Introduction to Growing Kaffir Lime Trees in the San Francisco Bay
by Kasma Loha-unchit
1. Introduction
As with growing any plant successfully, keep in mind that there are many different micro-climates in the Bay Area, so growing a kaffir lime tree in Concord or inland areas can be quite a different experience than growing one in Oakland, San Francisco or other coastal areas. There can even be different micro-climates in your very own garden. A kaffir lime tree can flourish beautifully in one part of the garden and die in another part of the garden with you following exactly the same expert advice.
With this in mind, perhaps the most important thing you need to do to successfully grow a kaffir lime tree is to get to know your particular plant and the particular location in your garden where you are going to place it. Let the plant communicate to you what it needs at that particular site. If I have to limit myself to just one single advice, this would be it. Period. End of story.
But many of you don't speak kaffir lime and aren't seasoned gardeners and probably prefer the security of more tangible guidelines to get you started in the right direction. I hope to give you enough of an earful of suggestions to pursue your new gardening interest. However, you should never follow any guideline, including the one below, religiously; fundamentalism is as bad for a kaffir lime plant as it is for humans. When I garden, I subscribe to very much the same philosophy as cooking: taste and adjust; a recipe on a printed page serves only as a guideline. In the case of growing kaffir lime, observe and adjust. Don't blindly follow instructions on a printed page or suggestions you hear from someone else, no matter how expert he/she may be, when your observation tells you otherwise. Rules are made to be broken. Sometimes.
Just as I don't have any formal culinary training and yet can cook fabulous Thai meals, I don't have any formal horticultural training and yet have a luscious jungle of a garden. The advice below comes primarily from more than 20 years of my own gardening experience with a wide range of plants including many tropicals, as well as from the varied experiences shared by students who grow kaffir lime trees in their garden – some with joyful success and others dismal failure. We can learn just as well from our mistakes as from our triumphs.
If you would like a copy of this article in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format for your own personal use, please contact Kasma.
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