| Ulmus szechuanica | |
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| Ulmus szechuanica, Sir Harold Hillier Gardens | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Division: | Magnoliophyta |
| Class: | Magnoliopsida |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Ulmaceae |
| Genus: | Ulmus |
| Species: | U. szechuanica |
| Binomial name | |
| Ulmus szechuanica Fang |
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| Synonyms | |
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Ulmus szechuanica Fang, known as the Szechuan (Sichuan), or Red-fruited, Elm, is a small to medium deciduous Chinese tree found along the Yangtze river through the provinces of Sichuan, Jiangxi, Anhui, and Jiangsu.
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The tree can reach a height of 18 m, but is usually less than 10 m, with a spreading umbrella-like crown. The leaves, distinguished by their emergent red colour, are generally obovate < 9 cm long by 5 cm broad, borne on branchlets with an irregular corky layer. The wind-pollinated apetalous flowers are produced on second-year shoots in February, followed by suborbicular samarae < 16 mm by 13 mm in March [1] [2].
U. szechuanica was evaluated with other Chinese elms at the Morton Arboretum, Illinois, where it exhibited a resistance to Dutch elm disease. The species is eschewed by the Elm Leaf Beetle Xanthogaleruca luteola [3] [3].
Growing best on well-drained soils,U. szechuanica is also cold hardy; in artificial freezing tests at the Morton Arboretum [4] the LT50 (temp. at which 50% of tissues die) was found to be - 30 °C. However, it was also found to be comparatively weak-wooded, making it susceptible to storm damage in winter [5]. There are no known cultivars of this taxon, nor is it known to be in commerce beyond the USA.
U. szechuanica is believed to have been used in recent (post 2000) hybridization experiments at the Morton Arboretum [6] but results have yet (2008) to be published.