Lime

A tropical plant. They need a warm climate and are most common in coastal regions in the lowland tropics. They grow from sea level to 2200 m altitude in Papua New Guinea. They suit humid areas and can survive in poor soils. Light to medium well drained soils are best. It is drought and frost tender. In Hobart Botanical gardens. It grows in Nepal to about 1800 m altitude. It can grow in alkaline soil. It suits hardiness zones 11-12.

Also known as:

Ambu, Angy, Arunam, Besenta, Chanh, Chanh ta, Chulukzapa, Dayap, Dehi, Derem, Elumichai, Erumichinaraham, Hindehi, Jeruk nipis, Jeruk sambal, Kagati, Kaghzi nimbu, Kaghzinimbu, Kagji-nemi, Karer, Key lime, Khatalimbu, Kro'ch chma, Laihpawma, Laim, Laranja-lima, Lawihkri, Laimi, Laini, Lemmetje, Lemon riri'i, Lima-da-persia, Limau asam, Limbe, Limon criollo, Limon mexicana, Lunboa, Maksun-ting, Manao, Mdimu, Moli laimi, Nabbu kaghdi, Nimbe, Nimma, Obulimawa, Patinebu, Peren, Pohon jeruk nipis, Rimo, Shalawi, Shauk-cho, Somma nao, Suan Ningmeng, Sweet lime, Te raim, Thanbaya-cho, Thesikkai, Tsioha, Tumeng, West Indian Lime

Synonyms

Citrus acida Roxb.

Citrus hystrix subsp. acida (Roxb.) Engl.

Citrus javanica Blume

Citrus lima Lunan

Citrus limetta var. aromatica Wester

Citrus medica var. acida (Roxb.) Hook. f.

Citrus notissima Blanco

Limonia aurantiifolia Christm.

Edible Portion

Fruit, Herb, Spice, Leaves - flavouring

Where does Lime grow?

Found in: Africa, Asia, Australia, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, British Indian Ocean Terr., BIOT, Cambodia, Cameroon, Caribbean, Caroline Islands, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Central America, China, Chuuk, Colombia, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, East Africa, East Timor, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Europe, Fiji, France, French Polynesia, FSM, Ghana, Guam, Guyana, Haiti, Hawaii, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Iran, Italy, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Kiribati, Laos, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Marquesas, Mediterranean, Mexico, Micronesia, Myanmar, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Niue, North Africa, North America, Northeastern India, Oman, Pacific, Pakistan, Palau, Palestine, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Peru, Philippines, Pohnpei, Puerto Rico, Rotuma, Sao Tome and Principe, SE Asia, Senegal, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Tahiti, Taiwan, Tanzania, Tasmania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, United States, Vanuatu, Vietnam, West Africa, West Indies

Notes: There are 20 Citrus species. Several hybrids have been formed.

Status: Moderately common in coastal areas of Papua New Guinea. It is a cultivated food plant.

Growing Lime

Cultivation: They are often grown from seed but are better if grafted. Plants can be grown by cuttings. A spacing of 4-5 metres is suitable. When grown from seed, several shoots may develop from the one seed, which means the seedlings may be identical to the parent.

Edible Uses: They are mainly used for juice and drinks. They are preserved in syrup and made into jam, jelly and marmalade. They can be used in pickles. It is used as a coagulant in the manufacture of soft cheeses. The chopped peel can be made into a sweetmeat with milk and coconut. The minced leaves are eaten with roast meat. They are also added to soups.

Production: Trees can start producing fruit quickly. They fruit in 5-6 years. They normally produce fruit all the year round. Fruit drop when mature. Black limes are sun dried limes. They are 2.5-4 cm across.

Nutrition Info

per 100g edible portion

Edible Part	Energy (kcal)	Protein (g)	Iron (mg)	Vitamin A (ug)	Vitamin c (mg)	Zinc (mg)	% Water
Fruit - raw	32	0.7	0.25	4	40	0.1	91

Lime Photos

Lime Lime Lime Lime Lime

References

AAK, 1980, Bertanam Pohon Buah-buahan. Penerbitan Yayasan Kanisius, Jogyakarta. p 37

AAK, 1994, Jeruk, Penerbit Kanisius, Jogyakarta. p 200

Abbiw, D.K., 1990, Useful Plants of Ghana. West African uses of wild and cultivated plants. Intermediate Technology Publications and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. p 42

Alexander, D.M., Scholefield, P.B., Frodsham, A., 1982, Some tree fruits for tropical Australia. CSIRO, Australia. p 49

Ambasta, S.P. (Ed.), 2000, The Useful Plants of India. CSIR India. p 127

Anderson, E. F., 1993, Plants and people of the Golden Triangle. Dioscorides Press. p 206

Arora, R. K., 2014, Diversity in Underutilized Plant Species - An Asia-Pacific Perspective. Bioversity International. p 62

Ashton, M. S., et al 1997, A Field Guide to the Common Trees and Shrubs of Sri Lanka. WHT Publications Ltd. pdf p 344

Bajpai, O., et al, 2015, Tree species of the Himalayan Terai region of Uttar Pradesh, India: a checklist. Check List 11(4): 1718

Barwick, M., 2004, Tropical and Subtropical Trees. A Worldwide Encyclopedic Guide. Thames and Hudson p 117

Bekele-Tesemma A., Birnie, A., & Tengnas, B., 1993, Useful Trees and Shrubs for Ethiopia. Regional Soil Conservation Unit. Technical Handbook No 5. p 150

Bennett, B. C., 1990, Useful Plants of Amazonian Ecuador. US Agency for International Development. Fifth Progress Report. New York Botanical Gardens. p 39

Bernholt, H. et al, 2009, Plant species richness and diversity in urban and peri-urban gardens of Niamey, Niger. Agroforestry Systems 77:159-179

Bodkin, F., 1991, Encyclopedia Botanica. Cornstalk publishing, p 261

Bremness, L., 1994, Herbs. Collins Eyewitness Handbooks. Harper Collins. p 47

Brouk, B., 1975, Plants Consumed by Man. Academic Press, London. p 308

Burkill, H. M., 1985, The useful plants of west tropical Africa, Vol. 4. Kew.

Burkill, I.H., 1966, A Dictionary of the Economic Products of the Malay Peninsula. Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol 1 (A-H) p 570

Cameron, J.W. & Soost, R.K., 1979, Citrus, in Simmonds, N.W., (ed), Crop Plant Evolution. Longmans. London. p 261

Cheifetz, A., (ed), 1999, 500 popular vegetables 215

Das, T. & Das, A. K., 2005, Inventorying plant biodiversity in homegardens: A case study in Barak Valley, Assam, North East India. CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 89, NO. 1, 10 JULY 2005

Ethnobotany of Karbis. Chapter 4 in p 107

Flora of Pakistan. www.eFloras.org

Franklin, J., Keppel, G., & Whistler, W., 2008, The vegetation and flora of Lakeba, Nayau and Aiwa Islands, Central Lau Group, Fiji. Micronesica 40(1/2): 169–225, 2008

French, B.R., 1986, Food Plants of Papua New Guinea, A Compendium. Asia Pacific Science Foundation p 223

French, B.R., 2010, Food Plants of Solomon Islands. A Compendium. Food Plants International Inc. p 226

Furusawa, T., et al, 2014, Interaction between forest biodiversity and people's used of forest resources in Roviana, Solomon Islands: implications for biocultural conservation under socioeconomic changes. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 10:10

Goode, P., 1989, Edible Plants of Uganda. FAO p 27

Hearne, D.A., & Rance, S.J., 1975, Trees for Darwin and Northern Australia. AGPS, Canberra p 45

Hemphill, I, 2002, Spice Notes. Macmillan. p 76

Jardin, C., 1970, List of Foods Used In Africa, FAO Nutrition Information Document Series No 2.p 128

John, L., & Stevenson, V., 1979, The Complete Book of Fruit. Angus & Robertson p 175

J. Wash. Acad. Sci. 3:465. 1913 "aurantifolia"

Katende, A.B., Birnie, A & Tengnas B., 1995, Useful Trees and Shrubs for Uganda. Identification, Propagation and Management for Agricultural and Pastoral Communities. Technical handbook No 10. Regional Soil Conservation Unit, Nairobi, Kenya. p 184

Kebebew, M. & Leta, G., 2016, Wild Edible Plant Bio-diversity and Utilization System in Nech Sar National Park, Ethiopia. International Journal of Bio-resource and Stress Management 2016, 7(4):885-896

Khan, D. & Shaukat, S.S., 2006, The Fruits of Pakistan: Diversity, Distribution, Trends of Production and Use. Int. J. Biol. Biotech., 3(3):463-499

Khanal, R., et al, 2014, Documenting abundance and use of underutilized plant species in the mid hill region of Nepal. ECOPRINT 21: 63-71, 2014

Kiple, K.F. & Ornelas, K.C., (eds), 2000, The Cambridge World History of Food. CUP p 1802

Lazarides, M. & Hince, B., 1993, Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia, CSIRO. p 60

Lorenzi, H., Bacher, L., Lacerda, M. & Sartori, S., 2006, Brazilian Fruits & Cultivated Exotics. Sao Paulo, Instituto Plantarum de Estuados da Flora Ltda. p 527

Lyle, S., 2006, Discovering fruit and nuts. Land Links. p 135

Macmillan, H.F. (Revised Barlow, H.S., et al) 1991, Tropical Planting and Gardening. Sixth edition. Malayan Nature Society. Kuala Lumpur. p 276

Mahony, D., 1991, Trees of Somalia. A Field Guide for Development Workers. Oxfam Research Paper 3. p 9

Manandhar, N.P., 2002, Plants and People of Nepal. Timber Press. Portland, Oregon. p 156

Martin, M.A., 1971, Introduction L'Ethnobotanique du Cambodge. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique. Paris.

Mbuya, L.P., Msanga, H.P., Ruffo, C.K., Birnie, A & Tengnas, B., 1994, Useful Trees and Shrubs for Tanzania. Regional Soil Conservation Unit. Technical Handbook No 6. p 176

Medhi, P. & Borthakur, S. K., 2012, Phytoresources from North Cachur Hills of Assam -3: Edible plants sold at Hflong market. Indian Journal of Natural Products and Resources. 3(1) pp 84-109

Miguel, E., et al, 1989, A checklist of the cultivated plants of Cuba. Kulturpflanze 37. 1989, 211-357

Miller, A. G., Morris, M. & Stuart-Smith, S., 1988, Plants of Dhofar. The Southern Region of Oman, Traditional, Economic and Medicinal Uses. Sultanate of Oman. p 246

Molla, A., Ethiopian Plant Names. http://www.ethiopic.com/aplants.htm

Morley, B. & Everard, B., 1970, Wild Flowers of the World. Ebury press. Plate 119

Morton, J. F., 1987, Fruits of Warm Climates. Wipf & Stock Publishers p 168

Mulherin, J., 1994, Spices and natural flavourings. Tiger Books, London. p 102

Ochse, J. J. et al, 1931, Vegetables of the Dutch East Indies. Asher reprint. p 645

Omawale, 1973, Guyana's edible plants. Guyana University, Georgetown p 28

Peekel, P.G., 1984, (Translation E.E.Henty), Flora of the Bismarck Archipelago for Naturalists, Division of Botany, Lae, PNG. p 278, 274

Phon, P., 2000, Plants used in Cambodia. © Pauline Dy Phon, Phnom Penh, Cambodia. p 158

Plants of Haiti Smithsonian Institute http://botany.si.edu/antilles/West Indies

Priyadi, H., et al, Five hundred plant species in Gunung Halimun Salak National Park West Java. A checklist including Sundanese names, distribution and use. CIFOR, FFPRI, SLU p 64

PROSEA handbook Volume 13 Spices. p 275

PROSEA (Plant Resources of South East Asia) handbook, Volume 2, 1991, Edible fruits and nuts.

Purseglove, J.W., 1968, Tropical Crops Dicotyledons, Longmans. p 499

Rajapaksha, U., 1998, Traditional Food Plants in Sri Lanka. HARTI, Sri Lanka. p 422

Rashid, H. E., 1977, Geography of Bangladesh. Westview. p 343 (As Citrus acida)

Ruiters-Welcome, A. K., 2019, Food plants of southern Africa. Ph.D. thesis. Univ. of Johannesburg p 98

Salako, V. K. et al, 2013, Home gardens: an assessment of their biodiversity and potential contribution to conservation of threatened species and crop wild relatives in Benin. Genet Resour Crop Evol

Schuler, S., (Ed.), 1977, Simon & Schuster's Guide to Trees. Simon & Schuster. No. 191

Segura, S., et al, 2018, The edible fruit species in Mexico. Genet Resour Crop Evol (2018) 65:1767–1793

Seidemann J., 2005, World Spice Plants. Economic Usage, Botany, Taxonomy. Springer. p 105

Selvam, V., 2007, Trees and shrubs of the Maldives. RAP Publication No. 2007/12 p 62

Small, E., 2009, Top 100 Food Plants. The world's most important culinary crops. NRC Research Press. p 327

Solomon, C., 2001, Encyclopedia of Asian Food. New Holland. p 220

Staples, G.W. and Herbst, D.R., 2005, A tropical Garden Flora. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. p 503

Styger, E., et al, 1999, Indigenous fruit trees of Madagascar: potential components of agroforestry systems to improve human nutrition and restore biological diversity. Agroforestry Systems 46: 289-310

Sujanapal, P., & Sankaran, K. V., 2016, Common Plants of Maldives. FAO & Kerala FRI, p 83

Sukarya, D. G., (Ed.) 2013, 3,500 Plant Species of the Botanic Gardens of Indonesia. LIPI p 200

Sukenti, K., et al, 2016, Ethnobotanical study on local cuisine of the Sasak tribe in Lombok Island, Indonesia. Journal of Ethnic Foods. 3 (2016) 189-200 p 198

Suwardi, A. B., et al, 2020, Ethnobotany and conservation of indigenous edible fruit plants in South Aceh, Indonesia. Biodiversitas Vol. 21, No. 5, pp 1850-1860

Tankard, G., 1990, Tropical fruit. An Australian Guide to Growing and using exotic fruit. Viking p 58

Tate, D., 1999, Tropical Fruit. Archipelago Press. Singapore. p 46

Teron, R. & Borthakur, S. K., 2016, Edible Medicines: An Exploration of Medicinal Plants in Dietary Practices of Karbi Tribal Population of Assam, Northeast India. In Mondal, N. & Sen, J.(Ed.) Nutrition and Health among tribal populations of India. p 155

Thaman, R.R., 1976, The Tongan Agricultural System, University of the South Pacific, Suva, Fiji. p 388

Thaman, R. R., 1987, Plants of Kiribati: A listing and analysis of vernacular names. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 296

Thaman, R. R, 2016, The flora of Tuvalu. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 611. Smithsonian Institute p 112

Timyan, J., 1996, Bwa Yo: Important Trees of Haiti. SE Consortium for International Development. Washington. p 100

Topp, J. M. W., 1988, An Annotated Check List of the Flora of Diego Garcia, British Ocean Territory. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 313

Tsering, J., et al, 2017, Ethnobotanical appraisal on wild edible plants used by the Monpa community of Arunchal Pradesh. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge. Vol 16(4), October 2017, pp 626-637

USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network - (GRIN). [Online Database] National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland. Available: www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/econ.pl (10 April 2000)

Valder, P., 1999, The Garden Plants of China. Florilegium. p 247

van Wyk, B., 2005, Food Plants of the World. An illustrated guide. Timber press. p 137

Vasquez, R. and Gentry, A. H., 1989, Use and Misuse of Forest-harvested Fruits in the Iquitos Area. Conservation Biology 3(4): 350f

Vickery, M.L. and Vickery, B., 1979, Plant Products of Tropical Africa, Macmillan. p 43

Vivien, J., & Faure, J.J., 1996, Fruitiers Sauvages d'Afrique. Especes du Cameroun. CTA p 297

Walter, A. & Lebot, V., 2007, Gardens of Oceania. ACIAR Monograph No. 122. p 130

Whistler, W. A., 1988, Ethnobotany of Tokelau: The Plants, Their Tokelau Names, and Their Uses. Economic Botany 42(2): 155-176

Young, J., (Ed.), 2001, Botanica's Pocket Trees and Shrubs. Random House. p 250

Zaldivar, M. E., et al, 2002, Species Diversity of Edible Plants Grown in Homegardens of Chibehan Amerindians from Costa Rica. Human Ecology, Vol. 30, No. 3, pp. 301-316005, A tropical Garden Flora. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. p 503