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Tilia platyphyllos 'Aurea'
  • RHS Plants for pollinators

large-leaved lime 'Aurea'

A large, fairly quick-growing dome-shaped deciduous tree with brown-grey bark and broad, toothed yellow-green foliage, turning bright yellow in autumn. Fragrant, pale yellow flowers in pendent clusters appear in early to midsummer. Pollarding highlights the golden-yellow young shoots for winter colour

Synonyms
Tilia platyphyllos 'Aurantiaca'
Tilia grandifolia 'Aurantia'
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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
Alkaline, Neutral
Colour & scent
StemFlowerFoliageFruit
Spring Brown Grey Silver Green Yellow
Summer Brown Grey Silver Cream Green Yellow
Autumn Brown Grey Silver Green Yellow
Winter Brown Grey Silver
Position
  • Full sun
  • Partial shade
Aspect

East–facing or South–facing or West–facing

Exposure
Sheltered
Hardiness
H6
Botanical details
Family
Malvaceae
Native to GB / Ireland
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. May produce thickets of stems (suckers) at the base of the trunk. For more advice see tree cultivation

Propagation

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

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

Pruning group 1; a suitable tree for coppicing, pleaching and pollarding; remove suckers at the base of the trunk

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

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