Small Leaved Lime Sapling Trees

• Common names: Small Leaved Lime, Linden
• Latin name: Tilia cordata
• Native: Yes
• Sold as: Bareroot saplings, 40/60, 60/80 and 120/150cm tall
• Use: Woodland, screening and windbreaks. Coppice, pollard or pleach it. Not for a clipped hedge
• Mature size: To about 25m tall, more than 8m wide
• Time to full size: 20 to 50 years
• Flowers: Small, fragrant and creamy-yellow, in midsummer
• Position: Sun or partial shade, with shelter from cold winds
• Soil: Moist but well-drained. Chalk, clay, sand or loam
• Wildlife: RHS Plants for Pollinators
• Hardiness: H6, hardy through the British winter
• Delivered: Bareroot, November to April. Collection from Castle Cary also available

Small Leaved Lime is a big native tree with glossy, heart-shaped leaves that turn yellow in autumn, and small, fragrant flowers in midsummer that bees work hard. These are young bareroot saplings for woodland, screening and windbreaks, and the cheapest way to plant Lime in number.

Small Leaved Lime Sapling Trees

Small Leaved Lime, Tilia cordata, is a native tree with a fairly narrow, column-shaped canopy. It grows vigorously on any fertile soil and tolerates woodland shade.
Small Leaved Lime isn't suitable for a clipped hedge. Tilia cordata is a medium-sized, round-headed, deciduous tree that produces sweet-scented flowers in midsummer which are great for bees. It has heart-shaped leaves, glossy green above with a pale underside. It can be grown as a screening tree up to about 25 metres high. It's a good, tall windbreak tree and is a phenomenal source of nectar for bees. The plants on this page are young saplings. You can also buy the ornamental variety, Tilia cordata Greenspire, in large standard sizes from our nursery. Small Leaved Lime plants are only delivered bareroot, during winter (Nov-Apr).

View our selection of coastal hedging plants or see our full range of hedging.

Choosing a size: When you are ordering a large quantity of Small Leaved Lime saplings for a big planting project, we suggest that you buy smaller plants. They're cheaper than large plants, easier to handle and more likely to cope well with poor conditions. Use the larger, 120-150cm tall plants if you are in a hurry to get a mature tree.
All of our young trees and shrubs are measured by their height in centimetres above the ground (the roots aren't measured).

History & Trivia

This tree was extensively coppiced in the past for supplies of bast, which is the inner layer of bark. These fibres are excellent for making cords and ropes, which could then be used to make a multitude of useful objects. There are some ancient stools of coppiced small-leaved limes that are about 16 metres wide and may well be over 2,000 years old.

Planting Companions

For a native wood, plant Small Leaved Lime with English Oak, Wild Cherry and Field Maple, with Hazel beneath them. For a bigger tree from day one, Greenspire is the garden form of the same species, sold as a standard. Dust the roots with Rootgrow as you plant.

Why Ashridge for Native Trees?

Hedging and young native trees are not a sideline here: your Small Leaved Lime saplings are grown for us by specialist growers. Bareroot plants are lifted to order while dormant and guaranteed for 12 months. Ashridge has sold plants since 1949 and is a Which? Best Plant Supplier 2025.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you use Small Leaved Lime for a hedge?

Not a clipped hedge. It is a tree for screening, windbreaks and woodland. It suits coppicing, pleaching and pollarding, so you can keep it in bounds in those ways.

How big does it grow?

It reaches about 25 metres tall, with a spread of more than 8 metres, in 20 to 50 years. It is a tree for parks, fields and very large gardens.

Is it good for bees?

Yes. It is on the RHS Plants for Pollinators list, and the fragrant flowers open in midsummer.

What soil and site suit it?

Moist but well-drained soil of any kind, chalk and clay included, in sun or partial shade. Give it shelter from cold winds.

Which size should you buy?

For a large planting, the smaller sizes. They cost less, are easier to handle and cope better with poor conditions. Use the 120/150cm size for a tree quickly.

When are the plants delivered?

Bareroot only, from November to April, while the plants are dormant. You can order at any time of year and your plants are lifted and sent once the season opens.