Lydia, first I want to say your Kaffir/Thai lime is really nice looking..I wouldn't prune..by doing so can prevent flowers/fruit production.
I don't see a graft line..could it possibly be further down the trunk?
The leaves on the bottom of plant are the same as the top, Kaffir leaves. So, unless you want to keep your tree a certain shape, there's no need to remove them..if you want your citrus to resemble a standard tree, then remove lower growth, othersise leave on. So, leaves that are shown in the pic are not suckers, but true Kaffir/Thai leaves.

Look around the bottom of trunk, and look for a line w/a bump. This indicates a graft line. Look all around..Toni

Thanks Toni! No there isnt anything like that lower on the trunk. Right above that spot the trunk sort of changes color and there is sort of a bump. Thats why I thought it was the graft line. Here's a better picture of it:

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If this still doesnt look like a graft line to you, then I guess it isnt a grafted tree!

Lydia

Lydia, I don't see a graft line..I hope others read this post; perhaps they'll see a line I'm not.
Has this tree ever flowered/fruited?
Do leaves on bottom of plant, the one you labeled suckers, resemble the upper leaves? Toni

Does not look like a graft to me either.
as to pruning, I would take a different aproach. I would prune, or should I say harvest, some branches. The leaves are wonderful in thai food. Leave 3 to 4 nodes on each branch for new branches to come out. This will have the added benifit of making the tree more dense and full looking as well as letting the main trunk branch grow in strength to carry the weight of the tree. I don't think that trunk looks quite strong enough to carry the load of fruit quite yet.
Note: The fruit on thai lime is not the best. Thai women use the juice as a hair rinse.

Soft, thanks for the tip..LOL..do you know why they use it on their hair as a rinse? Toni

Thanks for your help Toni and SoftMentor. Toni, the leaves on the new sprouts are the normal double leaves so I guess it isnt a grafted tree after all! No sign of flowers or fruit yet but they dont usually fruit until they are at least 3 years old right? As I said, some friends gave it to me last year. It was in a 6" pot when they got it so I guess it is probably no more than 2 years old. I am hoping to get some fruit eventually. I love Thai food and I would like to try making my own curry pastes and most of the recipes call for Thai lime peel as well as leaves.

I agree SoftMentor, it does not seem to be big enough to support fruit at this point so I am adverse to pruning it. Especially if it will help it develop stronger branches and trunk. But when should I prune it? Should I do it while it is dormant or wait til spring? If I need to wait til spring, should I do it before or after repotting? (gonna repot with CHC).

It will be overwintering outside on my balcony. There is a storage closet outside and I planned to put it in there on freezing nights. The average low around here is in the 40's and that is usually not til Dec and Jan. The nights may get to freezing occasionally but I dont think it gets that cold in the daytime. Last year I used row cover and bubble wrap around the pot and it seemed to do fine. But this year I figured it would be easier to just put it in the closet at night. What do y'all think?

Lydia

Should have checked my message more carefully before submitting! SoftMentor, it should have said: "I am NOT adverse to pruning..."
L

Soft, this is my opinion, but I don't think you should prune at all..For one, by doing so, you may be cutting branches that may flower/fruit.
Read through threads regarding posting and you'll understand where I'm coming from.
Since it's a seedling, (if we're correct) then flowering can take several years..Sorry, don't want to sound like the voice of doom, but this is another issue you can check. I've heard seedlings sometime take 7-14 years before fruiting..But you never know..
What type of closet do you mean? It's an outside closet? Does it have windows? The tree will need sun.
Yes, the botton double leaves of this lime are not root stock, but the actual tree. Now if you want to prune to shape, like removing bottom leaves, this isn't a problem..It depends on the shape you want your tree. If you want it tree-like instead of bush, then by all means, give it a hair cut. Otherwise, I'd leave the upper branches be and free to grow..Especially since you've repotted from a 6" to 10" pot..Toni

I gather that what I read about 3 year old fruiting trees only applies to dwarf citrus (which makes sense cause I read it on a site that sells dwarf citrus). Oh well! I really mostly want the leaves anyway. And if need be, I found some fruit for sale at the Central Market here in Austin. So I bought one lime (they are really expensive!) just for the hell of it. I heard they freeze well so I popped it in the freezer.

The closet is outside off my balcony. It doesnt have windows so I only planned to put it in there at night when a freeze is predicted. It does have a light that I can leave on during the day if need be. But I dont guess we get freezing daytime temps for more than a day or two. The average low temps are in the 40's, mostly in Dec and Jan.

Lydia

do you know why they use it on their hair as a rinse?
can't say that I do. I could guess the obvious, that it smells wonderful.

Lydia - Kaffir Limes are also used in Thai Curry Paste, among other things. I linked the first recipe I found, but there are plenty more out there. Note, the "makrood" ingredient in this recipe is a reference to Kaffir Lime. - For the most part, people use the leaves. I julienned a few leaves recently and rubbed some pork ribs with them, marinated them in coconut milk, then froze the whole mixture. When I feel like grilling, I'll pull them to thaw some morning and grill them along with some lemongrass, basting with the coconut milk/kaffir leaves as they cook. Okay.. This is the wrong forum for cooking.. LOL

Here is a link that might be useful: Thai Curry Paste - Kaffir Lime Rind

Lydia, since AAE is in Tx, he can help with your questions regarding leaving citrus out during a freeze.
AAE, can you help Lydia?
You're both lucky to live in a place where freezing temps strike 1-2 days in winter.
Lydia, I'd guess leaving your citrus in this 'closet' a day or two, with a light burning during the day, won't make much difference. What type of light is it?
How hot does this room get, and is there any air circulation? You don't want to place a tree that's been growing outdoors in a stuffy, hot, dry room w/little light. (this only applies if you'd have to keep the tree in more than 3 days) Toni

If the tree isn't grafted, that doesn't necessarily mean it's a seedling. It could be a grafted cutting from a mature, fruiting tree, that could bear fruit of its own years sooner than a seedling would. To my knowledge "3 year old fruiting trees" doesn't apply just to dwarf citrus.

When to prune. Since the goal with this variety of lime is to enjoy the leaf, not the fruit, I would harvest (prune) the top 2 branches when you want the leaves. Don't just pluck leaves for long though, cut the branch back to 3 or 4 good leaf nodes so that you will stimulate some good branching. Enjoy the leaves in cooking or you can also use them in one of those fragrance things (little cloth bag with fragrant herb, called a chache I think?)
From looking at your picture, it looks like the 2 uppermost branches could use a little clip. The best leaves for cooking are those that have reached full maturity but are still fresh, not old and starting to show sighs of drying out and weathering. That is also a good time to prune.

Hi there,
2 months ago I stupidly sprayed some pesticide on my kaffir lime because it was infested with bugs (don't know what sort).

The plant went dormant and I have slowly been nursing it back to health. It has been grafted onto a rootstock (I'm waiting for the nursery to email me what sort of rootstock was used) and the plant is now growing from the trunk as well as on the base of the graft. It is also sending up suckers from the base of the trunk.

These new leaves look and smell very much like the kaffir lime. I would also like to know if I can propate using the suckers.