Lime / Linden

Where it grows

Common lime is a hybrid of small-leaved (T. cordata) and large-leaved lime (T. platyphyllos) that occurs naturally where both parents meet in central and southern Europe. It has been planted for centuries across Britain and northern Europe as an avenue tree, including the famous Unter den Linden in Berlin.

How to recognise it

The heart-shaped leaves with finely toothed edges and asymmetrical bases are unmistakable. Mature trees develop massive trunks often covered in burrs and suckers at the base. In midsummer, hanging clusters of small fragrant cream flowers emerge from a strap-shaped pale green bract — the “lime bract” that helicopters the seeds when they fall.

Uses

Lime wood is pale, soft, fine-grained, and uniform — the carver’s wood of choice. The intricate altarpieces of late Gothic German sculpture and the masterpieces of Grinling Gibbons in Britain are all carved from lime. The blossom is brewed as a soothing tea and yields a famously delicate honey.

Ecology

Lime flowers are an enormous nectar source for honeybees and bumblebees, supporting a brief but spectacular midsummer foraging boom across European cities and woodlands.