Lime

Two limes

This article is about the fruit. For the colour see Lime (colour).

Lime is a word to refer to various fruit trees. Most of them are citrus fruit. They are usually associated with the lemon. Limes have a lot of vitamin C. Sailors from Britain were given lemon or lime juice to stop them falling ill with scurvy. This is how they got the nickname Limey.

Limes are small, round and bright green. If they stay on the tree for a long time they turn yellow. Then they look like small round lemons.

Lime juice is used in cooking and in drinks. Lime oils are often used in perfumes, used for cleaning, and used for aromatherapy.

Lime tastes very acid and bitter, not sweet like sugar. Lime juice is also made from lime, and is in the same family as lemon.

Different kinds of limes

• Persian lime - This lime is most often sold in supermarkets as lime.
• Key lime - Smaller than the Persian lime, used to mix Cocktails and make pies.
• Kaffir lime - Very small fruits, vegetable oil from the leaves is used for perfumes, leaves are used for cooking.

Other websites

• http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/citrus/limes.htm