Picking the right leaves is a delicate affair, because leaves need to be handled very carefully. Most tea is therefore picked by hand. If machines are used then older leaves and stalks will end up in the tea, making it taste a lot worse!

Legend has it that in a remote village in China, there are specially trained monkeys that pick the best tea. You can buy tea that claims to be harvested in this way, but there is no evidence that this actually happens!