BASSWOOD 



(Tilia Americana) 



THERE are about twenty species of basswood in the world, and from 

 three to six of them are in the United States. Authors do not 

 agree on the number of species in this country. There are at least three, 

 and they occupy, in part, the same range, with consequent confusion. 

 They are much alike in general appearance, and not one person in twenty 

 knows one from the other. The same names apply to all, when they 

 occur hi the same region. Few trees carry more names, and with less 

 reason. Basswood is generally not difficult to identify in summer, but 

 in winter a person only slightly acquainted with different trees might 

 take it for cucumber, and if of small size, it might possibly be mistaken 

 for ash or mountain maple. When the tree is bearing leaves, flowers, 

 and fruit, there is no excuse for mistaking it for any other. The fruit, 

 a cluster of four or five berry-like globes, hangs under a leaf, fixed by a 

 short stem to the midrib. This feature alone should be sufficient to 

 identify the basswood in this country. 



Among the many names by which this tree is known, in addition to 

 basswood, are American linden, linn, lynn, limetree, whitewood, bee- 

 tree, black limetree, wickup, whistle wood, and yellow basswood. 



The range is extensive, its northeastern boundary lying in New 

 Brunswick, its southwestern in Texas. It reaches Lake Winnipeg, and 

 is found hi Georgia. This delimited area is little short of a million square 

 miles. It reaches a height of from sixty to 120 feet, and a diameter 

 of from eighteen inches to four feet. It has a decided preference for 

 rich soil, and the best lumber is cut in fertile coves and flats, or in low 

 land near streams. The largest trees formerly grew hi the forests of 

 the lower Ohio valley, but few of the giants of former times are to be 

 found in that region now. They went to market a generation or two 

 ago. The largest cut of basswood lumber now is in Wisconsin, Michigan, 

 and West Virginia, but most of that from West Virginia is white bass- 

 wood (Tilia heterophylla). 



The wood weighs 28.20 pounds per cubic foot, which is more than 

 the other basswoods in this country weigh. The rings of annual growth 

 are not very clearly marked. They may be distinguished, in most cases, 

 by a narrow, light-colored line. This is the springwood. In some trees 

 it is much more distinct than in others. The wood is very porous, but 

 the pores are small, cannot readily be seen with the naked eye, and are 

 scattered pretty evenly through the yearly ring. The medullary rays 

 are small but numerous. They give quarter-sawed lumber a pleasing 



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