Papeda or papaeda is the common name for a group of ''

Citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. ''Citrus'' is nativ ...

'' species and varieties native to tropical Asia that are hardy and slow-growing, and produce unpalatable fruit.

Walter Tennyson Swingle Walter Tennyson Swingle (January 8, 1871 – January 19, 1952) was an American agricultural Botany, botanist who contributed greatly to the classification and citrus taxonomy, taxonomy of citrus. Biography Swingle was born in South Canaan, Cana ...

segregated these species into a separate subgenus, ''Papeda'', that included the Ichang lemon,

yuzu Yuzu (''Citrus'' × ''junos'', from Japanese language, Japanese or ; ) is a citrus fruit and plant in the family Rutaceae of China, Chinese origin. Yuzu has been cultivated mainly in East Asia, though it has also recently been grown in New Z ...

kaffir lime ''Citrus hystrix'', called the kaffir lime, Thai lime or makrut lime, (, ) is a citrus fruit native to tropical Southeast Asia. Its fruit and leaves are used in Southeast Asian cuisine, and its essential oil is used in perfumery. Its rind and cr ...

, kabosu, sudachi, and a number of wild and uncultivated species and hybrids. Recent genetic analysis shows the papedas to be distributed among distinct branches of the ''Citrus'' phylogenetic tree, and hence Swingle's proposed subgenus is

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage that includes organisms with mixed evolutionary origin but does not include their most recent common ancestor. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as Homoplasy, homoplasies ...

and not a valid taxonomic grouping, but the term persists as a

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often con ...

. Because of generally slow growth and bitter, less palatable fruits than in other citruses, papeda species have only limited commercial cultivation. Some species, like ichang papeda, are used in

landscaping Landscaping refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land, including the following: # Living elements, such as flora or fauna; or what is commonly called gardening, the art and craft of growing plants with a goal ...

, while others are important for rootstocking and as genome source for breeding disease-resistant and frost-hardy citrus hybrids. In some cases the skin or leaves are used as a flavoring in Asian cuisine. It is believed, based on molecular studies, that the

citron The citron (''Citrus medica''), historically cedrate, is a large fragrant citrus fruit with a thick Peel (fruit), rind. It is said to resemble a 'huge, rough lemon'. It is one of the Citrus taxonomy#Citrons, original citrus fruits from which al ...

pomelo The pomelo ( ; or pummelo, ''Citrus maxima''), also known as a shaddock, is the largest citrus fruit. It is an ancestor of several cultivated citrus species, including the bitter orange and the grapefruit. It is a natural, non-hybrid citrus fr ...

mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

and papedas were the ancestors of most hybrid citrus species and their varieties, which resulted from breeding or natural hybridization among the parental species. For example, the

Key lime The Key lime or acid lime (''Citrus'' × ''aurantiifolia'' or ''C. aurantifolia'') is a citrus hybrid (''kaffir lime, C. hystrix'' × ''citron, C. medica'') native to tropical Southeast Asia. It has a spherical fruit, in diameter. The Key lime ...

, a hybrid between a papeda, the micrantha, and a citron, has in turn given rise to many commercial types of limes.

Classification

There are four species of Papeda currently recognised by

Kew Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is ...

and the

Missouri Botanical Garden The Missouri Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located at 4344 Shaw Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri. It is also known informally as Shaw's Garden for founder and philanthropy, philanthropist Henry Shaw (philanthropist), Henry Shaw. I ...

. These are: * '' Citrus cavaleriei'' - the Ichang papeda * '' Citrus halimii'' - mountain citron * '' Citrus latipes'' - khasi papeda * '' Citrus hystrix'' - The kaffir lime or Mauritius papeda There are many naturally occurring varieties that are now classified as subspecies: * ''Citrus hystrix'' var. ''micrantha'' - small-flowered papeda (locally known as the ''biasong'') * ''Citrus hystrix'' var. ''microcarpa'' - small-fruited papeda (locally known as the ''samuyao'') * ''Citrus hystrix'' var. ''celebica'' - Celebes papeda * ''Citrus hystrix'' var. ''macroptera'' - Melanesian papeda * ''Citrus'' x ''aurantiifolia'' var. ''macrophylla'' - alemow * ''Citrus'' x ''aurantiifolia'' var. ''webberi'' - kalpi * '' Citrus longispina'' - winged lime (unresolved as to whether or not it is a hybrid, variety or species) A number of hybrids between this subgenus and the subgenus ''Citrus'' also exist: * Ichandarins **

Yuzu Yuzu (''Citrus'' × ''junos'', from Japanese language, Japanese or ; ) is a citrus fruit and plant in the family Rutaceae of China, Chinese origin. Yuzu has been cultivated mainly in East Asia, though it has also recently been grown in New Z ...

(ichang papeda × mandarin) ** Sudachi (ichang papeda × mandarin) * Ichang lemon (ichang papeda × pomelo) * Hyuganatsu (yuzu × pomelo, or yuzu

sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

) * Kabosu (ichang papeda × bitter orange)

Notes

{{citrus - Plant subgenera Plant common names