Twigs: Stout, usually not hairy. Buds blackish brown, sticky, large; end bud ½″-1″ long.
Fruit: Roundish [capsule], 1½″-2½″ in diameter, green husk with prickles; breaks into three parts when ripe releasing 1 or 2 large, shiny brown, non-edible seeds. Flower ¾″ long; showy-white and spotted with yellow and red. Flower clusters erect, 8″-12″ long.
General: Bark grayish, broken into thin plates. A medium to large-sized tree. Introduced from Europe and is a common shade tree in the State. Leaves are often browned by diseases. Also known as European buckeye. Two rather similar trees are native to southern Pennsylvania—Ohio buckeye (A. glabra) and yellow buckeye (A. octandra).
AMERICAN LINDEN
(Tilia americana)
Leaves: Simple, alternate, somewhat heart-shaped, 4″-7″ long, shiny dark green on top, smooth beneath except for tufts of rusty hair; sharply toothed on margin.
Twigs: Green or reddish when young, turning brownish red; usually zigzag. Buds deep red to greenish, usually lopsided, with 2-3 visible scales.
Fruit: Nutlike, thick-shelled, [downy], about the size of a pea; borne in groups from a long stem attached to narrow leaflike blade or bract. The clustered fruit and bracts may remain on the tree until late winter. Flowers yellowish white, fragrant.
General: Bark on young trunks smooth, tough, dark gray; on older trees broken into narrow, scaly ridges. A large tree; usually found in mixture with other hardwoods on moist, rich valley soils. Wood is used for a variety of products including boxes, venetian blinds, sashes, doors, picture frames, and furniture. Also known as basswood.
