Life Span
Perennial
Annual and Biennials
Type
Fruit
Vegetable
Origin
Southeastern Asia
India, Philippines, Southeast Asia
Types
Citrus hystrix
Lagenaria siceraria
Number of Varieties
12
0
40000
👆🏻
Habitat
Deep, gardens, old gardens, Well Drained
Moist Soils, Tropical Climate
USDA Hardiness Zone
9-115-7
0
99
👆🏻
AHS Heat Zone
12-8
12-1
Sunset Zone
H1, H2, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
A1, A2, A3, H1, H2, 1a, 1b, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
Habit
Oval or Rounded
Vining/Climbing
Plant Size
Minimum Height
180.00 cm60.00 cm
0
3900
👆🏻
Minimum Width
240.00 cm90.00 cm
0
6350
👆🏻
Plant Color
Flower Color
White
Yellow, Orange, Dark Green
Flower Color Modifier
Bicolor
Bicolor
Fruit Color
Yellow, Green, Yellow green
Yellow, Dark Green
Leaf Color in Spring
Green
Green, Dark Green
Leaf Color in Summer
Green
Green, Dark Green
Leaf Color in Fall
Green
Green, Dark Green
Leaf Color in Winter
Light Green
-
Shape
Leaf Shape
Ovate
Palmate
Thorns
✔
✘
✔
✘
Plant Season
Spring, Summer, Fall
Summer, Fall
Growing Conditions
Sunlight
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun
Growth Rate
Fast
Very Fast
Type of Soil
Loam, Sand
Loam, Sand
The pH of Soil
Acidic, Neutral
Neutral
Soil Drainage
Well drained
Well drained
Bloom Time
Spring, Late Spring, Early Summer, Summer, Late Summer, Early Fall
Indeterminate
Repeat Bloomer
✔
✘
✔
✘
Tolerances
Drought
Drought
Where to Plant?
Ground
Ground
How to Plant?
Seedlings
Seedlings
Plant Maintenance
Medium
Medium
Watering Plants
Watering Requirements
Average Water Needs, Water Deeply
Requires watering in the growing season, water on alternate days
In Summer
Lots of watering
Lots of watering
In Spring
Moderate
Moderate
In Winter
Average Water
Average Water
Soil
Soil pH
Acidic, Neutral
Neutral
Soil Type
Loam, Sand
Loam, Sand
Soil Drainage Capacity
Well drained
Well drained
Sun Exposure
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun
Pruning
Prune for shortening long shoots, Remove damaged leaves, Remove dead branches, Remove dead leaves, Thinning
Cut out old flower stalks, Prune after flowering, Remove branches that rub together, Remove dead or diseased plant parts
Fertilizers
Apply N-P-K, can go long without fertilizers
High potassium diluted feed of 5-10-5, Nitrogen, Potassium
Pests and Diseases
Armored scales, Fomes root rot, Mites, Red blotch
Army-worms, Bacteria wilt, Bacterial leaf spot, Blight, Cucumber beetles, Cutworms, Fusarium leaf spot, Leaf rust, Red spider mite, Striped cucumber beetles
Plant Tolerance
Cold climate, Drought, Heat And Humidity
Full Sun, Salt and Soil Compaction, Shallow soil
Flowers
Insignificant
Showy
Flower Petal Number
Single
Single
Fruits
Showy Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Edible Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrance
Fragrant Flower
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Leaf
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Bark/Stem
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Foliage
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Bark
✔
✘
✔
✘
Foliage Texture
Medium
Coarse
Foliage Sheen
Glossy
Matte
Evergreen
✔
✘
✔
✘
Invasive
✔
✘
✔
✘
Self-Sowing
✔
✘
✔
✘
Attracts
Birds, Butterflies
Bees, Flies, Flying insects
Allergy
-
Hypoglycaemic Coma, Irregular Heart Rhythm
Uses
Aesthetic Uses
Bonsai
Decorating walls, Ornamental use
Beauty Benefits
-
Anti-ageing, Making cosmetics
Edible Uses
✔
✘
✔
✘
Environmental Uses
Air purification
Food for animals, Insect Repellent
Plant Benefits
Medicinal Uses
Blood purifier, Digestion problems, Digestive disorders
Anti-fungal, Blood disorders, Culinary Usage, Diabetes, Gastrointestinal disorders, Laxative, Nutritive, Weight loss
Part of Plant Used
Fruits, Leaves
Fruits
Other Uses
Making Shampoo, Used as insect repellent
Cosmetics, Culinary use, Repellent, Used in making musical instruments
Used As Indoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Used As Outdoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Garden Design
Container, Edible, Fruit / Fruit Tree, Hedges, Mixed Border
Dried Flower/Everlasting, Vine
Botanical Name
CITRUS hystrix
Lagenaria siceraria
Common Name
Kaffir Lime, Makrut
calabash, bottle gourd, white-flowered gourd, opo squash
In Hindi
काफ़िर लाइम
लौकी
In German
Kaffernlimette
Flaschenkürbis
In French
combava
Lagenaria siceraria
In Spanish
cafre
Lagenaria siceraria
In Greek
Καφρός Lime
Τσότρα
In Portuguese
Kaffir Lime
Cabaça
In Polish
kaffir wapno
Tykwa pospolita
In Latin
Cafres Lime
utrem cucurbita
Kingdom
Plantae
Plantae
Phylum
Tracheophyta
Magnoliophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida
Magnoliopsida
Order
Sapindales
Cucurbitales
Family
Rutaceae
Cucurbitaceae
Genus
Citrus
Coccinia
Clade
Angiosperms, Eudicots, Rosids
Angiosperms, Eudicots, Rosids
Tribe
-
-
Subfamily
-
Papilionoideae
Number of Species
40027
1
27800
👆🏻