Carolina Basswood, currently considered a variety of American Basswood, is a medium-sized deciduous tree, occasional in the Coastal Plain and Piedmont of North Carolina.
Pender Co., NC 4/14/07.
Of the numerous and confusing varieties of American Basswood that have been named, three are currently recognized: (1) The more northerly American Basswood, var. americana, occurs in a few Mountain counties. (2) The southerly distributed Carolina Basswood, var. caroliniana (listed in the Radford manual as both T. caroliniana and T. floridana), is occasional in the Coastal Plain and Piedmont. (3) White Basswood, var. heterophylla (sometimes recognized as a full species, T. heterophylla), is the most common and easy to recognize one -- it has white undersides to its leaves. Its distribution is centered in the Appalachians, where it is common.
Pender Co., NC 8/12/07.
Leaf underside.
Pender Co., NC 8/12/07.
