Description

An amazing wildlife tree! Larval plant for red-spotted purple and mourning cloak butterflies. Flowers are so attractive to honeybees you may hear the tree buzzing from several feet away! Rounded crown. Straight trunk. Dark green leaves with silvery undersides turn pale green to yellow in fall. Showy cymes of fragrant, pale yellow flowers followed by nutlets.

Attracts birds, small mammals. Special value to native bees and supports beneficial insects.

Prefers moist, fertile, well-drained loams. Generally intolerant of air pollution and urban conditions but tolerates drought.

Height: 50-80 ft.
Spread: 30-50 ft.
Family: Malvaceae
Bloom time: June
Sun: full sun to part shade
Water: medium
According to Rutgers University, Tilia sp. are “occasionally severely damaged” by deer.

photo credit: Virens