Tilia oliveri

Tilia oliveri, the Chinese white lime or Oliver's lime, is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae, native to central and southeastern China. It has found use as a street tree, and does well in the United Kingdom, but is not commercially available in the United States.

Description

A tall tree. It grows 30 m high and spreads 9 m wide. The leaves are large. They are 6-14 cm long by 5-10 cm wide. They are light green and silvery white underneath. The leaves are often held horizontal. The flowers are in clusters of 7-10.

Edible Uses

Young leaves can be eaten raw or cooked. A paste made from ground fruits and flowers produces a very good chocolate substitute, though attempts to market it commercially failed because the paste decomposes readily. The flowers can also be brewed into a tea.

Medicinal Uses

A tea made from the flowers is antispasmodic, diaphoretic, and sedative.

Distribution

It is a temperate plant. It is native to Western China. It grows in evergreen and deciduous forests between 1,300-2,300 m above sea level. It suits hardiness zones 6-9. In Sichuan.

Where It Grows

Asia, Australia, China,

Cultivation

Prefers a good moist loamy alkaline to neutral soil but succeeds on slightly acid soils. Grows poorly on any very dry or very wet soils. Dislikes exposed positions. Succeeds in sun or semi-shade Prefers a continental climate, growing more slowly and not producing fertile seed in areas with cool summers. Lime trees tend to hybridise freely if other members of the genus are growing nearby. If growing plants from seed it is important to ensure the seed came from a wild source or from an isolated clump of the single species. Grows best in a woodland situation, young plants tolerate a reasonable level of side shade. Closely related to T. tomentosa. Trees are usually attacked by aphids which cover the ground and the leaves with a sticky honeydew. Quite tolerant of root disturbance, semi-mature trees up to 5 metres tall have been transplanted successfully. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus.

Propagation

Much of the seed produced in Britain is not viable — cut a few seedcases open to check for a seed inside. Where possible, obtain fresh seed that is ripe but has not yet developed a hard seed coat and sow it immediately in a cold frame. It may germinate the following spring, though it could take 18 months. Stored seed can be very slow to germinate due to a hard seed coat, embryo dormancy, and a hard coat on the pericarp — together these factors can mean the seed takes up to 8 years to germinate. One way to shorten this time is to stratify the seed for 5 months at high temperatures (10°c at night, up to 30°c by day) followed by 5 months of cold stratification. When seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse through their first winter. Plant out into permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Layering in spring just before the leaves unfurl takes 1–3 years. Suckers, when formed, can be removed with as much root as possible during the dormant season and replanted immediately.

Other Uses

A fibre obtained from the tough inner bark can be worked into mats, shoes, and coarse cloth.

Notes

These have also been in the Tiliaceae.

Synonyms

References (6)

• Bodkin, F., 1991, Encyclopedia Botanica. Cornstalk publishing, p 986
• Brickell, C. (Ed.), 1999, The Royal Horticultural Society A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. Convent Garden Books. p 1013
• Cundall, P., (ed.), 2004, Gardening Australia: flora: the gardener's bible. ABC Books. p 1419
• Hooker's Icon. Pl. 20: t. 1927. 1890
• Lord, E.E., & Willis, J.H., 1999, Shrubs and Trees for Australian gardens. Lothian. p 74

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