“…have been used to treat anxiety by brewing tea from the leaves…”– Economic & Ethnobotanical Uses
Full Tree, Tilia cordata (Rockstein, 2018)
Tilia cordata has only ever been known by that name. However, it was previously considered as part of the plant family Tiliaceae (Morton Arboretum, n.d.), but this family has since been discarded and now is considered part of the plant family Malvaceae (APG, 2016).
The genus Tilia is easily identified by the bract found beneath each flower, which often persists beyond the flower and will give the appearance in late summer and early fall of there being two separate types of leaves on one tree, despite these structures not being true leaves. Tilia cordata may be confused with Tilia americana, which has much larger leaves (7-20 cm long) and fruits (6-8 mm long) compared to T. cordata’s 3-9 cm long leaves and 4.5-6.6 mm fruits.
Tilia cordata is particularly susceptible to Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica) attacks. Japanese beetles can be distinguished by their shiny, metallic green carapace, and are generally half an inch long (Morton Arboretum, n.d.).
Native
Introduced
Tilia cordata prefers its soil well drained, yet moist. It is known for being able to withstand pollutants in its environment better than some other shade trees and is thus found in many urban settings as a cultivated specimen.
According to NatureServe Explorer, due to its status as an exotic, introduced species in North America, and its pervasive nature in the continent of Eurasia, Tilia cordata is not given a conservation status rank.
