The process diagram illustrates the transformation of tea leaves in three different varieties of tea.
Overall, the process of making tea includes 4 steps, starting from collecting tea leaves and ending with drying those leaves. Depending on what the final product is, additional stages are conducted.
The process for both green tea and oolong tea starts with gathering tea leaves, after the collecting step, green tea leaves have to be steamed and then rolled with oolong tea leaves in the next stage. Afterward, while green tea leaves go straight to the drying process, oolong tea leaves need to be exposed to the air for 4 hours before drying. Finally, green tea and oolong tea are produced.
For small leaf black tea, firstly, the leaves are collected. Secondly, black tea leaves are taken to the crusher. In this stage, the leaves will be crushed into small pieces. Thirdly, small black tea leaves are exposed to the air in 2 hours to reduce the humidity of the leaves. Finally, these leaves will undergo a drying process and produce the small leaf black tea.