Lime 'Kaffir' at LCG (photo credit: Graham Bond)
Lime 'Kaffir'
Citrus hystrix
Rutaceae family
Grafted
Kaffir limes are a citrus fruit known for their distinctive bumpy, knobbly skin and intense aromatic properties. The fruit, zest and leaves can be used in savoury and sweet dishes including curries, soups, syrups, marmalade, beverages. A commonly used ingredient in Southeast Asian cooking.
Fruit is generally ready to harvest in late summer to early winter, but the season can be longer in warmer climates. The leaves are typically available year-round on healthy trees.
Tree Maintenance (Citrus)
Citrus hystrix
Rutaceae family
Grafted
Kaffir limes are a citrus fruit known for their distinctive bumpy, knobbly skin and intense aromatic properties. The fruit, zest and leaves can be used in savoury and sweet dishes including curries, soups, syrups, marmalade, beverages. A commonly used ingredient in Southeast Asian cooking.
Fruit is generally ready to harvest in late summer to early winter, but the season can be longer in warmer climates. The leaves are typically available year-round on healthy trees.
Tree Maintenance (Citrus)
- Fertilise once in each season (4 times a year, citrus are hungry feeders!) but avoid applying while trees are preparing to flower, flowering and up until fruit are larger than marbles.
- During establishment, water slow and deep each fortnight, more often if very dry or hot. As it matures, the tree will become more drought tolerant.
- Watering may be needed when young fruit is forming.
- Keep soil well mulched, leaving a gap around the trunk to avoid collar rot.
- Do not prune the whole tree at once, or it will not produce fruit the following season. Prune after fruiting to keep it healthy and shaped. Remove dead, inward facing or crossing branches. Remove any suckers from the rootstock below the graft.
- Spray with horticultural oil if sap-sucking insects or scale occur (avoid spraying on days where temperatures may reach above 30°C, or foliage can become burnt). Black sooty mold on the leaves is a symptom of these pests; ants are also an indicator that there is a problem, as ants will farm and protect the insects in order to consume their sweet secretions.
Lime 'Kaffir' at LCG January 2025 (photo credit: Jacqui Lachmann)
Lime 'Kaffir' at LCG October 2023 (photo credit: Graham Bond)
