Arkansas Tree Database

Scientific name:

Tilia Americana

Size:

70' tall by 50' wide, up to 100' tall

Leaves:

alternate, simple, 4"-8" long and almost as wide, irregularly heart-shaped, unlobed, with coarsely toothed margins

Flowers:

creamy white, 1/2" diameter flowers, borne in small pendant clusters, fragrant and a favorite of bees

Fruit:

spherical, hard, nut-like fruit (called a drupe), pale yellow, in a cluster, with oblong papery bract attached

Fall Interest:

pale yellow to orange, unreliable; deciduous

Culture:

sun to partial sun; rich, moist soil

Disease/Insect:

Use:

well-shaped shade tree; excellent source of honey; wood for musical instruments, toys, excelsior, pulp

Cultivars:

Notes:

bark deeply furrowed with narrow ridges that shed small thin scales; Native Americans used fibrous inner bark for rope, thongs, baskets, mats; young leaves and flowers edible, flowers used for "linden tea;" native to Arkansas