Field Guide to the Street Trees of New York City by Leslie Day

Author:Leslie Day
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Published: 2011-07-10T16:00:00+00:00

Spring leaves of the American linden about to emerge from their buds

Creamy yellow American linden flowers are attached to bracts

American linden nutlets attached to their bracts

Soaring trunk of the American linden

LITTLELEAF LINDEN: Tilia cordata

WHERE TO SEE

Bronx: 440 City Island Avenue, City Island

Brooklyn: 1422 Ditmas Avenue, Midwood

Manhattan: 417 Grand Street, Lower East Side

Queens: 157-17 Rose Avenue, Flushing

Staten Island: Across from 97 Monroe Avenue, Tompkinsville

WHAT’S IN A NAME? Species name cordata, refers to the heart, in this case to heart-shaped leaves.

HEIGHT A slow grower, this tree can attain a height of 80 feet.

CROWN Dense, pyramidal to round, supported by one trunk or several. Young trees’ branches are angled close to the trunk. Mature trees’ lower branches bend toward the ground, giving it a graceful shape

BARK Young tree is grayish brown with shallow furrows. At maturity, bark becomes dark gray with deep furrows and large ridges.

TWIGS Smooth, reddish brown, zigzagged, and dense.

WINTER LEAF BUDS Large, shiny, reddish brown.

LEAVES 2 ½ inches long and wide, simple, alternate, dark green above, paler below with a wide, heart-shaped base. Leaves are arranged in a dense manner along the branches, providing deep shade.

FLOWERS Just like the American linden, the cream-colored clusters of flowers create a heavenly smell in late June and early July, which can be detected blocks away. They are suspended from a slender bract (modified leaf).

FRUIT Flowers produce small, round nutlets that hang from the bracts, which spin to the ground in autumn when nutlets mature.

HABITAT Tolerates urban conditions and all types of soil but prefers moist soil.

ECOLOGICAL VALUE Native to Europe and western Asia, this beautiful tree provides dense shade in summer, fragrant flowers in late spring, and a graceful form all winter. The leaves turn a lovely yellow in autumn.

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