kaffir lime

aneh starts with ...
Hi
Does anybody in know if there is a place I can buy kaffir lime fruit in perth to make my sambal olek. i have a small tree but its going be a long time until i get any fruit of it.
Thanking you much

joe says...
loquat are not fruiting at the moment, but zou can some times pick up fruit at the swapmeets though there mainly fruit from seedling trees.

Yvette says...
Hi Aneh - any luck on where to buy kaffir limes? I need some leaves for a recipe, my local nursery is out of stock of the trees and I can't find where to buy leaves from. Any ideas?

aneh says...
Hi Yvette i used to buy mine frozen from lucky imports in chinatown in perth, i have bought a fruiting tree from blooming nursery in joondalup if thats any help

anonymous says...
you could have just ripped the 3 leaves from the tree without paying for it, haha

Jimmy says...
yeah, tis normal as weather cools.

some slow release keeps em growing year round and hopefully nice n green.

au0rey says...
This is the first time I am growing kaffir lime and comquat calamondin in Melbourne. Can anyone advise me if they can take winter well or do I have to take some measusres? THe kaffir lime is having this single tall shoot with lots of leaves. Just wondering if I need to chop it off. Can it be used for propagation by root induction? Thanks!

Pictures - Click to enlarge
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Speedy says...
Pandan is very sensetive to cold (not just frost) below 7-8degC for extended period can risk death of pandan.
Due to the plants small size, it could be grown in a heated greenhouse and or moved around to suitable microclimate like indoors over winter. If growing indoors (very well lit of course) just keep an eye out for mealy bugs - Pandans worst pest from my experience.
Also in cold weather dont let water sit in the leaf axil as it can rot and kill the growing tip and then the whole plant will likely die.
It's also a prime candidate for growing hydroponicaly.

Bunga Kantan (Etlingera sp.), a large plant in the ginger family, is more problematic for growing down south as it is a much bigger plant that is needed to harvest the desired parts (flower buds). Even northern NSW winters can be a bit hard on this species if not looked after.

Lemongrass - easy to grow in Vic.

Curry leaf- in northern Vic., my plants fruit every year and seedlings grow ok,
but nowhere near the growth rates of milder winters.

Kaffir lime- easy, I dont bother with grafted plants as they're as tough as any citrus rootstock so I grow them from seeds or cuttings.

Speedy says...
No, not stictly speaking , but I have plants at a friends place in NNSW.
Ive always grown them in realy puggy clay with a bit of added matured compost in pots sitting in water.
The roots usually grow out into the water and look v healthy.

The danger to the plants in the clay is that it can get very cold in winter and takes more to shift the temp up.
Grown hydro, they could be grown in warmed water keeping them growing strong all year.
Low temps at the roots is IME the major limmiting factor when growing plants from a warmer climate than your own.

april07 says...
Hello Wayne and everyone here.
Could anyone spare me some kaffir lime's seed?
I have a lady that send me, the seed from overseas but they went into quarantine and they want me to pay AUD42.00 for them in order to get the seed back. Hmmm... pay that amount, I might already gotten a huge plant for that.
I just wish to grow them and hoping if I able to succeed in growing them by seed. my email april07_07@yahoo.com. thanks

au0rey says...
Does anyone know growth rate of kaffir lime plants? My kaffir lime looks healthy but grows at a snail pace..meaning I do not see new growth/leaves for a long time (compared to my calamondin which puts on new leaves rather fast). Just wondering it it is like this...

au0rey says...
Thanks Itdepends!

jony says...
Hi, If anyone knows where to buy a Kaffir Tree/plant in sydney, please let me know. Thank you

Amy says...
Hey i was just wondering if anyone knew where i could get a kaffir lime tree or seeds in brisbane north?

Hayden says...
You use the rind of the fruit as well don't you?

irene says...
Hi, autumn is here as I write this. I got 3 citrus trees - lemon, tahitian lime and kaffir lime purchase from daley's, growing in large pots and doing well. I would like to know that if it's necessary to cover them during winter or if they are frost-sensitive. The pots are too heavy to move around so moving them indoors during cold nights is not an option. Thanks.

irene says...
With kaffir lime, it's the leaves that are primarily used in cuisine like Thai and Indonesian. The fruit is rather small and bumpy and very little juice - you'd need about a 100 to get anything out of them. I suppose you could use the rind if you wish but I find it rather bitter and tarty compared to regular limes.

brad says...
Hi, can anyone please advise if Kaffir trees grow OK right on the coast? We live approx 100m from the ocean - a sheltered spot but will still get salt on the breeze. Thx..

au0rey says...
Juanita, that's strange my plant does not have thorns. It is abt two year old. Is yours olders having thorns? I am not sure if kaffir lime plants are meant to have thorns.

If u see my the picture with the green fence, my plant is planted along the wall about where the pot of dwarf peach tree is (it's flowering pink). Along the whole wall runs a narrow vege patch. The plant grows really slowly so it is well confined within the patch which is only 0.5 to 0.6m wide.

Brad, sorry I am not sure if kaffir lime will do well near coasts.

au0rey says...
Hi Juanita, so embarrassing I went to have a closer look at my kaffir plant this morning realized it does have thorns but really tiny ones which I have never noticed before. i guess i have planted it when it was very young and the thorns never bothered me before. They still don't.

Mike says...
Mine is kept trimmed to 2m high and wide and it produces many fruits.Fruit zest rather than pith or juice can be used in cooking being even more aromatic and 'citrusy' than leaves.The seedling took 3 years to have the first fruit even though it is in shade, but may take much longer in a cooler climate.

brad says...
thanks Mary!

The soil is limestone and black sand (very limey) so will need plenty of decent dirt to plant into first. Or maybe I'll keep them in half-barrels.

MaryT says...
MiltonT if you don't hear from Wayne (his last post on this thread was in Feb 2009) I have a few fruit on my kaffir lime you can have but they're still small.

amanda says...
Hey that's a good tip Wazzbat :) I might try that too. It would be good to have one less tree to water and feed.

MaryT says...
That's good MiltonT; it's cool - everyone's kind on this forum and I've been on the receiving end plenty of times. Good luck with the Kaffir Lime seedlings.

MaryT says...
OK Milton; I'll get back to you on that but I'm happy to help without a swap; it's no big deal :)

snottiegobble says...
My young kaffer tree has a good number of maturing fruit on it! I use the leaves in cooking, but wonder of the fruits can be used too?

snottiegobble says...
Thanks MaryT

Mike says...
SG I have dozens of big fruit dropping on the ground.Friends of mine use the zest in preference to the leaves and also use the juice.

MaryT says...
Don't forget the lime in your margarita SG!

MaryT says...
LOL; SG I will stop it because someone complained about 'small talk' on the forum when all they want is INFORMATION. So let's get serious (NOT).

snottiegobble says...
Why, with your teeth of course, Amanda!
:)

MiltonT says...
I just use the grater

MaryT says...
Hi Amanda it was MiltonT who wanted the Kaffir lime seeds; maybe you can help him 'cause mine are dry.

Prickles says...
This weeks's specials at that German-based supermarket chain (not sure if I should name it, or not) include citrus trees for $19.

I picked up a Kaffir Lime, almost 1 metre high, complete with a baby lime on it.

morgan3 says...
I have kaffi

r lime tree with about 50 fruit on it who wants them???? I live
in the country

Brendan says...
Now they do look good MaryT! Have you ever made shampoo from the fruit of the kaffir lime? Works a treat! :-) If you don't have the recipe, I'll send it to you.

Julie says...
Can you make marmalade with the fruit? I know you make some Mary. Have you tried?

sheokee says...
Hello MaryT,

I am looking to getting just 1 kaffir lime but unable to find anywhere which sells it.... the closest chinese grocer is Chatswood for me... but unable to find any there.... any suggoestion where i can just buy 1 kaffir lime?

sheokee says...
Hello TMary,

Thank you for your advise..... noted will do just that !!!! :)

jakfruit etiquette says...
Fresh Makrut fruit ( Thai name ) are seasonally sold in Asian, especially Vietnamese groceries, also including frozen whole fruit+ dried peel. Depending where you live, your probably about a month late for fresh fruit, but trees can have occasional late fruit. I would ask around a bit harder, including visiting garden centres where I have occasionally liberated the odd fruit.

Caron says...
Hi
I've noticed a lot of people saying the kaffir fruit is not good. I've just returned from Thailand where I did some cooking classes. They use the kaffir lime rind for curry pastes and it makes a huge difference, the other limes don't cut it. They don't use the juice though, they use tahitian limes for that. Hope it helps. I'm desperately trying to find some limes now, to make some red curry paste. My tree has heaps of leaves, no fruit!