American Linden, Basswood

Tilia americana

Tiliaceae

▲▼ mature trees

▲ leaves and flowers

▲fruit

▲▼ trunk and bark 

▲▼ trunk and bark 

▲ trees survived 2007 ice storm in Springfield, MO with slight to moderate damage

Location on Missouri State University campus: south of Plaster Student Union

Tilia americana: American Linden, Basswood

·         leaves alternate, deciduous, simple, cordate with oblique leaf bases and pointed tip; 4-8" long and wide; dark green and glabrous above, light green below; often with good yellow fall color

·         stems gray-brown, smooth or shiny with glaucous coating; often zig-zag

·         bark gray to brown with long, narrow, flat-topped scaly ridges with shallow furrows in between

·         grows 60-80' tall and 2 to 2/3 as wide in upright oval to pyramidal habit becoming more rounded with age

·         flowers on stalks off strap-like leaves in clusters of 5-10; fruit is unique in that it is a fuzzy drupe attached to a strap-like leaf

·         prefers full sun, moist, fertile soils, but fairly soil tolerant

·         medium growth rate

·         native to Missouri