Lime (Citrus aurantifolia) and lemon (Citrus limon) belong to the Rutaceae family and are native to Asia, primarily Northeast India (Assam), Northern Myanmar, and China. The popularity of Lime or Acid lime is more in comparison to the Lemon. They are popular for their refreshing and sour flavour and used in culinary preparations, making pickles, juice and cordial preparations, citric acid production and various beauty products and their juice is also used for non-culinary purposes like cleaning and stain removal. They are also rich in vitamin C and contains smaller amounts of Vitamin B, particularly and niacin, riboflavin and thiamine. In India, they are cultivated over an area of 3.05 lakh hectares with an estimated production of 3. 48 million metric tonnes. The lead producing states of lime are Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Rajasthan, Bihar and Tamil Nadu and lemon are Northeastern states.

They are subtropical fruits and do best in warm climates in the temperature range of 24 to 35 degree Celsius and cannot withstand cold and frost. These crops come up well in both humid warm and dry weather conditions and do best with irrigation. Cold and windy regions are not suitable for their cultivation. Acid lime can grow under high rainfall as well as drier climates whereas lemon requires a comparatively cool climate for vigorous growth and regular bearing.

Large numbers of cultivars of lime and lemons are being grown throughout India. Some of the commercial cultivars of lime are Kagzi lime, Rasraj, Saisarabhathi, Balaji, Vikram, Pramalini, Tahiti seedless lime, Assam Nimbu/Nemu Tengaand that of lemon are Italian lemon, Lisbon lemon, Saville lemon, Punjab gal gala, PAU Baramasi, Lucknow seedless, Pant lemon, Sweet Lemon, Genoa, Rough Lemon, Nepali Oblong/Pat Nebu, Villafranca, Nepali round and Eurekha,.

Lime and lemon are propagated by seeds and also vegetatively propagated by ‘T’ or shield budding method. In this method of propagation, a bud from desired variety (scion) is transferred on the rootstock with the objective of utilizing the vigorous root system of the rootstock and combining the best characteristics of both. Budding should be preferably done as low as possible on the rootstock. It takes three to four weeks for the bud to unite when the new shoot from the grafted bud. For budding, proper selection of the rootstock is very important as it contributes to the vigor, productivity and quality of fruits. It also influences resistance and tolerance to certain diseases and pests and plays a major role on agroclimatic adaptation. T-budding is performed in August-September and February-March when sufficient cell sap flow is there in seedlings. The main planting system followed is either square or rectangular. The spacings recommended in light soil are 4.5 x 4.5 m or 5 x 5 m accommodating about 160 to 200 plants per acre and in medium to heavy texture soil the spacing recommended is 6 x 6 m accommodating about 110 plants per acre.

For achieving optimal growth and fruit production requires a good understanding of the crop nutrient needs and adopting a balanced and suitable fertilization plan. The recommended dose of fertilizer is 500:400:900 grams of nitrogen, phosphorus and potash per tree per year. These fertilizers are applied in two equal splits, during pre-bloom and fruit development stages. Prepare the soil of the tree basin before applying fertilizer. Clear any weeds or debris around the base of the tree. Fertilizer is applied in ring method opened about 4 to 5 feet away from the trunk. Immediately cover it with soil and provide irrigation. In addition, every year about 25 to 30 kg of well decomposed farmyard manure or compost enriched with biofertilizers and biopesticides is applied per tree per year during the beginning of rainy season. Recommended fertilizers can also be applied through irrigation water or fertigation for achieving higher nutrient use efficiency, minimum losses of nutrients due to leaching, supplying nutrients directly to root zone in available forms and saving in application cost. Currently, many farmers in water scarcity areas are adopting fertigation practice in these crops.

The water requirement of lemon tree is generally higher than most of the other sub-tropical fruits due to recurrent growth and development. The water requirement varies from 900 to 1100 mm per year including rainfall depending upon the agroclimatic conditions of the location. In surface irrigation water is given to the tree basin at an interval of 10-15 days during the winter months and at an interval of 5-7 days during summer months. Providing light irrigations frequently through micro irrigation is beneficial. Drip irrigation helps in saving irrigation water to the tune of 30 to 40 per cent as compared to surface irrigation. It also facilitates providing fertilizers as and when required to meet the crop requirement. Providing light irrigations frequently through a drip system helps to lower soil temperature near the root zone and also increases humidity around the plant during the summer period. The ideal drip system to be adopted is 16 mm lateral fitted with two emitters of 8 LPH capacity or two microtubes of 12-15 LPH discharge or one micro-sprinkler of 18-20 LHP discharge near the plant basin.

Weeding is done regularly at monthly intervals to keep the garden free of weeds. In place of manual or mechanical weeding, herbicides can be also used twice at an interval of 120 days from the last week of May for effective and economical control of dicot and monocot weeds. Adoption of organic mulching using crop residue (straw/husk) or use of black polyethylene mulch in the basin controls the weed growth in addition helps in conserving soil moisture in root zone. Intercropping of leguminous crops like soybean, cow peas, French bean, horse gram, groundnut, peas, soybean etc. is advisable during the rainy season to manage weeds.

Light pruning is done during late winter or early spring when trees are in little dormant stage and harvesting of fruits is completed. This is done in order to maintain good framework and to get higher yields with better quality fruits. During pruning all dried, diseased, injured, dead and drooping branches are removed. Root pruning is also practiced in some part of central and southern India to regulate flowering season.

Important pests of lime and lemon are Aphids, Citrus leaf miner, Citrus psylla, Scales, Mealybugs, Fruit sucking moth and Citrus butterfly and important diseases are Black spot, Citrus canker, Citrus Greening, Collar rot, Gummosis, Powdery mildew, Scab and Tristeza. To manage these insect pests and diseases use recommended pesticides as per instructions of the agricultural universities or state departments of agriculture/Horticulture or ICAR institutes.

The fruit of Ambe bahar requires assured irrigation and becomes ready for harvest in the month of June to August. As fruit development takes place during dry months, the size and colour are not good in this bahar and yield is also low. The fruits of Mrig bahar crop are harvested during the months of November to February. Usually, this bahar is favored as the flowering and fruiting period coincides with monsoon season, and the crop is taken without much irrigation. The fruits develop during the rainy season and mature during winter. This crop is preferred under dry climatic conditions with limited water available for crop maintenance. The fruits from hasta bahar are harvested during the month of March to April. The Fruit color development is much better in this bahar. Since the availability of the fruits during this season is limited, they fetch high market value. Optimum water stress cannot be maintained during this period as it coincides with the rainy season resulting in poor to flowering and fruit set which affect the crop yield. In general limes and lemons take around 150 to 184 days to mature and can produce two to three crops per year. Good economic yields start about 4 to 5 years after planting and continue for about 40-50 years. With good agronomic practices on we can get about 1000 to 1200 fruits per tree in lime and about 600 to 800 fruits per tree in lemon per year.

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