Kaffir Lime Tree from Seedlings

12 years ago

Hello all! I am attempting to grow a Kaffir Lime Tree from seed. I am germinating 7 seeds right now wrapped in a wet, folded paper towel, enclosed in a ziplock bag. After 3 days, it appears that the roots are starting to pop out of most of the seeds. So it is time to drop these suckers into some soil pretty soon.

My question to you is: can I put them in a regular burpee self watering tray until they are ready for a larger container out in my greenhouse in a few months? The typical instructions I read on the Google machine says to sow them directly into a 4" pot. I don't have 4" pots, nor do I want to use these indoors b/c of space constraints.

Is there something about needing a deep container for the early stages of this lime tree that preclude me from using the normal seed starter trays?

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Comments (8)

mksmth zone 7a Tulsa Oklahoma
12 years ago
If they have germinated you need to get them in soil now.

You just dont want to be messing with the roots very much and normal seed starting trays are fine except you will need to transplant them quickly. I have always direct sowed them into a good mix in something around the size of a 4" pot.

mike
savy4
11 years ago
Hi gthumb,

I try to germinate my seeds and didn't grow yet. I has been about 3 weeks now. I think I'm gonna try your method.

Thanks Savy4
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johnmerr
11 years ago
Kaffir seeds and young seedlings need to be kept pretty warm to germinate and grow; it's easy for me here in the tropics in Guatemala; I just put the seeds in nursery soil in starter trays 2 inch diameter and about 4 inches deep, put them in the sun, water daily, and they sprout in about 2 weeks..

An interesting tidbit about the Kaffir lime, called Makrout in Afrika and some other areas...in my travels in the world to places where citrus have been totally devastated by HLB disease, only the Kaffir lime seems unaffected.

The experts don't recognize that any citrus is resistant to HLB; but seeing is believing. My experience leads me to believe that maybe the variety is not resistant if infected but it could be that the ACP (Asian Citrus Psyllid) vector just doesn't like the taste of the Kaffir.
savy4
11 years ago
Hi,
I have a question regarding my kaffir lime seedlings. I have the little kaffir lime about 2 inches already and it is in a 4 inch pot. How do I make them grow faster? Because I want these things to take off. I noticed all winter the plants grow so slow.

Thanks,
Savy
eahamel
11 years ago
I got a small seedling a couple of months ago, and it's just now taking off. Give it some time, it's pretty small. It's probably growing roots, or will when the weather is warmer.
hoosierquilt USDA 10A Sunset 23 Vista CA
11 years ago
Just so you know, those of you trying to germinate Kaffir lime seeds, that the cultivar is monoembryonic (as are all Papedas). So, you're going to get a hybrid of the mother tree (the Kaffir) and whatever other citrus was near by. You will never get a 100% Kaffir lime tree from your seeds. Not that you're growing it for the fruit to eat, but, your hybrid may also not produce the same quality of leaves that the Kaffir is grown for. And John, yes, there are some citrus cultivars that are more resistant to HLB, but none are immune. All will eventually succumb, sadly. But, researchers are trying to discover why certain cultivars seem to be slower to display symptoms, especially when the tree is known to be infected. This may help research continue to find ways to successfully battle HLB.

Patty S.
johnmerr
11 years ago
Strange that most of the Kaffir limes in the world are grown from seed. As for the HLB infection, my friend Dr. Mamadou Setamou, perhaps the world's foremost authority on the ACP, says that the Kaffir lime is not usually infected simply because, due to the phenology of the plant, the ACP just doesn't like it. Forced infestation proves that the Kaffir lime is equally susceptible when it IS infected.
Johnie Chen
3 years ago
I'm always running out of kaffir lime leaves because I cook so much with it. So I recorded my experience germinating the seeds so I can have my own supply in the future. Has anyone tried this method? I think it will work for all citrus seeds

https://youtu.be/zTntY159f90