Common lime
| Common lime | ||||||||||||
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Common lime |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Citrus × latifolia | ||||||||||||
| ( Yu.Tanaka ) Yu.Tanaka |
The common lime ( Citrus × latifolia ), usually Persian lime or Tahitian lime named after its origin, is a citrus fruit .
origin
Limes thrive mainly in the subtropical and tropical regions of the world, where the fruit is mostly used instead of the lemon . In the Middle Ages , the fruit came to Italy with the Crusaders and from there to France and Spain .
description
The evergreen, tree-like shrub reaches heights of around 5 to 6 meters. It is reinforced on the branches with thorns up to 1 cm long. The leaves are dark green with light petioles, 6–7 × 10–13 cm wide leaf blades (latifolius = broad-leaved). The leaf margin is somewhat sawn. The flowers are white, four to five leaved, about 3 centimeters in diameter and are in several groups in the leaf axils.
The bush bears a lot of aromatic fruits every year, even when cultivated in pots, and does not need pollination because it sets its fruits in parthenocarp (virgin fruit). The ripening period (March to December) is much shorter than that of the lemon .
The fruit has a green skin, which turns pale yellow when fully ripe. It measures about 5 centimeters in diameter and has acidic flesh that is divided into 9 to 11 segments. In contrast to other citrus fruits, the fruit can only be peeled with difficulty or not at all and cut into segments. The color of the pulp of all limes is a pale green. It is almost always seedless as it forms sterile ovules due to its tetraploid set of chromosomes.
use
Like real lime , it is mainly used to extract juice and essential oils. Well-known drinks based on lime are caipirinha , daiquiri and mojito . In Persian cuisine, lime juice is used to flavor black tea. Also find the dried limes, then Loomi called, in the kitchen as sour Würzungsmittel use.
supporting documents
- Walter T. Swingle, Philip C. Reece (1967): The Botany of Citrus and Its Wild Relatives . In: W. Reuther, HJ Webber, LD Batchelor (Ed.): The Citrus Industry . Vol. 1. University of California. [1]
- Bernhard Voss (1997): Citrus plants from tropical to hardy . Humbach & Nemazal, ISBN 3-9805521-3-6
- Bernhard Voss (2005): Citrus Plants . Franckh-Kosmos Verlags-GmbH, ISBN 3-440-10174-6
- Hans-Peter Maier (2006): Citrus Plants . Gräfe and Unzer Verlag, ISBN 3-7742-8839-9
