Dongshan and Jinting towns, both located in Wuzhong District of Suzhou City, have started harvesting Biluochun tea.

In China's tea culture, tea harvested before the Qingming Festival, an important time in the lunar calendar to guide farming activities, is considered a more valuable agricultural gift.

It's estimated that about 25,000 tender tea buds of Biluochun, grown in the Dongting mountain region near Lake Taihu, can make 500 grams of new tea.

(CFP Photo)

Its production is expected to increase by about 10% compared with that of last year, and prices of the new seasonal tea will rise slightly this year. The first-rated Biluochun is expected to be 8,000 yuan per 500 grams. Some high-end varieties are priced at more than 20,000 yuan, while the retail price offered directly by tea farmers is about 1,000-2,000 yuan per 500 grams.

Traditional tea processing techniques and their associated social practices in China, which includes Suzhou's Biluochun Tea processing techniques, were added to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.