The rarest native lime, whose leaves are hairy all over beneath and whose stalks are hairy too
Large-leaved lime (Tilia platyphyllos).
Nature · Trees
Large-leaved lime
Native · deciduous · flowers early summer · rare, south-west England on limy soils
Tilia platyphyllos — Malvaceae
The rarest of Britain's native limes, found locally in south-west England on lime-rich soils, and very like the small-leaved lime. Its larger leaves are softly hairy on the underside and stalks, and it does not produce basal suckers. It is often planted in avenues.
How to know it
How to spot them
- ▸Heart-shaped leaves 6–12 cm, hairy all over the underside and rough to touch, with hairy stalks
- ▸Darker bark than small-leaved lime, smooth then flaking
- ▸Red buds larger than 4 mm with only two or three scales
- ▸Flowers in clusters of four to ten
- ▸Does not produce suckers at the trunk base
How to know it
A lime with 6–12 cm heart-shaped leaves, rough to the touch, that droop in hot weather
Large-leaved lime.
Unlike its small-leaved relative, it does not sprout suckers from the base of the trunk
Large-leaved lime.
Native locally in the south-west of England on lime-rich soils
Large-leaved lime.
Its caterpillar guests include the lime hawk-moth; its wood is used for piano keys because it does not warp
Large-leaved lime (and other limes).
Its leaf undersides carry hairs all over, whereas the common hybrid has tufts only at the vein joints
Large-leaved lime.
Quick-fire facts
- •Woodland Trust: rarest of our native limes, only subtly different from small-leaved lime
- •Separation by underside of leaf: large-leaved has hairs all over; small-leaved has rusty-red tufts in the vein axils; common lime has white tufts
- •Large-leaved lime does not sucker from the base, unlike small-leaved lime
- •Native to much of Europe; local in south-west England on lime-rich soils
- •Lime caterpillars include lime hawk, peppered, vapourer, triangle and scarce hook-tip moths
- •Wood is soft, light and finely textured, used for carving, sounding boards and piano keys because it does not warp
- •Lime bark was used to make rope; the flowers make tea, used in the Second World War
- •Limes symbolise fertility and, in France and Switzerland, liberty
Drill it — 7 cards
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Sources
- Woodland Trust — Large-leaved lime (Tilia platyphyllos)