35 Meriam Street: Tilia species

Tilia species

Tilia or the linden tree comes in different shapes and sizes, leaves and habits, from messy to refined, depending on the cultivar.

The American linden has large 8” leaves that are alternate and broadly ovate in shape that clothe a stately tree reaching 80’ in height and spread. In summer the air is filled with the fragrance of linden blossoms and the buzzing of bees. Linden flower honey is one of the most delicious you can obtain. This is a floodplain tree best left in the woods.

It is the Littleleaf linden that is prized as an excellent shade tree for lawns, parks, and streets.

There is a silver-leafed maple that is heat and drought-tolerant.

However, from the sucker socks on our tree at 35 Meriam Street, it appears that this may just be Tilia europaea or the Common or European linden. This is a cross between Tilia cordata and Tilia platyphyllos. It is pyramidal in youth and more rounded as it ages. In time, it can reach 100 feet in height. This linden is known to sucker at the base and can have burls on the trunk as it ages. It was commonly used in Europe for allées, avenues, parks, and formal areas. The European linden would have been imported to America in the 19th century. The telltale sign is the sucker socks at the base of the linden trees within New Bedford and beyond.