Re: Limes? who are they really?

LaliMaly@aol.com wrote:
> 
> Dear Everyone
> 
> I am reading Middlemarch by Eliot and they keep referring to Lime trees in a
> lane but I dont think they mean citrus.  Does anyone know what they could
> mean?  I saw some evergreen, shiney, round-ishly long leaves that some
> Indians called Limes and they used them for decoration, but they were not
> citrus [I crushed them and no smell of citrus].  Maybe it is something the
> English brought to India that they call limes.  Anyway, any help would be
> appreciated.  Also, if it grown in India it must be pretty drought tolerant,
> and thus maybe useful in our gardens.  Help?
> 
 Lali

Tou are quite right, the lime referred to by Elliot is not at all like a
citrus. The "limes" you saw in India were almost certainly a true citrus
(even if they didn't smell) and no connection. It is confusing when a
similar common name is given to totally different trees (that's the
beauty of scientific names, which must be unique to each species). 

Also known as a linden tree (Tilia), this is one of a considerable group
of large deciduous trees which grow all across the more temperate parts
of Eurasia and North America, but are naturally absent from the southern
hemisphere. The Asian ones occur one in China and one in Mongolia and
north China, so it looks as though they prefer a temperate climate and
might not be happy in lowland parts of India though they would probably
grow all right in the hill country.

I don't see any American species mentioned as surviving hot dry
conditions, The American Linden (also known as Basswood) hales from
E-central USA and Canada is hardy in zones 3-9 and there are a couple of
others which seem to prefer the same conditions. However there is a
species from Turkey, Tilia tomentosa (Silver Linden)
which is described as "tolerent of dry conditions and smog-laden
atmospheres" Its zone preferences are listed as 5-9, so it is slightly
less hardy than most of the other species, but would probably be happy
in California..

Lime (linden) trees do well in New Zealand, but are almost exclusively
grown in large parks as they reach an immmense size.


Moira
-- 
Tony & Moira Ryan <theryans@xtra.co.nz>
Wainuiomata, New Zealand. (on the "Ring of Fire" in the SW Pacific).
Lat. 41:16S Long. 174:58E. Climate: Mediterranean/Temperate
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