Lime is a term referring to a number of different species and hybrids of shrublike trees of the genus Citrus, as well as the name for the popular edible fruit of these plants. Lime plants are characterized by a spiny or thorny stem, green and leatherly leaves, and clusters of small and aromatic white flowers. The fruit, which is similar to the lemon, is juicy, oval (egg-shaped), small (3-6 centimeters in diameter), acidic, and typically green or yellowish green even when mature (but will turn yellow like the lemon if exposed to a cool winter environmental conditions). The lime fruit tends to be smaller and rounder (globular) than the lemon, and with a sweeter and more acidic pulp and a thinner rind.