The most frost-resistant citrus grows in Uzhgorod (PHOTO REPORT)

Neither lime nor lemon, but a close relative.   
The most frost-resistant citrus – the trifoliate orange – grows among the unique flora in Uzhgorod. This plant is interesting in all seasons: in the winter, it is a sort of an ikebana with long thorns, in the spring – a flowering white sphere, in the summer – an exotic pseudolime, and in the autumn – a fragrant pseudolemon with fruits that look like little suns. The trifloliate orange or Japanese lemon, is the only Citrus species that can withstand temperatures as low as -15, and during snowy winters even -20-25, and the only one you do not want to eat. Since the trifoliate orange is adapted to low temperatures, it is ideal for grafting other citrus plants – orange, lemon, lime, tangerine. Huge commercial plantations of those fruits are grown on the trunks of the trifoliate orange. 
In Uzhgorod, the trifoliate orange decorates the Uzhgorod Castle, the botanical garden on Olbracht street. The huge Japanese lemon grows near the bus stops on Fedynets street. 
You will also notice these trees near the high-rises in the Novy neighborhood and near private houses of Uzhgorod residents. Its fruits are bitter and, to say the least, not edible. The fact is that those fruits are suitable only for pharmacology, cosmetology, horticulture and the production of essential oils.  
Katerina Irkha for 0312.ua