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This evergreen climber from Sri Lanka and India produces one of our most commonly used spices - pepper. The round fruit are harvested at differing stages of ripeness to produce different colours of pepper black pepper is made from dried, green berries, and white pepper is produced from red or yellow fruit which has been soaked to remove the outer skin. In the wild, plants grow in humid, tropical areas where they grow among trees, shaded by their leaves and supported by their branches. In the UK, they need to be grown in a conservatory. Use John No 3 loam-based compost with added sand. Plant in bright filtered light and maintain high humidity. Water moderately during the growing season and feed monthly. Water sparingly in winter.