Magnesium Regulation Increases the Content of Characteristic Volatile Compounds and Enhances the Intensity of Odor Characteristics in Tea Tree Leaves

Magnesium plays an important role in regulating the growth and quality of tea trees. However, the effect of magnesium regulation on changes in the aroma quality of tea tree leaves remains unknown. In this study, the volatile compounds of tea leaves under different magnesium concentrations were determined to obtain the characteristic volatile compounds that changed significantly and their odor characteristics and to explore the effect of magnesium regulation on the aroma quality of tea leaves. The results showed that magnesium significantly enhanced the content of 15 characteristic volatile compounds in tea tree leaves, especially heptyl formate and t-geraniol. The 15 characteristic volatile compounds mainly showed five kinds of odor characteristics, such as fruity, green, floral, pungent, woody, and burnt; magnesium regulation critically increased floral, fruity, and green odor characteristics. This study lays an important foundation for the application of exogenous magnesium ions to regulate tea aroma quality.