Chestnut-leafed Elm

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Ulmus castaneifolia
Chestnut-leafed Elm aged 15 years, Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, UK
Chestnut-leafed Elm aged 15 years, Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, UK
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Rosales
Family: Ulmaceae
Genus: Ulmus
Species: U. castaneifolia
Binomial name
Ulmus castaneifolia
Hemsley
Synonyms

Ulmus ferruginea W. C. Cheng

Ulmus multinervis W. C. Cheng

The Chestnut-leafed Elm Ulmus castaneifolia Hemsley is a small deciduous tree found across much of China in broadleaved forests at elevations of between 500 m and 1600 m. The tree can reach a height of 20 m with a trunk of about 0.5 m d.b.h. The bark is thick with a pronounced corky layer, and is longitudinally fissured.

Chestnut-leafed Elm
Chestnut-leafed Elm

The leaves are generally narrow, ranging from obovate to elliptic in shape, and are up to 15 cm long, densely hirsute when young. The wind-pollinated petal-less flowers are produced on second-year shoots in February; the samarae are mostly obovate < 30 mm x 16 mm. The branchlets are devoid of corky wings [1] [2] The species is very rare in cultivation, but is currently (2006) being assessed for its horticultural potential at the Morton Arboretum, Illinois. In artificial freezing tests at the arboretum [3] the LT50 (temp. at which 50% of tissues die) was found to be - 26 °C.

There are no known cultivars of this taxon, nor is it known to be available in any nurseries beyond the USA.

[edit] Arboreta etc accessions

North America
Europe

[edit] Nurseries

North America

[edit] References

  1. ^ Fu, L., Xin, Y. & Whittemore, A. (2002). Ulmaceae, in Wu, Z. & Raven, P. (eds) Flora of China, Vol. 5 (Ulmaceae through Basellaceae). Science Press, Beijing, and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis, USA. ISBN-10: 1930723407 [1]
  2. ^ White, J. & More, D. (2003). Trees of Britain & Northern Europe. Cassell's, London. ISBN 0-304-361192-5
  3. ^ Shirazi, A. M. & Ware, G. H. (2004). Evaluation of New Elms from China for Cold Hardiness in Northern Latitudes. International Symposium on Asian Plant Diversity & Systematics 2004, Sakura, Japan.