Not the plant you're looking for? Search over 300,000 plants

Tilia × europaea 'Pallida'
  • RHS Plants for pollinators

lime 'Pallida'

A large decidous tree over 30m in height, with ascending reddish-brown branches forming a broadly conical head. Rounded to heart-shaped, dark green leaves are yellow-green beneath and turn golden in autumn. Fragrant pale yellow flowers in clusters of up to 10 flowers are borne in midsummer

Buy this plant
Size
Ultimate height
Higher than 12 metres
Time to ultimate height
20–50 years
Ultimate spread
Wider than 8 metres
Growing conditions
Chalk
Clay
Loam
Sand
Moisture
Moist but well–drained
pH
Acid, Alkaline, Neutral
Colour & scent
StemFlowerFoliageFruit
Spring Green Yellow
Summer Yellow Green Yellow
Autumn Green Gold
Winter Red Brown
Position
  • Full sun
  • Partial shade
Aspect

East–facing or South–facing or West–facing

Exposure
Sheltered
Hardiness
H6
Botanical details
Family
Malvaceae
Native to the UK
No
Foliage
Deciduous
Habit
Spreading branched
Genus

Tilia are deciduous trees with broadly ovate or heart-shaped leaves and pendulous clusters of fragrant yellow-green flowers, followed by conspicuous winged fruits

Name status

Accepted

How to grow

Cultivation

Suitable for parks and very large gardens. Grow in moist but well-drained soil in full sun or part shade, with shelter from cold winds. Highly prone to producing thickets of stems (suckers) at the base and burrs on the trunk. For more advice see tree cultivation

Propagation

Propagate by chip budding although care must be taken with the choice of rootstock. Remove suckers in winter

Suggested planting locations and garden types
  • Architectural
  • Wildlife gardens
Pruning

Pruning group 1; a suitable tree for pleaching and pollarding; remove suckers at the base of the trunk or the burrs on the trunk in early spring

Pests

May be susceptible to aphids, horse chestnut scale, caterpillars, sawflies and gall mites

Diseases

May be susceptible to sooty mould, Phytophthora root rot and honey fungus

Get involved

The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.