In article .com,
"Dave Poole" writes:
|
| I was a bit wooly-headed when I rattled off my earlier comments and on
| re-reading, see that I got the bit about thickness of rind back to
| front. The 'Tahiti'/'Persian' lime has the thicker rind. Sorry about
| that - was just waking up - dyslexic thinking ;-)
|
| West Indian limes Nick a.k.a. Key lime, Mexican Key lime, bartender's
| lime etc. etc. They may be grown in West Africa and therefore may be
| dubbed that by some. ... I am fairly positive that you are referring to
| 'Key lime', which seems to be prevalent in many shops due to its
| prolific nature and flavour.

Yes, that sounds right. But I am ABSOLUTELY certain that the form that
is standardly available in supermarkets and shops in the UK is seedless.
Limes with seeds in are definitely rare, here and now. They weren't
always.

| Assuming you mean the 'Tahiti', the fruit is less acid and if ripened
| in heat (ie a hot greenhouse/climate) it can become almost too sweet
| for a lime. It is not as aromatic as the Key lime and is considered
| to be a hybrid with Key lime (Citrus aurantiifolia) as one of the
| parents and maybe one of the lemons as the other. I understand it was
| first developed in the Middle East (hence 'Persian') and was moved
| about during the 20th. century.

Yes, that fits with my assumptions - though I had got the limes the
wrong way round! I have seen that only a couple of times in the UK and
never tried it.

| Which reminds me, I'm doing a fiery chilli for dinner. I'd better
| pick a handful of limequats from the bush outside to go with it. Now
| they are excellent substitutes for Key limes provided they are not too
| ripe and they don't need the heat either - I've been picking them
| throughout the winter. Unfortunately they are small, but at least you
| get lots of them. You ought to try one in your greenhouse Nick. It is
| the Eustis limonella - very easy, cold tolerant and utterly reliable
| even as a small plant.

Thanks. I may well. I have a C. hystrix, which does well but has never
flowered (grown from a fruit and used for cooking!) and an orange that
I was given. It is happy but not exciting. A lime would be a lot more
interesting, and that one sounds plausbile.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.