The Trees of Vermont 181 



TILIACEAE 



Basswood 

 Tilia americana L. 



Habit. — A tree usually 60-70 feet high, with a tall, straight trunk 

 2-4 feet in diameter; numerous slender branches form a dense, ovoid 

 or rounded crown. 



Leaves. — Alternate, simple, 5-6 inches long, 3-4 inches broad ; 

 obliquely heart-shaped ; coarsely serrate ; thick and firm ; glabrous, dull 

 dark green above, paler beneath; petioles slender, 1-2 inches long. 



Flowers. — June-July, after the leaves; perfect, regular; yellowish 

 white, downy, fragrant ; borne on slender pedicels in loose, drooping 

 cymes, the peduncle attached for half its length to a narrow, oblong, 

 yellowish bract ; sepals 5, downy ; petals 5, creamy white ; stamens 

 numerous, in 5 clusters ; ovary 5-celled ; stigma 5-lobed. 



Fruit. — October; globose, nut-like, woody, gray, tomentose, about 

 the size of peas. 



Winter-buds. — Terminal bud absent ; lateral buds ovoid, acute, 

 often lopsided, smooth, dark red, ^4 i"ch long. 



Bark. — Twigs smooth, reddish gray, becoming dark gray or 

 brown ; dark gray and smooth on young stems, on old trunks thick, 

 deeply furrowed into broad, scaly ridges. Plate VII. 



Wood. — Light, soft, close-grained, tough, light red-brown, with 

 thick sapwood of nearly the same color. Page 231. 



Distribution. — Common throughout Vermont at altitudes less 

 than 1,000 feet, rare from 1,000-2,000 feet. 



Habitat. — Prefers rich, well-drained, loamy soils. 



Notes. — The basswood is a widely scattered tree in Vermont, 

 growing with the maples, oaks and elms. Its leaves are five or six 

 inches long and nearly as wide, with a base more deeply cordate on one 

 side than the other. The flowers, which open in July, are creamy- 

 white, borne in clusters suspended from a tongue-like leaf or bract. 

 They are very fragrant and so full of nectar that the basswood often 

 is called the bee-tree. The fruit ripens in autumn, forming hard brown 

 balls or nutlets the size of peas. Basswood lumber is brownish or 

 nearly white, light but rather tough, and is extensively used for drawers 

 and similar cabinet work, panels, inside wood-work and for toys. Ow- 

 ing to the fact that it is bent readily, it is used for the bodies and dash 

 boards of carriages and sleighs. The European linden ( T. europea) 

 occasionally is cultivated. It closely resembles the American species. 



