Thanks for your question.

Please take some pictures of your tree and send to us. It is very difficult for us otherwise to make any type of assessment about what is going on. Be sure to include pictures of the leaves and buds

The thought that immediately comes to mind is there might be a scale infestation of your tree. Examine the branches to see if there are any brown bumps or perturbances on the bark. See the following for information and images about this and other conditions:

https://pnwhandbooks.org/insect/hort/landscape/hosts-pests-landscape-plants/linden-tilia-lecanium-scale

https://apps.extension.umn.edu/garden/diagnose/plant/deciduous/linden/leavesspots.html

You may want to consider having a professional, licensed arborist visit you and make an onsite assessment. That would be an excellent way to get to the bottom of things:

https://extension.umn.edu/planting-and-growing-guides/how-hire-tree-care-professional

Good luck!! Looking forward to helping you further with any pictures you can provide.

Thanks for the pictures.

From what I can see from the pictures, there does not appear to be any evidence of scale. This is good news.

For sure the tree is not dead, as evidenced by some bud-breaking. In Anoka County during March and April, there were some rather significant temperature extremes. These would certainly cause leaf and flower buds to suffer. Usually when there are adverse weather effects, the entire tree is not affected. Moreover if temperature swings were to blame, I would have expected neighboring lindens to be equally affected. That doesn’t seem to be the case.

It is now June 2, 2026. If the tree’s canopy has not substantially filled in by mid-June, it would be time to call in a professional arborist. Often an initial assessment does not incur any cost. Ask about this. Previously I sent you a site about selecting a tree professional. The following might also assist you. The second site discusses a service that the City of Anoka provides. It might worth your time to check it out:

https://www.treesaregood.org/Find-an-Arborist?utm

https://www.anokamn.gov/183/Tree-Care-Licenses?utm

I’m assuming that in previous years, this tree looked healthy. When a condition rather rapidly develops such as you are seeing, especially in mature trees, it sometimes is attributable to a condition known as stem-girdling roots. For whatever reasons, lindens seem to be vulnerable to having this happen. The roots circle around the trunk instead of radiating outwards. This constricts the upward flow of nutrients through the trunk. If you have someone out to look things over, be sure to ask about this. S/he would need to remove the shoots at the base of the tree and dig down in the ground until the root flare is exposed. These types of roots develop when the tree is originally planted too deeply. It can take years to manifest itself. See the following:

https://apps.extension.umn.edu/garden/diagnose/plant/deciduous/linden/branchesthin.html

https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/help-for-the-home-gardener/advice-tips-resources/insects-pests-and-problems/environmental/girdling

This next site shows a linden with this condition:

https://www.andovermn.gov/220/Stem-Girdling-Roots

If this situation is found for your tree, it does not bode well.  With mature trees there isn’t much that can be done to rectify things. The tree usually is removed.

Be cautious if a company recommends major pruning, fertilizer injection, pesticide treatment or removal before inspecting the tree closely and identifying a likely cause. In your case, the first need is a diagnosis.

Good luck. Please get back to us if you have any additional questions. Thanks for consulting us.