United States / Grow / American basswood

American basswood

Tilia americana · Malvaceae · all Tilia records · also called Basswood · Wikipedia

Fire-resistant. Recommended by 3 independent evidence lineages with no objection on record across 57 cited sources. This status is computed from the cited evidence by the published rule, never hand-assigned. The page keeps its cited source rows visible for readers and separates each evidence channel from the computed result on this record.

▲ the Eastern US Fire Performance Plant Selector ▲ North Carolina's Bardon 2005 list ▲ Fire-resistant Landscape Plants for the Willamette Valley

Computed class: Fire-resistant (consensus) — derived from the cited evidence by a published rule, never hand-assigned. Each chip above is one independent primary-evidence lineage and its direction. No plant is fireproof; condition and placement govern. Zone 0 is hardscape regardless.

View Saved

Is this one for your yard?

Enter your ZIP to see whether this is legal to plant in your state, and whether it survives your winter.

Basswood is on-list in this record's evidence. For Tilia americana, seven directional sources recommend the tree, using language that includes Firewise, low flammability, and listed fire-resistant. The evidence pack therefore records consensus rather than relying on a single publication.

A separate FLAMITS row measured dead wood after predrying; that material context is retained under performance conditions and does not replace the directional listings. Keeping the tested fuel state visible makes the laboratory measurement easier to distinguish from whole-plant guidance.

Three sources also make hardiness assertions. Hardiness evidence shows an uncertain minimum at 5 beside applicable minimums at 2 and 2a, so readers can see where those claims agree and where their precision differs.

Form: tree
Mature height: ~50 ft
Light: Full sun
Water need: moderate
Rated in: Global; Maine; NC; North Carolina +5

On this lot

1. Fire evidence and conditions

Fire evidence: Fire-resistant — location does not change the cited classification.
Fire-performance conditions: 1 condition stated in cited fire-evidence rows.
Fire ecology context
Placement evidence: 4 source placement records; source schemes remain separate.
Evidence regions: Global; Maine; NC; North Carolina; North Carolina / southeastern US; Ohio / Midwest; Oregon (Willamette Valley); Virginia / Mid-Atlantic; eastern US
Maintenance

Typed publication scope: 5 scopes across 5 cited fire sources

Maine fire-resistant plant list · Official scoped edition
- ME; partial normalized coverage · 2013-10-23
  Maine Forest Service presents a partial list for landscaping 30-100 feet from a structure. FireApproved publishes only 39 unique exact current/accepted matches plus Rhus typhina from the source's explicit parenthetical; unresolved, abbreviated, misspelled, absent, and duplicate-owner rows remain held.
Fire-Resistant Landscaping in North Carolina (AG-874) · Official scoped edition
- NC; complete normalized coverage · 2025-03-26
  The complete three-table AG-874 plant list is explicitly for North Carolina and contains 202 low-, medium-, or high-flammability rows. FireApproved accounts for all source rows under its strict taxonomy and lineage rules; source scope does not establish local suitability at a particular North Carolina site.
Firewise Landscaping (OSU Extension Bulletin 921) · Official scoped edition
- OH; partial normalized coverage · 2006-03-01
  Ohio State University Extension Bulletin 921 is an Ohio publication that describes Ohio fire seasons and landscape conditions and labels nativity to Ohio. FireApproved publishes 352 exact source-owning plant records from its eight rated tables. This historical publication scope does not assert current extension endorsement or that a listed plant suits every Ohio site.
Fire-resistant Landscape Plants for the Willamette Valley (EM 9103) · Official scoped edition
- Willamette Valley (OR footprint); partial normalized coverage · 2015-02-01
  OSU Extension says EM 9103 highlights fire-resistant plants that thrive under Willamette Valley growing conditions. FireApproved publishes 172 exact owners only as valley context. The guide shares the PNW 590 lineage and is not a second independent vote or statewide site clearance.
Virginia Firescapes — Firewise Landscaping for Woodland Homes (430-300) · Official scoped edition
- VA; partial normalized coverage · 2009-04-15
  Virginia Cooperative Extension's publication opens with Virginia wildfire conditions, identifies its Virginia Firewise Landscaping Task Force, and labels plants native to Virginia. FireApproved publishes 306 exact source owners. Publication scope does not establish parcel suitability or current endorsement of this archived 2009 list.

2. Why this plant is relevant here

State distribution: Documented in AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV.
Native range: Current cited native range in AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV.
Introduced / established
USDA hardiness: 2 applicable cited hardiness statements overlap but have different boundaries; compare each complete source row.

3. Legal, ecological, and broader status

Legal-list status
Seed-list status
Reported invasive here
Broader regional context
Federal context

How to read this page

The status above is computed from the cited rows below: independent recommendations can support a fire-resistant result, an avoid row can produce keep-away, and disagreement stays visible as conflict. Placement notes preserve each source’s own scheme rather than translating unlike rules into one scale. This is evidence about a plant, not permission to plant it in every part of the defensible space; Zone 0 remains noncombustible.

Native and introduced range evidence

These are exact U.S. botanical-area records from the cited range source. Native and introduced describe biogeographic relationship, not fire performance or planting approval. Doubtful and extinct rows stay visible but do not count as current presence.

Current native

38

exact source areas

Current introduced

0

exact source areas

Qualified

0

doubtful or extinct source rows

38 native source areas · World Checklist of Vascular Plants, version 16 v16, as of 2026-06-04

Alabama (AL)
Arkansas (AR)
Connecticut (CT)
District of Columbia (DC)
Delaware (DE)
Florida (FL)
Georgia (GA)
Iowa (IA)
Illinois (IL)
Indiana (IN)
Kansas (KS)
Kentucky (KY)
Louisiana (LA)
Massachusetts (MA)
Maryland (MD)
Maine (ME)
Michigan (MI)
Minnesota (MN)
Missouri (MO)
Mississippi (MS)
North Carolina (NC)
North Dakota (ND)
Nebraska (NE)
New Hampshire (NH)
New Jersey (NJ)
New York (NY)
Ohio (OH)
Oklahoma (OK)
Pennsylvania (PA)
Rhode I. (RI)
South Carolina (SC)
South Dakota (SD)
Tennessee (TN)
Texas (TX)
Virginia (VA)
Vermont (VT)
Wisconsin (WI)
West Virginia (WV)

The lossless worldwide derivative is retained once in the research corpus; object pages repeat only exact U.S. areas needed by the local lens. The JSON twin carries the same page assertions.

Plant hardiness evidence

These values describe the plant source. Your ZIP zone comes from the separate 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map. Whole-zone values stay whole-zone, and a single unresolved value is not treated as a tolerance range. Different source boundaries stay separate: overlapping statements are compared independently, while only ranges with no shared zone are called a conflict.

Eastern United States Fire Performance Plant Selector · record tilia-americana · 2016-wayback · as of 2026-08-26

Source prints 5 · single-value meaning unresolved · whole zone precision · source stated

Source taxon: Tilia americana · exact match.

Source location: Cold Hardiness Zone field in the recovered selector record.

Not used for comparison: The recovered selector prints one Cold Hardiness Zone value but does not define it as a minimum threshold or a one-zone range.
Fire-resistant Landscape Plants for the Willamette Valley (EM 9103) · EM 9103, February 2015 · as of 2026-08-26

2–8 explicit range · whole zone precision · source stated

Source taxon: Tilia americana · exact match.

Source location: American Linden or American Basswood profile (PDF page 172).
USDA PLANTS Database — Plant Characteristics · record TIAM · PLANTS Help Document 2022; characteristics cache retrieved 2026-08-23 · as of 2026-08-26

Minimum 2a · no upper limit documented · half zone precision · derived containing band

Exact source measurement: -46°F; mapped only to its containing half-zone.

Source taxon: Tilia americana · source identifier match.

Source location: PlantCharacteristics record 66729, Temperature, Minimum (°F).

Conditions in the fire evidence

These describe tested or rated plant material. They are not horticultural maintenance instructions.

dead material: FLAMITS: FLAMmability plant traiTS database evidence row (condition method), FLAMITS: FLAMmability plant traiTS database evidence row (condition method), FLAMITS: FLAMmability plant traiTS database evidence row (condition method), FLAMITS: FLAMmability plant traiTS database evidence row (condition method), FLAMITS: FLAMmability plant traiTS database evidence row (condition method)

Where its sources say to plant it

Placement rules below use each source's own distances or named zones, tied to its rating. They are not interchangeable with the directory's current Zone 0 guidance.

Eastern United States Fire Performance Plant Selector: Landscape Zone 3 — 10–30 ft from the structure; thin vegetation, remove debris, and minimize plant massing [Fire Performance Plant Selector landscape zone] (with its recommendation)
Fire-resistant Landscape Plants for the Willamette Valley: American Linden or American Basswood profile (PDF page 172) [osu-em-9103-profile] (with its recommendation)
North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: tilia-americana [nc-toolbox-flammability-facet] (with its recommendation)
Maine fire-resistant plant list: Trees, page 1: Basswood/American linden - Tilia americana [Maine Forest Service list section and page] (with its recommendation)

The evidence

Grouped by what each source concluded. Primary evidence rated the plant itself (a lab, field program, or original curation); corroboration compiled or republished another source's rating and resolves to its root lineage.

Listed without a rating (49)

Corroboration (49 rows from 1 source)

FLAMITS: FLAMmability plant traiTS database — Dryad / Global Ecology and Biogeography · Dryad version 9 · original source Corroboration Trait database lineage: meta-aggregator

49 cited rows from this source; its identity, lineage and tier are stated once.
- Primary study Tran1992: Tran, H. C., & White, R. H. (1992). Burning rate of solid wood measured in a heat release rate calorimeter. Fire and materials, 16, 197-206.
  
  Shared row context: plant part wood; fuel dead; predrying yes; device calorimeter; site Tran1992-1; sampling ND.
  - Shared measurement context: Ignitability measurement.
    - “time to flaming (s): 200”
      
      FLAMITS record 13171.
    - “time to flaming (s): 165”
      
      FLAMITS record 13172.
    - “time to flaming (s): 60”
      
      FLAMITS record 13173.
    - “time to flaming (s): 60”
      
      FLAMITS record 13174.
    - “time to flaming (s): 12”
      
      FLAMITS record 13175.
    - “time to flaming (s): 20”
      
      FLAMITS record 13176.
    - “time to flaming (s): 5”
      
      FLAMITS record 13177.
    - “time to flaming (s): 5”
      
      FLAMITS record 13178.
  - Shared measurement context: Combustibility measurement.
    - “energy flux (kW/m²): 46”
      
      FLAMITS record 13202.
    - “energy flux (kW/m²): 59.6”
      
      FLAMITS record 13203.
    - “energy flux (kW/m²): 67.9”
      
      FLAMITS record 13204.
    - “energy flux (kW/m²): 66.6”
      
      FLAMITS record 13205.
    - “energy flux (kW/m²): 90.8”
      
      FLAMITS record 13206.
    - “energy flux (kW/m²): 88.3”
      
      FLAMITS record 13207.
    - “energy flux (kW/m²): 107.9”
      
      FLAMITS record 13208.
    - “energy flux (kW/m²): 118.1”
      
      FLAMITS record 13209.
    - “mass loss rate per area (g/m² s): 4.3”
      
      FLAMITS record 13234.
    - “mass loss rate per area (g/m² s): 4.78”
      
      FLAMITS record 13235.
    - “mass loss rate per area (g/m² s): 6.21”
      
      FLAMITS record 13236.
    - “mass loss rate per area (g/m² s): 6.22”
      
      FLAMITS record 13237.
    - “mass loss rate per area (g/m² s): 8.22”
      
      FLAMITS record 13238.
    - “mass loss rate per area (g/m² s): 7.66”
      
      FLAMITS record 13239.
    - “mass loss rate per area (g/m² s): 9.09”
      
      FLAMITS record 13240.
    - “mass loss rate per area (g/m² s): 9.46”
      
      FLAMITS record 13241.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2405.17”
      
      FLAMITS record 13265.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2811.21”
      
      FLAMITS record 13266.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2558.03”
      
      FLAMITS record 13267.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2512.65”
      
      FLAMITS record 13268.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2610.58”
      
      FLAMITS record 13269.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2610.58”
      
      FLAMITS record 13270.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2827.93”
      
      FLAMITS record 13271.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2976.01”
      
      FLAMITS record 13272.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2944.96”
      
      FLAMITS record 13296.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 3427.43”
      
      FLAMITS record 13297.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 3042.89”
      
      FLAMITS record 13298.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 2997.51”
      
      FLAMITS record 13299.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 3143.21”
      
      FLAMITS record 13300.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 3272.18”
      
      FLAMITS record 13301.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 3353.39”
      
      FLAMITS record 13302.
    - “calorific value (kcal/kg): 3491.92”
      
      FLAMITS record 13303.
- Primary study Varner2021: Varner, J. M., Kane, J. M., Kreye, J. K., & Shearman, T. M. (2021). Litter Flammability of 50 Southeastern North American Tree Species: Evidence for Mesophication Gradients Across Multiple Ecosystems. Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, 4, 727042. Primary-study method: freshly fallen litter was oven-dried at 50–60°C for at least 24 hours to constant mass; each trial used a 15 g dry litter fuelbed, with five to seven trials per species.
  
  Shared row context: plant part litter; fuel all; predrying yes; device burning bench; site Varner2021-1; sampling ND.
  - Shared measurement context: Combustibility measurement.
    - “flame height (cm): 50.9” · condition: dead material · condition method: Materials and Methods, Laboratory Burning
      
      FLAMITS record 13703.
    - “flame intensity (kW/m): 130” · condition: dead material · condition method: Materials and Methods, Laboratory Burning
      
      FLAMITS record 13707.
  - Shared measurement context: Sustainability measurement.
    - “flaming duration (s): 53.6” · condition: dead material · condition method: Materials and Methods, Laboratory Burning
      
      FLAMITS record 13704.
    - “smouldering duration (s): 172.7” · condition: dead material · condition method: Materials and Methods, Laboratory Burning
      
      FLAMITS record 13705.
  - “burnt biomass (%): 81” · condition: dead material · condition method: Materials and Methods, Laboratory Burning
    
    FLAMITS record 13706; Consumability measurement.
- Primary study Kreye2023: Kreye, J. K., Kane, J. M., & Varner, J. M. (2023). Multivariate roles of litter traits on moisture and flammability of temperate northeastern North American tree species. Fire Ecology, 19, 1-12.
  
  Shared row context: plant part litter; fuel live; predrying no; device burning bench; site Kreye2023-1; sampling ND.
  - “flame height (cm): 51”
    
    FLAMITS record 18776; Combustibility measurement.
  - “time to flaming (s): 54”
    
    FLAMITS record 18777; Ignitability measurement.
  - “smouldering duration (s): 173”
    
    FLAMITS record 18778; Sustainability measurement.
  - “burnt biomass (%): 81”
    
    FLAMITS record 18779; Consumability measurement.

Last verified 2026-08-23. JSON (CC BY 4.0)

Profiles: USDA PLANTS · GBIF · iNaturalist · Wikidata · Wikipedia · ITIS

Tilia americana (Basswood). FireApproved. https://fireapproved.com/plants/tilia-americana/. Last verified 2026-08-23.