The tea plant is branching with alternate elliptical leaves. The leaves are leathery in texture, matte green in color and have serrated edges. The tea plant can take the form of a tree with a bowl-shaped canopy but is usually pruned under cultivation to be smaller and shrub-like. The plant produces fragrant white flower singly or in small clusters. Tea tree can reach up to 15 m (49 ft) in height and can live anywhere between 30 and 50 years.