American Basswood
American Basswood
Botanical Name: Tilia americana L.Family Name: Tiliceae – Linden FamilyOrigin: Eastern North AmericaA solitary, stately American Basswood stands to the left of the front entrance to Dodona Manor, an appropriate position for her qualities as a wonderful shade tree with a potential life span of 200 years.
Her scientific name is Tiliaceae and she is from a family of trees call Lindens. Her favorite “nicknames” are “honey tree” or “bee tree” for her flowers that give off rich, attractive honey, attracting butterflies, bees, hungry insects and animals. Bee cultivators often move their hives close to her to appropriate the rich tasting nectar.
Her trunk is strong and grayish. Its surface has long, deep, narrow fissures and it often reaches up to 80 feet. She frequently grows multiple trunks, but our tree does not. She has strong, sprawling, dense branches shading the house entrance from the hot summer sun.
Her leaves are large, dark green on top and lighter underneath. They are oval shaped with serrated edges and turn an unremarkable yellow in the fall.
Her flowers are her most noticeable feature. They appear as clusters accompanied by long, narrow coverings called foliates.
Her wood is soft and light. It is especially useful for making food boxes, yardsticks, furniture, and pulpwood. Early Native Americans made ropes and woven mats from her tough fibrous inner bark.
Folklore
The Linden tree's heart shaped leaves brings with them an association to "Freya" the germanic goddess of truth and love. It was believed that a lie could not be told under a Linden tree. In old German hamlets social gatherings and judicial meetings were often held under the shade of the linden (Basswood) tree. The tree then began to be associated with judgement. Verdicts in rural Germany were frequently returned "sub tilia" (Unter der Linden).
Aphrodite the Greek goddess chose the Linden tree as her sacred tree as well as "Laima" the goddess of Fate in Baltic mythology. Likewise Lithuanian women prayed under Lindens for luck and fertility.
Medicinal
Basswood/Linden trees are a favorite of bees and beekeepers. The flowers provide bees with nectar when other flowering plants are done with their flowering. The distinct tasting honey is sold as "Basswood Honey" and considered to be some of the best in the world. A tea made of the flowers is delicious and health supporting.
Healthline suggests several benefits of Basswood tea, including: 1) may promote relaxation; 2) may help fight inflammation (contains antioxidants like tilliroside and kaempferaol); 3) may reduce mild pain (through tilliroside and quercetin); 4) may lower blood pressure; 5) soothes your digestive tract (again through tilliroside).
Check out "The Linden Tree" a poem by Wilhelm Muller.