neglected Kaffir Lime

[Mike T]

I have a kaffir seedling that has been neglected since planting in a mostly shaded spot and used as a prop for passionfruit to grow on but it just goes crazy. It might be only 6ft high but I have trimmed it to stay less than 13 ft wide. It produces an abundances of fruit even if it is never watered and the foliage get chewed by caterpillars.

[snhabegger]

Fry the leaves in hot oil, they taste delicious that way . . . 

Oddly enough in Thailand these are often quite small and spindly.  They're hard to grow, at least where we are in the NE, crave water, and they keep getting chopped back by people eating the leaves.  I once saw an immense one one growing out behind a sump, they love water.

[Mike T]

Nick I have noticed they are small and sickly looking in Thailand but large and robust here. I get about 100 inches of rain a year and that might help.I don't use the leaves much but visitors take away kg at a time.

[plantlover13]

How long for fruit from seed?

[thao]

I don't use the leaves much but visitors take away kg at a time.

Mike really If only you were my neighbor It's time to take some Thai cooking classes Why don't you sell them to the Asian population around your area or does everyone around you also have a nice kaffir lime tree as well?

Btw, the passion fruit are growing nicely, almost all of the seeds have germinated, all the flavicrapa have germinated fast and are the biggest. The edulis seeds on the other hand aren't germinating as nicely, only a few of each edulis type have sprouted. I'm most disappointed with Misty Gem, it hasn't done anything at all. Everything else that have germinating are .5"-3" already, Misty Gem nada

[Mike T]

Thao I do eat a bit of thai food and have chillis, krachai, galangal, sweet leaf,, smelly acacia and other thai herbs. The passionfruit should have better germination as the seeds of each were just dried for a couple of days together and then sent away.

[thao]

Thanks, i'll just wait and see how they grow. A dish you can use Kaffir limes finely julinne in, is Laarb/laab/larb(meat salad), look up on YouTube for some video samples and also they are great in any kind of soup. Aroma is just incredible and gives it a slight citrus taste as well, but not very strong, aroma is it's main purpose used.