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Prophet

Some Native (finger) lime photos

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I recently found my first wild finger lime fruits. I had noticed many wild plants but never found any fruits until now. Two different varieties/colours from two different locations. Here are some photos.

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dig some seed from those and go to the bushfood forums off guruna.net

im sure youll find willing friends :)

so whats a good rootstock for this species in grafting

i too have found many bushes in the wild but never fruits- id lik eto try budding them and bringing home...

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have you considered tagging wild plants in case you find superior fruit?

its of debatable ethics but the law does provide for 'discovery' of new varieties in horticulture and legal protection

just something to consider

might as well seeing as so few others give a shit enough to go looking

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Here are some photos of native round lime (Citrus australis) that i found yesterday just north of brisbane. Not many fruits though, maybe because of the drought.

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wow! How do they taste sitting in a Corona or being squirted on one's hand alongside a dash of salt and a shot of Tequila or Mezcal?? :D Do these trees grow wild in your area? Or are they native and usually bought and cultivated in people's private homes? Having paid $1.35 at an IGA supermarket for 1 lime a few months ago this could be a cost-saving alternate to the imported limes!!

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they are native and grow wild. I don't think many are cultivating them though. The native finger lime is much superior in flavour than the native round lime. I think the round lime might be better for flavouring certain food dishes which require a very strong limey flavour. They round ones are quite bitter and not that juicy. The finger limes are much more juicy and would go well in drinks etc

Edited by Prophet

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Hey all,

Wow Prophet, those are some very interesting varieties you have there, wonder if they taste any good or not as I know there are many different types of finger lime's. Some grow wild around Brisbane including the much sort after 'green' variety, and some grow in North Queensland including a red but most of them don't taste all too nice.

I have 5 green variety finger lime plants (three grafted and 2 seedlings) and one of a certain red variety I impulse bought.

Any quick growing citrus lime is a good rootstock for these plants I have found including normal old lime trees.

As for these trees being a money saving tool, if you are willing to wait a little while, yes. From seed they take around a year to get even big enough to put in the ground and will take around 7 to start to fruit but will grow to a height of up to 15m in 10 -15 years, as a grafted plant they will only grow to a size of about 4m but will only take around 4 years to fruit (all depending on condition). I am referring to my experience growing the popular green variety which I was able to obtain from a local plant store :)

My two cents

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Ive been keeping an eye out for these guys, yet too see any in WA so far

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I have 2 plants eatfoo

1 from a cutting, non nursery from over east. Other is a grafted plant of the rainforest pearl variety. I currently have several instock in the nursery, but I'd imagine u could find them locally. Seems the rainforest pearl variety is the only one avail in WA.

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I have 2 plants eatfoo

1 from a cutting, non nursery from over east. Other is a grafted plant of the rainforest pearl variety.

so they do, grow by cutting aswell, good to know!

i took several cuttings, of the fingerlimes, but they are slow to strike, if some strike at all.

i always liked taking citrus cuttings as they are unusual, but maybe the fingerlimes original roots are better for the plant, than the citrus trifoliata rootstock, which is the most commonly used, to probagate this plant.

having a cutting instead of a grafted individual means aswell, that all suckers and ground shoots formed, are aswell genuine fingerlime genetics and not just a stock plant.

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Hi Nexuswalker you said some grow in North Queensland including a red but most of them don't taste all too nice. I spend a fair bit of time in the s/e QLD rainforest & have found 2 species of finger limes the more common citrus australasica var. australasica which has green, yellow or blackish fruit & citrus australasica var. sanguinea which has a crimson red fruit, as far as i know var. sanguinea is only found in a few locations & is only in the s/e of QLD. Do you happen to know what the species is that gets the red fruits in n/e QLD?

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I have 2 varieties from the CSIRO hybrid... i think 'red centre lime' and somthing else (both struck from cuttings under HPS, 16 hour light period, with +90% strike rate)... have a desert lime seed grown, only small and 2 grafted 'rainforest pearls' from daley's, also smallish... also picke up some fruit from Eumundi market on Sunshine Coast on holidays, and have extracted many seeds which I will germinate soon...

The plants I have are probably big enough to take cuttings but I think I will wait to spring and buy some citrus grafting stock and do some grafts... might even have some plants available late spring...

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Hi Nexuswalker you said some grow in North Queensland including a red but most of them don't taste all too nice. I spend a fair bit of time in the s/e QLD rainforest & have found 2 species of finger limes the more common citrus australasica var. australasica which has green, yellow or blackish fruit & citrus australasica var. sanguinea which has a crimson red fruit, as far as i know var. sanguinea is only found in a few locations & is only in the s/e of QLD. Do you happen to know what the species is that gets the red fruits in n/e QLD?

 

The red coloured - possibly var sanguinea?? - occurs more broadly. To approximately as far south as Wardell south of Ballina on the coastal ranges.. In this areas there are also yellow and green skinned and yellow to pink fleshed varieties...

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sorry tarenna they are most likely to be var sanguinea as they are also found in northern NSW . I was just wondering if anyone anyone new the name of the native red form in north QLD? what i should of said was as far as i know var sanguinea only grows as far north as s/e QLD .

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Thanks for the clarification Jox. Yes, it is always best to be specific and not general to ensure that ambiguities do not arise.. var sanguinea is legit....http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Citrus~australasica

But I have found many apparent intergrades between var. sanguinea and var. australasica...

much to be learnt yet...

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