Citrus × aurantiifolia (Key Lime)

Delicious and easy to grow, Citrus × aurantiifolia (Key Lime) is a spiny evergreen shrub or small tree, prized for its rounded fruit, 2-3 in. across (4-6 cm), with juicy green pulp. Green and glossy when immature, the fruit turns pale-yellow when ripe. It is aromatic, juicy, very acid and flavorful. Valued for its unique flavor, it lends itself to many culinary uses. It is smaller and seedier, with a higher acidity, a stronger aroma, and a thinner rind, than that of the Persian lime (Citrus x latifolia). The slightly fragrant flowers are beautiful with their 5 long white petals, with a light purple tinge on the margins, and their bundled white stamens adorned with yellow anthers. They shine against the pleasantly aromatic, evergreen foliage of glossy green elliptic leaves. Flowers and fruit appear throughout the year, but are most abundant from late spring to early fall in the Northern Hemisphere. Exceedingly vigorous, Key Lime boasts many slender, spreading branches, armed with short, stiff, sharp spines.