The response to nitrogen of four high yielding good quality clones of tea was investigated on fertile virgin soil. The yields of all the clones examined were maintained without additional nitrogen during the first two years after planting but Clone PC 81 responded to nitrogen in the second year after planting. This was the earliest recorded stage at which seedling or clonal tea had responded to nitrogen in Malawi. The other clones examined all responded to nitrogen in the third year after planting, and the yields of all the clones were substantially increased by the higher rates of nitrogen applied in the early years after planting, though the responses to nitrogen differed between seasons.