Bigleaf Linden

Tilia platyphyllos

This week’s tree is a trio of big leaf lindens drizzling down a wonderful fragrance to passerby readers returning their books to the Newport Public Library on Spring St.  Similar to last week’s tulip tree, linden is a great pollinizer species, full of nectar and pollen to feed all sorts of species of pollinators.  Although its leaves are not really that big compared to other shade trees or even some other lindens, they are larger than the other species in its native Europe, the little leaf linden, Tilia cordata.  Over there, they are referred to as lime trees, common names can really make things confusing some times.

Lindens are a great group of trees with a couple US native species, and boy is it difficult to identify one species from another, especially as they hybridize readily, displaying characteristics of both parent species.  It took me a good 20 minutes with a key, ruler, and using the thin skin on my bottom lip to confirm that this group of trees is big leaf linden and not little leaf linden, nor they hybrid European linden that they both are the parents of.  These particular trees have soft fuzzy or pubescent undersides of the leaves, but not a white pubescent as that would make them silver linden.  They also have pale green twigs covered with more pubescence.  The lower lip comes in as it’s a great way to feel for fine hairs or dentations on leaf margins that are difficult to see with you naked eye in the field.