Objective  Catechin composition of tea germplasms in the wild in Fujian was analyzed to aid organizing and utilizing the natural resources containing the highly desirable functional ingredients in tea.

  Methods  Forty-three wild tea germplasms in Fujian and 8 common cultivars were collected for chemical analysis by HPLC. Descriptive statistical, orthogonal partial least squares discriminant, and cluster heat map analyses were conducted for evaluating and screening the candidates.

  Results  EGCG3″Me was detected in all 43 specimens with the highest content of 33.65 mg·g⁻¹ found in YX06. Aside from EGCG3″Me, EGCG was also characteristically in significantly greater quantities in the wild tea germplasms than the 8 cultivated varieties. The cluster analysis grouped 12 wild germplasms, mostly from Zhao'an and Jiaocheng areas, along with the 8 cultivated varieties that had high contents of EC, EGC, and catechin (C). The remaining 31 wild tea germplasms were clustered into a group that had high contents of EGCG3″Me, ECG, and EGCG. Of all the 43 wild tea germplasms, 8 had high EGCG3″Me content (i.e., greater than 20mg·g⁻¹), 9 high EGCG (i.e., greater than 150 mg·g⁻¹), and 18 high C (i.e., greater than 200 mg·g⁻¹).

  Conclusion  The tea germplasms collected in the wild in the province were rich in EGCG3″Me, which could be specific cultivars for target breeding of tea.