Lemon aspen
Acronychia acidula
Family: Rutaceae
What it is like
A shrub or small tree. It grows 5 m tall. There are prickles along the stem. The leaves are twice divided and there are 8-18 pairs of pinnae. There are up to 50 pairs of pinnules on each pinnae. The flowers are yellow. They are in large clusters at the ends of branches. The pods are flattened.
There are 42-50 Acronychia species.
Where it is found
It is a tropical plant. It is found in highland rainforest in Northeast Queensland, Australia. It grows to 1100 m altitude. It requires a well drained soil and prefers a sunny position but will grow in part shade. It can grow on a range of different soils. It can grow in cooler climates if it has good rainfall and fertile soil.
Countries/locations it is found in
Australia (country/location of origin)
How it is used for food
The fruit is eaten raw. It is acid. It can be used in cooking. It is cooked with seafood or poultry. It can be made into jams, syrup, cakes, sauces, jucie, conserves or salad dressing. The small black seeds are edible.
Edible parts
Fruit, seeds
How it is grown
It is grown from seed. The seed are hard to remove from the fruit and the fruit can be sown whole. The seed are slow to germinate. (6 weeks to 6 months.) Cuttings root easily. The soil around the tree should not be allowed to dry out. Fruit can be difficult to harvest because the trees are large. Fruit should be harvested just before they are ripe. They are damaged if they fall and rot quickly. The fruit can be frozen easily for storage. It can also be preserved in a light sugar syrup.
Trees are fast growing if well watered. Fruit are mature July to September but occur from April. It often bears large numbers of fruit every second year. About 20 fruit would give 100 g of lemon aspen flesh.
Its other names
Local names
Lemon wood