Pyramidal when young, oval with age. I have read that no native shade tree beats it for dense shade, but I cannot remember where. Better shade tolerance than many other large trees; also apparently takes pruning well enough for hedge duty.
Pollution tolerance is debated: NCSU has it on their pollution-tolerant list but also says it does not tolerate urban conditions, and Stoecklein singles out this species among all the lindens as having no pollution tolerance whatsoever. The USDA is an outlier in denying clay tolerance, contradicted as they are by White Oak, NCSU, Missouri BG, Cal Poly, and JerseyYards.org's descriptive text (but not their database attributes).
Not for near driveways or houses, since aphids drip honeydew.
NCSU suggests tea from the dried flowers but warns that too much can cause heart problems(?!) and also recommends eating the leaves in salads.
'Redmond', a hybrid with this species as one parent, has denser branching and much more urban tolerance. 'Continental Appeal' is noted for huge leaves and particularly straight growth.
Sources: White Oak, Sunset, NCSU, UFL, Rutgers, Stoecklein, JerseyYards.org, Odenwald/Turner, Dirr, USDA, Missouri BG, Dirr/Warren.
Back to the previous page