Content
- How do you differentiate between a summer bark and a winter bark?
- Growth behavior in comparison
- Leaves as a major differentiator
- Flowers and fruits
- Tips
The summer bark and the winter bark look very similar
How do you differentiate between a summer bark and a winter bark?
Both summer and winter bark are a deciduous broadleaf tree that is common throughout Europe. The summer linden flowers a little earlier, moreover, there are more similarities than differences between the two linden species.
The distribution areas of the summer linden are more southern than that of the winter linden. In the Central European area, these two species are equally represented. The Tilia platyphyllos and Tilia cordata both belong to the genus Linden in the mallow family. The appearance of the two linden species is very similar, yet they can be distinguished by a few characteristic features:
Growth behavior in comparison
In general, the linden species are fast-growing and long-lived. Both the winter and summer bark are very large trees that can grow up to 30-40 m. The summer linden has a greater need of light and forms a denser crown than the winter linden.
Leaves as a major differentiator
The leaves of the summer linden are about 8-12 cm long, uniformly green and herbaceous, velvety hairy on both sides. Also petioles have hair on. On the underside of the leaves are whitish underarm beards, which turn brownish by late summer. The winter linden, on the other hand, has smaller, about 4-7 cm long leaves that are leathery and have a lighter, blue to gray-green underside. The petiole and the leaf itself are bald on the upper side, while the lower side is provided with brownish axillary beards.
Flowers and fruits
The two linden species can flower at the age of 10-20 years, which is quite early in terms of their life expectancy (up to 1000 years). The beginning of flowering is different, also depending on the location and weather conditions. In general, the lush flowering begins in June, with the summer linden blooming about 10-14 days earlier than the winter linden. At the inflorescence of the winter linden there are 5 to 11 whitish flowers. The inflorescences of the summer linden carry only 2 to 5 whitish-green flowers.
The linden blossoms attract all sorts of insects that pollinate. The flowers turn into fruits: large, woody and markedly angular in the summer bark; soft, thin and easily crushable in the winter bark. Many fruits do not contain seeds, therefore the multiplication of the two types of linden by seeds is rather rare in nature. The vegetative propagation by stick or root rash is the more frequent kind of the propagation with the domestic Lindenarten.
Tips
Dried linden flowers are used in herbal tea blends. The Linden flower tea is used in folk medicine for cold as slime and sweat-inducing agent.