WASHINGTON (AP) – Strong winds have knocked down a tree on the White House’s North Lawn.

The tree appeared to have been snapped off near its base during a storm Tuesday afternoon. The large tree had stood between Pennsylvania Avenue and the West Wing.

White House spokesman Bill Burton says it was a European linden. Grounds crews on Wednesday will grind up the tree to use it for mulch.

Burton says the tree was planted in 1940 but not by a president to mark a special occasion.

President George W. Bush and Laura Bush planted a tree on the North Lawn to replace a 140-year-old tree that fell in 2006.