tea’ remains one of the island’s best-known exports, and a cup of plain tea — often sweet and milky — is part of daily life in every home.
Did you know
Interesting facts
01
James Taylor began commercial tea planting at Loolecondera in 1867.
02
Tea regions are classified by elevation: high, mid and low grown.
03
The country is still officially marketed as ‘Ceylon Tea’.
References & further reading
Content is summarised from the sources above for educational purposes. LANKA. is an independent publication.
