American Basswood

(Tilia americana)

Description

• Leaves coarsely toothed – simple

• Scientific name: Tilia Americana L.

• Broadly oval leaves – turn yellow in fall – heart-shaped

• Grows 60 to 80 feet tall

• Conical in its younger form, the crown becomes rounded with age

• Tends to sprout at base. Frequently has two or more trunks

• When flowering, trees are full of bees, hence the name “Bee Tree”

• Deciduous

Habitat

• Upland deciduous woods, north and east slopes of mesic ravines

Range

• Found from Canada to Alabama, west to Texas, Kansas, and North Dakota

History

• Native peoples made ropes and woven mats from the tough fibrous inner bark as well as nets, clothing, and thread.

• Native Americans drank Basswood sap as a watery drink or boiled it into syrup.

• All parts of Basswood are useable, and most are also edible: flowers, seeds, buds, and sap.

Current use

• The soft white wood is useful for making food boxes, yardsticks, furniture, and Venetian blinds.

• Used by wood carvers.

• Provides abundant nectar for insects.

• The seeds are eaten by chipmunks, mice, squirrels, and songbirds.

• Rabbits and voles eat the bark.

Mission

• How many different insects and birds can you find on the Basswoods along the trail?

• What do Basswood flowers taste like?

• Collect a Basswood leaf. What are the characteristics that make it a Basswood leaf?

Photo Reprinted with Permission, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

This page was created by a Master Naturalist volunteer. The Minnesota Master Naturalist program is sponsored by University of Minnesota Extension.