I love kaffir lime leaves. If you’re Lao or Thai then of course you would. Being brought up with it I’ve had it in every meal possible and I love the stuff. I always tend to use more than necessary in my cooking. Which led me to try growing my own since it would give me more plants at virtually no price.
How To Grow Kaffir Lime
Growing kaffir lime is pretty simple. All you need is a ripe fruit. It doesn’t have to be yellow to be ripe. Sometimes you’ll find green ones that have fallen off the plant and the seeds are still viable.
Use the fresh seeds immediately for quick germination. Place them into good quality potting mix 2cm deep and keep moist in a warm spot in direct sunlight. Since they thrive in tropical areas they germinate quicker in the hot sun. The seedlings should emerge after 7-10 days. Replant into individual pots when 15cm tall.
When transplanting mature plants into the ground, citrus like acidic soil, so you should mix lime and compost or manure into the soil before planting. Feed monthly.
Note: When using potting mix don’t skimp on the cheap stuff ’cause you’ll be more successful and your seedlings will grow more faster in professional grade mixes. The particles are finer (much like compost or soil) and will dry out less. If you are using seeds that came from a grafted plant, the chances are your seedlings may not be true kaffir limes.
Thanks so much for this info. We live in the Philippines and just managed to find our first small kaffir lime plant. Now that we know how to grown from seeds we’ll scout around for a big tree and try to get some fruit to plant.
Bob and Carol
Tigbauan, Iloilo, Philippines
Comment by gurang — September 6, 2009 @ 12:27 am