Growth form: Fringe tree is a multi-stemmed shrub or small tree, typically 60 to 80 feet tall, with deciduous leaves.
Leaves, twigs, and bark: Leaves of white basswood tree are deciduous with broad and flat leaf type. The Leaf arrangement is alternated are entire and simple. Twigs are brown and bark is dark grayish-brown.
Leaves of White Basswood #528, showing alternate leaf arrangement, broad and flat leaf type (Photos by S. Piercy 10/24/2019)
Flowers: Fringe White Basswood trees blooms from April through July. Flowers are yellowish-white, about 1/2 to 5/8 inches long, with 6 to 20 flowers, clusters being 1 to 3 inches wide.
Fruits: Fruit mature to about 1/4 inch round with a nutlet that has gray-brown hair and has 1 seed. Fruit matures in the fall and tree must be around 15 years before the start to fruit.
Fruits of White Basswood Tree #528. (Photo by S. Piercy 10/24/2019)
Native range and habitat: White Basswood are native to moist rich soils. Tree is native range from southern Pennsyvania to southern Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. It reaches the largest part of the Appalachian Mountains.
Distribution of White Basswood Tree across Virginia counties (VA Botanical Associates, 2019)
Plant Family: One of the largest deciduous trees
Ecologic Importance and Uses:
Edible and Medicinal Uses: Native Americans and settlers used the bark fiber for rope, mats, fish, nets, and baskets
Wildlife: White Basswood flowers have great nectar for honeybees. The wood produces cavities that are great for cavity-nesting animals.
Gardens and Landscaping: White Basswood is widely used in landscaping. Flowers attract bird and insect pollinators in the spring when the fruit bloom.
Campus Specimens - White Basswood
State and national champions? The largest White Basswood tree in the country is located in at Radford University in Radford, Virginia. This national champion has a trunk circumference of 186 inches, height of 90 feet, and crown spread of 81 feet. Resulting in a total of 296 points.
At Radford University, White Basswood is the only tree on Radford University and is located by Jefferson Hall.
Tree #528
Trunk circumference: 192 inches
Tree height: 90 feet
Crown spread: 80 feet 89.8 feet Average = 84.9 feet
Total points:303.2
Notes: this the only tree located at Radford University
Tree #528 cont.
References
Elpel, T. J. (2018). Botany in a Day: The Patterns Method of Plant Identification, Edition 6.1. Hops Press, Pony, MT.