Citrus australasica
Lime caviar really is the perfect way to describe this fruit. The first time I sampled finger limes I was amazed at how firm the little juice beads actually are. It’s only when you crunch down on them in your mouth that they burst and the tangy flavour is released. The texture is quite sensational and the flavour more complex than regular limes. The red champagne cultivar is described as having fruit with spiced apple, apricot and berry aromas. I planted my own finger lime last spring after completing a bush foods workshop in Sydney with Narelle Happ. Mine is a pink variety called Rainforest Pearl and I can’t wait to get my first fruit!
Description
The most well known of Australia’s six species of native citrus, finger limes are considered a gourmet bushfood and are sought after by top restaurants around the world. They are a fringe rainforest and understorey species indigenous to the rainforests of south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales. Finger limes are a hardy shrub to small tree and in cultivation plants usually grow around 2 to 5 metres and can be pruned to a manageable height to make them easy to harvest. Leaves are significantly smaller than regular citrus, and they have thorns and slender finger-like fruit from 6 to 12 centimetres long that come in a range of colours including black, green, red, pink, and yellow. Nursery stock are usually grafted onto common citrus rootstock varieties.
Growing tips
You can grow your finger lime in the ground or in a container and they will perform well as a feature tree, hedge, or even espaliered against a fence. They will tolerate nutrient poor soil and will require around a quarter of the amount of fertiliser as regular citrus. Apply fertiliser, compost or decomposed animals manure, as well as trace elements in spring. For best results prepare soil with organic matter or buy a quality potting mix. Soil should be well-drained with a pH of between 5 and 6.5. Water containers every 3 to 4 days, and more frequently on hot days.
Find a wind protected position for your tree with full-sun to part-shade and shelter your plant from the hot afternoon summer sun. They will tolerate light frosts once they have established but if you live in a cold region, you could try growing it in a container and moving it in response to the weather.
To maintain a neat and healthy foliage, regular light pruning is advised and once the plant is established lightly prune after harvesting fruit. Encourage an open shape with around 4 to 6 branches and remove any suckers from the rootstock.
Finger limes experience similar pests and diseases as other citrus including aphids, caterpillars, scale insects, bronze orange bugs, mealy bugs and grasshoppers. You also need to look out for dark brown spots that could be a fungal disease called melanose. They are also the natural host of the citrus gasp Bruchophahgus fellis and this can be reduce the quality and quantity of the fruit yield as well as the overall health of the tree. It’s important to check your trees for galls between June and September, and prune off any infected branches before the adult wasps emerge, which is usually by the end of August.
Harvesting
Fruiting occurs between December and May, depending upon the cultivar and the climatic conditions. Grafted plants usually begin fruiting in their third year, and start having larger yields by their sixth year. The horticulturalist at the nursery told me I should have some fruit within a year or two of planting my tree. There is some variation between different cultivars with some fruiting multiple times a year, some fruiting annually and others biannually so consider this when selecting your variety.
Fruit must be picked when they have fully ripened because they won’t ripen off the tree. You’ll be able to tell if they are ready to pick because they will feel full and will fall off the branch easily. The skins are more delicate than regular citrus and easily scar so expect some of your crop to have some marks. Avoid picking fruit when they are wet or early in the morning to lower the risk of rind damage from the release of oil from damaged oil glands (oleocellosis).
Store picked fruit between 10 and 20 degrees and they should have a shelf life of around 3 weeks.
Uses
You can use your finger limes with seafood, in salads, drinks, desserts, sauces or marmalades. Fruit can be frozen whole and this is a good way of preserving some for year round eating. Or the rind can be dried and crushed to be used as a spice.
To open, cut the fruit crossways and squeeze out the lime caviar. The oil from the skin can affect the flavour of the pulp, so it’s important to avoid getting excess oil from the skin on the pulp.
Where can you buy plants?
Go to a bush foods or native plant nursery or if there isn’t one nearby, talk to your local nursery and see if they will order one in for you. You could also order one from an online nursery.
Have you had success with finger limes?
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Why is my finger lime dropping its fruit before due season?
Hi Edith, It sounds like your finger lime is under stress of some kind. The most likely reason is that it has dried out too much. I’ve also had a problem with mine occasionally in the very early stages of fruiting with the wind blowing the fruit off. It’s really disappointing isn’t it. Is your plant in a pot or in the ground? What location are in? And how is the plant looking healthy in general? If you are not sure, feel free to send some photos to my email address.
Hi my finger lime has lived in a pot for many years (maybe 3 years) and has fruited however this year it has lost all leaves and the stem is slowly dyeing – should I trim it right back and move it into the semi shade and give a good drink- it normally lives in direct sun in the hottest place of the garden and I think it has suffered from this drought – thanks for your advice
Hi Lea, what size pot is your finger lime in? And has it been getting regular water? Sometimes dieback can be caused by a problem with the roots so I wondered if they might have got too much water at some point? Like other citrus, finger fingers like well-drained soil/potting media. How is the potting media responding when you water? Does it run off or soak in?Yes, I would cut off the dead areas and neaten it up but don’t cut it right back. And yes, providing some light shade would be a good idea.Some seaweed tonic and fertiliser would be a good idea too.
just want to add that over watering your lime will also cause leaves to fall off. they don’t mind dry soil. make sure it drains well and not wet all the time as this is main cause of leaves falling off.
Hi, I salt lemons to preserve them and I was wondering if I could salt finger limes?
Hi Denise,
I’ve never tried this myself but you could give it a go. You can use the rind in other ways so it’s worth a try. Maybe you could add some lemon or lime juice to bulk up the liquid and also so you can make use of your finger lime flesh. Let us know how you go 🙂
Can I use the leaves in a tea?
Hi Geordi, I haven’t personally heard of them being used in a tea but if someone else has some reliable information on this please feel free to comment. Thanks for your question 🙂
Hello, Are the leaves edible like the kaffir line trees?
Hi Dee, they don’t have special fragrance like Kaffir Lime leaves and I haven’t heard of anyone using them in a culinary way. Let me know if you discover any information about this though. I wouldn’t imagine they would taste very nice 🙂
Thanks for your article – it is the only one I’ve found that actually answered all my questions!
I live in Baltimore, MD, USA. I was given a small seedling fingerling lime plant in the fall of 2015, which has been growing steadily ever since.
I transplanted it two times, and it was doing well indoors, putting out plenty of new growth. But when I brought it outside for the spring, the leaves all turned a pale brown. I just repotted it and put in a long-acting citrus fertilizer stick in the pot. I also cut off the new growth that had turned brown, but not the other brown growth, because there is so much of it. Please tell me what is wrong, and how I can fix it.
Hi Julie, Sorry to hear about your finger lime after you have been nurturing it all this time. It could be a number of things. Over-watering could have been a factor, or too much fertiliser (Australian Native citrus like less fertiliser than regular citrus). Did the new pot have good drainage? Was the sitting in a saucer/bowl at all? What is your spring weather like? Is it very different to your inside environment?
Hi, I have had my finger lime in a large pot for approx 2 years now. Last year I did get a small amount of some tiny fruit, but they all fell off. This year (right now) I have approximately 30 fruit on the plant (still tiny) but growing. Is there anything I can do to ensure the fruit survive. I’ve read that I shouldn’t feed the plant during fruiting? I am keeping the water up. I would appreciate any advice during the fruiting period.
Hi Susan,
Your tree sounds like it is growing well. It’s common for fruit to drop off in the early years of growth and some of those 30 fruit will probably drop off this time. Apart from trees being young, other causes of fruit drop can be stress (sudden changes in conditions, pests, over-pruning etc), fertilising during flowering and early fruit development, and wind. The fruit will take some time to develop so once they are a couple of centimetres it is safe to fertilise. Monitor your tree for any signs of pests, check the leaves are a good green colour, and use your fingers to check you are watering at the correct amount (not over or under). I’m guessing yours is grafted? You can use regular citrus fertiliser, it just won’t need as much as other citrus because it isn’t producing the volume of fruit and foliage. Also, be gentle with the surface roots as they don’t like to be disturbed. Feel free to check-in with us to let us know how your fruits are going
Anna 🙂
I have had my finger lime now for 4 years, it has neither flowered nor fruited in this time, it did lose all it’s foliage a few years ago but after fertilizing with the seaweed fertilizer the leaves grew back, I am still waiting for it to flower and fruit, am I doing something wrong? I live Northern NSW/QLD Border (Tweed) and the pot it’s in is in full sun, perhaps it needs to be shaded in the afternoon?
Finger Limes do take a few years to fruit and flower. As long as yours is looking healthy I wouldn’t worry (look at the colour of the leaves – are they a nice mid/dark green?). It will probably fruit very soon. Particularly if it has had a set back. In terms of position, mine have a bit of afternoon protection, but your trees will let you know if they have happy or not. Are there any signs of leaf burn? Is it in a reasonable sized pot? It’s great you have given it some seaweed tonic. Have you given it any fertiliser over this time?
Do I need to have multiple finger lime bushes for them to produce fruit? I was given one as a present and am about to put it in its permanent home but wonder how it will fruit if there are no other finger lime bushes nearby?
Hi Gill, You only need one finger lime to produce fruit. You are correct, sometimes fruit trees will have separate male and female plants in which case they need one of each for pollination. Sometimes it is also recommended to have more than one tree even if it has both male and female parts to improve pollination but in this case you should be fine with one.
Hi I am having the same problem. I have 2 in pots. The orange one is having good crops and the green one has no flowers at all so far. Both are pretty lush and have lush green leaves.
Hi Erika, That’s great one of your trees is having good crops. Are your two trees the same age? Are they both grafted? Do both get the same amount of light? Are they both in similar in similar sized pots? It’s a positive sign that the foliage is looking healthy. It could be a number of factors but if you provide me with some more information I’ll try and help. Anna 🙂
Can you plant finger lime in late July early August in Sydney? National tree planting time.
Hi Heather,
A Finger Lime is a lovely choice for National Tree Day. Ideally early autumn or spring would be best when the soil is warmer, but winter will be okay. Just ensure it has well-drained soil and keep it adequately watered (but not water-logged). Also check if you have a grafted tree – these will fruit much earlier, and will be adapted to your local soil type if purchased locally.
Anna 🙂
Hi my finger lime trees has produced small wierd looking fruit doesnt look like a finger lime i brought 5 x grafted trees alstonville, collette, byron sunrise, crimson tide, pink ice they are 2 years old in the ground. Any ideas im stumped.?
Hi Jared, In what way do the fruit look weird? Are they a different or strange shape (lumpy?)? They could be being attacked by a pest as they develop (citrus can sometimes be effected by Citrus Bud Mite). Are the effected fruit from branches above the graft?
Do you think a finger lime would grow well in a 60 cm diameter wicking pot?
His Lis, They like well-drainage mixes around their roots so you would be better off planting it in a regular pot rather than a wicking pot. A 60cm pot is fine though. Just gradually step up the size rather than planting a small plant straight into a large pot. I hope this helps. Happy Gardening! 🙂
Hi
I purchased my finger lime 12 months ago as a quite small plant and repotted it to a 21cm pot. I wish to repot it to a larger pot. It has some new growth and one flower bud and hopefully there will be more. Is it OK to repot now or should I wait to see if more flowers develop and fruit sets. I don’t want to miss seeing fruit develop.
Hi John, Your plant is still young so it’s unlikely you will get fruit this year unfortunately. A grower would pull the flowers off for the first few years so the plant puts all its energy into growing but I completely get your excitement, so leave your flower on and see what eventuates. You never know 🙂 I would wait until spring when it is a bit warmer to re-pot unless you live in tropical/semi-tropical area of Australia. When it’s warm plants recover better. Early spring would be perfect. Best of luck with your tree!
The leaves on my finger lime are yellowing at the leaf tips. Some of these leaves then go brown and die at the tips. I have been fertilising, but could this be due to lack of a particular trace element?
Hi Roger, Is your finger lime in a pot or in the ground? The best thing to do would be to pH test the soil (you can buy a kit from your local nursery or even online if you don’t have one). If your pH is out of range, this will effect the availability of any nutrients you add to the soil, despite what and how much you add. If the tips are browning your tree might actually be getting too much fertiliser and have a toxicity. Although it’s a citrus it will need less citrus fertiliser than regular citrus. Your pH is very acidic or very alkaline you can buy some products to gently adjust it. Let us know how you go.
Thanks for the advice. My finger lime is in a large pot. I did a pH test and it was 5.5, which I gather is slightly on the low side. I’ve added a bit of dolomite lime and watered it in, so will re-test in a few days.
Hi. I recently purchased a Red Centre Lime tree and will grow in a pot as soil here (Mannum, SA) is too alkaline and can get very hot and windy during summer. Should I use native potting mix and fertilizer, or ‘standard’?
Hi Phil, Nice choice. And good question.These are grafted onto regular citrus rootstock so you can use a standard potting mix (high quality) rather than a native potting mix. And you can use a citrus fertiliser but they only need about a quarter of the amount. Monitor your trees leaves for colour and give them a bit more if needed. And yes, provide it protection from those winds. Best of luck.
Hi
My fingerlime is not thriving as it is in the shade part of our garden. Do you have any tips for transplanting? I have not done this before. Thanks in advance.
Hi Liz,
The first thing to do is to prepare the new hole for your finger lime so you can put it straight in. This will lessen the transplant shock. Next dig around your tree using a spade, taking as much of the root ball as possible. Particularly pay attention to keeping as much of the surface roots as you can because citrus have shallow feeder roots that they don’t like being disturbed. You can use a big piece of hessian or a tarpaulin to slide under the root ball, and use that to transport it to it’s new spot.
Generally when transplanting trees it’s a good idea to trim the branches back to the same extent as you have cut off the roots, however you can judge this on the overall size and health of your plant. If any of the severed roots are roughly cut, use secateurs to make it a clean cut.
Ensure the soil is at the same level in the new hole and give it a good water in and some seaweed tonic. Water your tree regularly while it gets re-established but ensure the roots aren’t constantly water logged to prevent fungal issues.
Hope this helps and your tree enjoys it’s new position 🙂
Anna
Hi, I’ve just come across this page. I’ve had some finger limes given to me, can I grow a plant myself from seeds? Or will I need to buy a grafted one from a nursery?
Cheers
Tracey
You can grow your own from seed but they will take a really long time to fruit so you unless you a very patient I’d recommend purchasing a grafted one 🙂
Hi Liz
I want to put my healthy finger lime in a larger pot- can I use citrus potting mix ?
Yes you can – that’s a great choice. Most finger limes are grafted so the bottom half of the tree is actually a regular citrus anyway. Best wishes for the ongoing health of your tree:)
Hi, I recently contacted an Australian Native nursery asking for finger lime. They sent two fruit pods. Can I grow a native tree from this?
Hi Lorraine,
You can grow your own tree from the seeds but it will take many years before it is mature enough to bare fruit. The quickest way to get fruit would be to purchase a grafted finger lime. The other advantage of a grafted variety is that you will be guaranteed a plant with quality characteristics such as taste, colour and high-yield bearing. If you already have some seeds, you might as well plant them. Have they sent you a dried fruit with seeds inside? Send me an email with a picture if you are unsure.
Why is my finger lime chartreuse variety, have mottled green skin?
It’s hard to tell without seeing it. It’s common for fruit to be damaged by their thorns. Feel free to send some photos and further information to my email if you would like me to have a closer look. Anna
Hi, I was given a finger lime plant. It is growing healthily. But I noticed the leaves are lighter green & larger than those I see on websites – abt 3″ to 4″ for the larger leaves Could it be it is not a finger lime at all?
Hi Mary, Yes the size of those leaves suggests you have something other than a finger lime. Does it smell like a citrus?
I looking for finger lime tree.