• Please post pictures and as much information as possible.

Identifying wild peppers from a jungle in Kerala, India

Hello everyone! I have just returned home from an amazing trip to India! 
While following some locals to a river in Kerala, I came across a few peppers plants growing maybe 100 feet from the river! 
There seemed to be three different varieties growing!
I harvested as many ripe ones as possible from each plant for seed collecting, but unfortunately there were only one or two on each plant :/
I took pictures of pods/flowers in hope that somebody could help identify them!
Here are the pictures!
 
Plants
 
Pods
 
Variety #1
 ​
 ​
Variety #2
 ​
 ​
Variety #3
 ​
 ​
:dance: Thanks in advance! I'll be willing to trade/share seeds with whoever is interested after I grow them!  :party:
 
Great finds and I`m very jealous you got to visit Kerala!!!
 
Variety #3 is definitely a C.frutescens. There is a widely used C.frutescens in and around Kerala and I`m growing it this year from pods taken from a market there. 
 
http://thehotpepper.com/topic/46270-unknown-species-from-kerala-southern-india/?hl=kerala
 
Variety #1 looks to me like a C.annuum. The calyx and flower seem to me to fall within C.annuum, but I am not 100% certain.
 
Variety #2 is very interesting indeed. I`m temped to say C.frutescens because of the calyx, but it may be another annuum. I`m really not sure at all about this one. 
 
Nigel said:
Great finds and I`m very jealous you got to visit Kerala!!!
 
Variety #3 is definitely a C.frutescens. There is a widely used C.frutescens in and around Kerala and I`m growing it this year from pods taken from a market there. 
 
http://thehotpepper.com/topic/46270-unknown-species-from-kerala-southern-india/?hl=kerala
 
Variety #1 looks to me like a C.annuum. The calyx and flower seem to me to fall within C.annuum, but I am not 100% certain.
 
Variety #2 is very interesting indeed. I`m temped to say C.frutescens because of the calyx, but it may be another annuum. I`m really not sure at all about this one. 
 
Thank you! It was very beautiful and the people there were all so friendly!
 
Yes, I agree with #3 it looks exactly like the one on your post!
 
Thank you for the help, should help point me in the right direction! :]
 
Nigel said:
Great finds and I`m very jealous you got to visit Kerala!!!
 
Variety #3 is definitely a C.frutescens. There is a widely used C.frutescens in and around Kerala and I`m growing it this year from pods taken from a market there. 
 
http://thehotpepper.com/topic/46270-unknown-species-from-kerala-southern-india/?hl=kerala
 
Variety #1 looks to me like a C.annuum. The calyx and flower seem to me to fall within C.annuum, but I am not 100% certain.
 
Variety #2 is very interesting indeed. I`m temped to say C.frutescens because of the calyx, but it may be another annuum. I`m really not sure at all about this one.
I was thinking the same, but I think variety #2's growth habbit is off for a c. annuum, but I could be wrong. I was thinking it might be c. chacoense.

My guess is:

#1 c. annuum
#2 c. chacoense (not sure though)
#3 c. frutescens (if the filament is purple, then it matches c. frute)
 
Bear in mind this is southern India. There is no evidence that C. chacoense grows in southern India, at least that I`ve seen. I could easily be wrong and if I am please let me know where to look for the evidence. Similarly, for C.chinense there are very few varieties known in India other than the Bhuts/Nagas/Bihs, which tend to be found in the north east, not the south west. Again, I may be wrong, so if you know better please educate me.  :halo:
 
#2 is pretty interesting. Here is what I notice and it may confuse things more.

1.Single fruit per node and deciduous fruit which screams annuum(glabriusculum). Some nodes do look like they are holding multiples but the picture is a bit blurry and some annuum nodes are tightly spaced.
2.Geniculated petiole looks chinense and especially frutescens. If you look in the top left corner(1/3 of the way down) you can see two examples. One is holding fruit,the other not.
3. The flower appears creamy yellow/green like a chinense or frutescens,not like a snow white annuum flower.

My guess is C.chinense although I would like to see that flower close up.
Plant 1 and 3 are textbook frutescens.
 
Nigel said:
Bear in mind this is southern India. There is no evidence that C. chacoense grows in southern India, at least that I`ve seen. I could easily be wrong and if I am please let me know where to look for the evidence. Similarly, for C.chinense there are very few varieties known in India other than the Bhuts/Nagas/Bihs, which tend to be found in the north east, not the south west. Again, I may be wrong, so if you know better please educate me.  :halo:
 
Good point. I should have paid attention to the region.
 
Back
Top