The Finger Lime, Citrus australasica, is a spiny subtropical fruit tree (shrub) of easterly Australia rain forests. It's a member of the Rutaceae family and has been lately popularized as a gourmet bush food. It is a small, 2-3 meters, small leafed slow growing shrub that over time become multi-branched and dense.

There is an extensive range of different color variants of the Finger Lime fruit, including green, yellow, orange, red, brown, purple and black. Finger Lime has the most extended range of color version within any citrus species.

This fruit tree produces cylindrical formed fruit with spherical, caviar like vesicles flesh used as a garnish or added to diverse recipes and also in making pickles and marmalade. The rind could be dried and utilized as a flavoring spice. It produces less fruit than other citrus plants.

With the sharp, Australia wide, food market demand and exportation of fresh fruit the Finger Lime has been latterly grown on a commercial basis. There is a growing range of genetic selections which are budded onto citrus rootstock. More citrus hybrids, by crossing the finger lime with stock "Citrus" species, have been developed.

The Finger Lime fruit tree is grown in a good deal the same manner as other citrus species. It prefers a well dug freely draining rich soil. Propagation of the plant by cuttings is relatively simple but growth is extremely slow. Plants propagated by seed grow a lot faster. However, fruiting can begin in one to two years and growth can be accelerated by grafting.

Finger Lime might be susceptible to some pests and diseases requiring pest control including caterpillars, gall-wasp, scales and tree branch die back. However, research into fruit fly has concluded that Finger Limes are a non-host plant.

finger lime

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The key to successful fruit and nut production is the provision of a beneficial environment for the trees that bear them.