UF SunLime

UF SunLime is a finger-lime hybrid developed by Manjul Dutt at UF/IFAS. The patent names an open-pollinated seedling of Citrus inodora clone ‘80-527A’ as its seed parent and Citrus australasica var. sanguinea ‘DPI 50-36’ as its pollen parent. Based on the reported pedigree, ancestry is estimated as 50% finger lime, 25% Russell River lime and 25% unknown. The unknown portion reflects the unreported pollen parent of the open-pollinated seed parent; these are pedigree estimates, not measured DNA proportions.^⁠[1]

UF reports making the cross in spring 2012 at Lake Alfred, Florida. The seedling was budded onto Carrizo in February 2013 and planted in October 2013; its first fruit were selected in autumn 2018. UF/IFAS later reported release in 2021.^{⁠[1]⁠[12]⁠[7]}

UF reports high anthocyanin levels in the juice vesicles and skin under Central Florida conditions. UF describes SunLime fruit as cylindrical. A patent specimen from a six-year-old Carrizo-budded Lake Alfred tree averaged 30.4 g and 71.2 mm long; the patent also reports 8.5 °Brix and 8% acidity (not pH). The official cultivar page gives 20–34 g, 2.7–3.1 inches and 0–7 seeds, while a 2023 presentation gives 26.14–34.66 g, 2.8–3 inches and 0–6 seeds. These are source-specific observations and ranges, not one combined measurement.^{⁠[1]⁠[9]⁠[6]⁠[5]}

UF describes a medium-sized, scraggly bush; six-year plants are about 7 ft tall, with sporadic year-round bloom and a main February–March bloom. The official page reports limited yield data of about 150 fruits from a six-year tree and says mature fruit do not hold on the tree. At Lake Alfred, the patent gives a December–January main crop with harvest continuing through April. UF says the cultivar propagates easily on standard citrus rootstocks and reports no observed graft incompatibility.^⁠[9]⁠[1]

UF/IFAS describes UF SunLime as HLB-tolerant and susceptible to citrus scab. Its cultivar page reports an average Ct value of 32 in eight-year-old trees; the patent's earlier account said actual HLB tolerance was not yet determined. Assay and cohort details are incomplete. The 2024 field-day slides provisionally favor UF SunLime over UF RedLime in cold response and report young-flush tip burn after a freeze, without establishing a minimum survival temperature.^{⁠[9]⁠[1]⁠[2]}