Pramalini (Kagzi lime)
An improved, regular-bearing selection of the standard acid lime of India — thin-skinned, juicy, prolific.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Lemon & Lime
- Type
- Planting material
- Season
- All seasons
- Starts bearing
- Bearing from year 3 (grafted plant)
- Expected yield
- About 12.5 t/ha in a Karnataka trial
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Disease resistance
- Canker-susceptible
- Release
- The originating institute and release year are not published; it is a named commercial acid lime in several trials
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Pramalini is an acid lime (Citrus aurantifolia) tested alongside Vikram, Kagzi, Balaji and others in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka acid-lime trials. A 2025 Plant Archives trial at Tidagundi, Karnataka, found it the tallest of nine varieties (3.18 m). It bore 492.67 fruits a plant at about 30 g each and gave 12.45 t/ha, a mid-range result against Vikram's 18.84 t/ha at the top and Phule Sharbati's 7.68 t/ha at the bottom. In a separate Andhra Pradesh trial it came last among the compared varieties.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Pramalini if it is already the acid lime your area and your nursery know, and you want a tall tree with many small fruit. In a 2025 Karnataka trial of nine varieties it was the tallest (3.18 m), with 492.67 fruits a plant at about 30 g, and a mid-range 12.45 t/ha, against Vikram's 18.84 t/ha. In an Andhra Pradesh trial it came last. Its fruit was among the smallest of the nine. For a first acid-lime block, Vikram or Balaji have the better trial records. Choose Sai Sharbati for a private-nursery option with larger fruit.
Sowing & cultivation
- Spacing5–6 m between trees, in pits of 75 × 75 × 75 cm (TNAU, acid-lime guide)
- IrrigationWater well after planting, then every 7–10 days once established; avoid waterlogging (TNAU)
- FertilizerPer tree: first year 10 kg farmyard manure, 200 g N, 100 g P2O5, 100 g K2O; from the sixth year 30 kg, 600 g, 200 g, 300 g. N in two doses, March and October (TNAU, general acid lime)
- HarvestingBearing begins in the third year after planting (TNAU, acid lime)
Advantages & considerations
Things to consider
- In the Karnataka trial its fruit was among the smallest, with the shortest length (40.72 mm) and lowest volume (37.00 cm³) of the nine, so check what size your buyer pays for
- The trial did not test canker for any variety, so the canker-susceptible rating given above is only an estimate, and you should plan a spray routine anyway
- No institute or release record was found for Pramalini, so ask the nursery for a written source
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Andhra Pradesh
Many small fruit: price it by count or by weight
In the Karnataka trial Pramalini bore 492.67 fruits a plant, but each fruit weighed only about 30 g, and its fruit were among the smallest of the nine varieties. That means about 33 fruit to a kilo.
Before you plant, ask your buyer how he pays. If it is by weight, the small size adds picking and sorting labour for every kilo, and a bigger-fruited variety may pay better. If it is by the piece or by the bag, many small fruit can be an advantage.
Grade at picking into two or three sizes and sell each separately, because mixed small and large fruit gets the lower price. Test the sums on one tree's fruit first.
Where the planting material comes from
This variety is budded onto a rootstock, not grown from seed. Seed out of its fruit will not come up as this variety, so it cannot be kept as seed. Buy budded plants from a registered nursery or a government farm, so the plant is true to the variety and free of disease.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Lemon & Lime variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Starts bearing | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assam Lemon (Kaji Nemu) | GI-tagged aromatic Assam lemon, large near-seedless fruit | Bearing from year 3–4 (grafted plant) | 100–130 q/ha at full bearing | Assam |
| Balaji | Leading Andhra Pradesh acid lime, round smooth juicy fruit | Bearing from year 3 (grafted plant) | About 13.8 t/ha in a Karnataka trial | Andhra Pradesh |
| Eureka (lemon) | True thornless lemon with tender, sour, mostly seedless fruit | Bearing from year 3 (grafted plant) | Medium | Maharashtra |
| Kagzi Kalan | True lemon bearing twice a year, for fresh and juice use | Bearing from year 3 (grafted plant) | Medium–high | West Bengal, Assam, Uttar Pradesh |
| Lisbon (lemon) | Clean-looking international true lemon, unproven yield in India | Bearing from year 3 (grafted plant) | Medium | Maharashtra |
| Pant Lemon 1 | University-selected lemon from Kagzi Kalan for the Tarai belt | Bearing from year 3–4 (grafted plant) | 150–180 q/ha at full bearing | Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab |
| Pramalini (Kagzi lime)this page | Tall, many-fruited acid lime with mid-range trial yield | Bearing from year 3 (grafted plant) | About 12.5 t/ha in a Karnataka trial | Andhra Pradesh |
| Sai Sharbati | Private-nursery acid lime with larger, very tart fruit | Bearing from year 3 (grafted plant) | About 9.8 t/ha in a Karnataka trial | Andhra Pradesh |
| Vikram (Kagzi lime) | Best-yielding acid lime in recent trials, with long shelf life | Bearing from year 3–4 (grafted plant) | 120–150 q/ha at full bearing | Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Lemon & Lime is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Lemon & Lime plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Lemon & Lime variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Lemon & Lime into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Lemon & Lime rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Lemon & Lime seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
How does Pramalini compare to other acid lime varieties in trials?
A 2025 peer-reviewed comparative trial found it the tallest-growing of nine varieties tested, with a solid mid-range yield of 12.45 t/ha — behind top performer Vikram (18.84 t/ha) but well ahead of the lowest, Phule Sharbati (7.68 t/ha).
How juicy and sweet is Pramalini fruit?
The trial recorded 40.29% juice content and 7.53°Brix TSS with 6.94% titratable acidity — a balanced, mid-range profile among the nine varieties compared, with an 18.12-day shelf life.
Is Pramalini resistant to citrus canker?
It is rated canker-susceptible above, but the trial did not test canker for any of the nine varieties, so the rating is only an estimate. Plan a copper and streptocycline spray routine in wet weather, as TNAU advises for acid lime.
Who developed Pramalini?
No institute or release record was found, although it is a widely trialled commercial cultivar. Ask your nursery for a written source for the mother tree.
How large are Pramalini fruits?
Among the smaller-fruited varieties in the comparative trial: shortest fruit length (40.72 mm) and lowest fruit volume (37.00 cm³) of the nine varieties tested, though it compensates with a high fruit count per plant (492.67).
Should I plant Pramalini in a new orchard?
Only if you have local evidence for it. One trial put it mid-range, and another put it last, and no institute or release record was found for it. For a first block, Vikram or Balaji have clearer trial results, and you can try Pramalini beside them on a small strip.
How long do the fruit stay good after picking?
The Karnataka trial recorded a shelf life of 18.12 days, mid-range among the nine varieties, against Vikram's 19.84 days. That was under trial storage, so test a few of your own fruit before you promise a buyer a delivery window.
How often should I water it?
TNAU's acid-lime guide says water well after planting and then every 7–10 days once established, avoiding waterlogging. It is a crop-level figure, so shorten or lengthen it for your soil and weather.
Is Pramalini a good pick for selling by weight?
Its fruit is small, about 30 g, so it takes many fruit to make a kilo. If your buyer pays by weight, labour per kilo is higher. If your buyer pays by the piece or by the bag, count of fruit matters more than weight, and its 492.67 fruits a plant helps.
Sourced from: TNAU Agritech Portal — Acid lime. editorial policy.