Littleleaf linden

Botanical name

Tilia cordata

Type

Deciduous shade tree from Europe, medium growth

Size

60 to 70 feet at maturity, conical to pyramidal (Utah State University)

Hardiness

Zones 3 to 7; zones 6b to 7b here

Where it is found

Street plantings and yards, about 4,000 to 6,500 feet

Known weak points

Heat and drought scorch, aphids, sunscald on young trunks, weak unions in some cultivars

Littleleaf linden is the neat, symmetrical tree you see in street plantings. 'Greenspire' is a well-known cultivar. This page covers identification, where it does well by elevation band, what goes wrong and when pruning or removal is right.

How do you identify a littleleaf linden?

The leaf is about the size of a palm, nearly round to heart-shaped, dark green and shiny above and paler beneath, with a finely toothed edge and a lopsided base. In June and July the tree is covered with pale yellow, fragrant flowers hanging from a leafy bract, and these become round nutlets.

The shape is a clean cone or pyramid with a straight central trunk. Bark is gray to brown and fibrous, with shallow furrows on older trees. Utah State University notes it is similar to American linden but with smaller leaves, flowers and fruit.

• Small heart-shaped leaves, shiny above
• Fragrant pale flowers in June and July
• Straight trunk and neat conical crown
• Fibrous gray-brown bark

Where does it grow in Reno, Carson City and the Carson Valley?

Littleleaf linden is rated for zones 3 to 7, which includes every ZIP we serve, from Reno (zone 7b) and Carson City (zone 7a) to Incline Village (zone 6b). Utah State University rates it high for alkaline soil tolerance but warns it performs poorly in intense sun, heat and drought. That is a fair description of summer in the Truckee Meadows, where the airport station records about 7 inches of precipitation a year.

At Tahoe elevations, 6,243 feet at Glenbrook up to 7,126 feet at Kingsbury, the climate is kinder to the tree in July and harder in winter. A linden against a hot south or west wall can scorch more.

Most of what is written about linden assumes regular rainfall, and the Truckee Meadows and Carson Valley do not offer it. A linden that thrives in a cool, damp city can struggle in a Nevada July. For that reason an arborist reading a linden asks about exposure and irrigation as well as the crown: which wall it stands near, whether the sprinklers reach its roots, and whether the trunk wears a south-side scar. Our guide to watering mature trees in the high desert covers the basics.

What goes wrong with it here?

Colorado State Extension names linden among the thin-barked trees that benefit from a winter wrap, because young trunks are prone to sunscald and frost cracks. A vertical split or sunken, peeling bark on the south or southwest side of a young trunk is the pattern. Leaf scorch from heat and dry soil shows as brown edges in July; drought stress and dieback explains how to tell scorch from decline.

Utah State University lists aphids as a problem and weak branch attachment in some cultivars. Linden is rated not good under power lines. Utah State's planetree entry notes that lindens and maples are more prone than planetrees to breaking sidewalks and curbs.

Pruning, cabling or removal: which is the right call?

Dead wood can come out any time. Structural pruning for a linden is a late-winter job: raise the lowest limbs gradually, thin crossing branches and keep one strong central leader. Hard topping ruins the form and is not an option; read why topping is not pruning.

A linden with a weak fork can be held with cabling and bracing. Removal is the answer when the trunk is split or decayed, when much of the crown has died, or when roots are damaging pipes or paving. Most are routine tree removal jobs, and stump grinding clears the site.

What does Battle Born Tree Service do about a linden?

Call 775.232.8243 or use the estimate form on this page. An ISA Certified Arborist looks at the tree on site, explains what is wrong and tells you whether the job is pruning, cabling or removal. Credential WE-11728A is held by one of our two certified arborists. Linden wood is a question for the office; we publish no wood types or terms.