Yercaud Coffee and Spice Plantation Heritage, Salem

Yercaud hill station in the Shevaroy Hills of Salem district, rising to 1,515 metres, supports coffee, pepper, cardamom, and orange cultivation established by the British in the 19th century. The Shevaroy (Servaroyan) Hills take their name from the Yaduvar tribal community who originally inhabited the forested heights. Coffee and cardamom cultivation was introduced by British planters in the 1820s, with the Shevaroy Coffee Association established in 1930 to regulate quality. Today's plantations are a mix of large estates and tribal small-grower cooperatives. The Yercaud orange — a small, thin-skinned mandarin known for exceptional sweetness — is a distinctive local product associated with Shevaroy hill ecology.