Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Share

Plant Database

Search for native plants by scientific name, common name or family. If you are not sure what you are looking for, try the Combination Search or our Recommended Species lists.

Enter a Plant Name:
Or you can choose a plant family:

Tilia americana var. caroliniana

Tilia americana L. var. caroliniana (Mill.) Castigl.

Carolina Basswood, Florida Basswood, Small-leaved Basswood, Downy Basswood, Carolina Linden, Florida Linden, Small-leaved Linden, Downy Linden

Tiliaceae (Linden Family)

Synonym(s): Tilia australis, Tilia caroliniana, Tilia caroliniana var. rhoophila, Tilia floridana, Tilia floridana var. hypoleuca, Tilia floridana var. oblongifolia, Tilia georgiana, Tilia leptophylla, Tilia leucocarpa, Tilia leucocarpa var. brevipedunculata, Tilia littoralis, Tilia porracea, Tilia pubescens

USDA Symbol: TIAMC

USDA Native Status: L48 (N)

Found on stream banks, infrequent. Leaves up to 5 inches long, blade broadly ovate with toothed margins, tip emerging rather abruptly from the blade, base of blade at an oblique angle to the petiole, flat to somewhat lobed. Flowers and fruits in a cluster emerging from the midpoint of a distinctive bract up to 4 inches long by an inch wide. Flowers white to yellowish; fruit spherical, about 1/4 inch in diameter when mature.

Carolina Basswood, found at low altitudes, is the southernmost basswood variety. It is uncommon and usually of small size. The wood is of limited value, but like all basswoods, it is a useful honey plant.

 

From the Image Gallery

No images of this plant

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Tree
Leaf Retention: Deciduous
Leaf Arrangement: Alternate
Leaf Complexity: Simple
Inflorescence: Cyme
Fruit Type: Nut
Size Notes: Up to about 100 feet tall.
Fruit: Nut-like.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: White , Yellow
Bloom Time: Apr , May , Jun , Jul

Distribution

USA: AL , AR , FL , GA , LA , MO , MS , NC , OK , SC , TN , TX
Native Distribution: South Carolina south to Florida, west to Texas and north to Oklahoma and Missouri.
Native Habitat: Moist soils of valleys and rocky uplands; in hardwood forests.

Value to Beneficial Insects

Special Value to Native Bees
Special Value to Honey Bees
Supports Conservation Biological Control

This information was provided by the Pollinator Program at The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

From the National Organizations Directory

According to the species list provided by Affiliate Organizations, this plant is on display at the following locations:

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - Austin, TX

Web Reference

Webref 57 - Atlas of Florida Plants (2020) Institute for Systematic Botany
Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter

Additional resources

USDA: Find Tilia americana var. caroliniana in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Tilia americana var. caroliniana in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Tilia americana var. caroliniana

Metadata

Record Modified: 2023-05-23
Research By: TWC Staff

Go back