Food Plants International - Plant Fact Sheets Citrus hystrix - Wild lime, Kaffir lime

Edible Portion: Leaves, Fruit, Spice

A low shrubby tree up to 6 or 8 m high. The trunk is thin and crooked. It has slender sharp thorns. The leaf petiole has very large lobes. The leaf is oval. The leaves can be 8-15 cm long by 3-5 cm wide including the leafy stalks. The leaves are dark green and shiny above and pale and matt underneath. The flowers are small and white. The fruit are small (8 cm across) with a rough, thick skin and very little edible pulp inside. They are very acid. The peel of the fruit is very fragrant.