Minnie finger lime: A new novelty citrus cultivar

Authors: Bowman, Kim; McCollum, Thomas; Plotto, Anne; Bai, Jinhe

Submitted to: HortScience
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/19/2018
Publication Date: 8/1/2019
Citation: Bowman, K.D., McCollum, T.G., Plotto, A., Bai, J. 2019. Minnie finger lime: A new novelty citrus cultivar. HortScience. 54(8):1425-1428. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTSCI13622-18.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTSCI13622-18

Interpretive Summary: ‘Minnie Finger Lime’ is a new citrus-like cultivar released by the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The major positive attributes of this new citrus scion are the combination of a healthy growing tree in either a pot or the field, abundant production of fruit on very compact trees, and fruit traits that are good, and similar to the Australian finger lime (Microcitrus australasica) used as a garnish and accent for gourmet food and beverage. The cultivar can be easily propagated by grafting clean budwood of ‘Minnie Finger Lime’ onto a standard citrus rootstock cultivar. At three years of age, a tree under good growing conditions will be about 6 feet tall, and produce up to 700 of the finger-shaped fruit.

Technical Abstract: ‘Minnie Finger Lime’ is a new citrus-like cultivar resulting from a cross of Microcitrus australasica × Microcitrus inodora and released Feb. 15, 2018 by the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The major positive attributes of this new citrus scion are the combination of a healthy growing tree in either a pot or the field, abundant production of fruit on very compact trees, and fruit traits that are good, and similar to the Australian finger lime (Microcitrus australasica) used as a garnish and accent for gourmet food and beverage. Detailed descriptive information is presented on the new cultivar, including fruit quality data, sensory traits, and volatile constituents. The cultivar can be easily propagated by grafting clean budwood of ‘Minnie Finger Lime’ onto a standard citrus rootstock cultivar. At three years of age, a tree under good growing conditions will be about 2 meters tall, and produce up to 700 of the finger-shaped fruit.