Himalayan Elm
Encyclopedia
The Himalayan Elm Ulmus wallichiana Planch., also known as the Kashmir Elm, is a mountain tree ranging from central Nuristan in Afghanistan
, through northern Pakistan
and northern India
to western Nepal
at elevations from 800 m to 3000 m. Although dissimilar in appearance, its common name is occasionally used in error for the Cherry Bark Elm
Ulmus villosa, which is also endemic to the Kashmir, but inhabits the valleys, not the mountain slopes. The species is closely related to the Wych Elm
U. glabra.
, < 13 cm long and 6 cm broad on petioles 5 mm - 10 mm long. The samarae
are usually orbicular, < 13 mm in diameter .
there. However U. wallichiana was found to be one of the most preferred elms for feeding and reproduction by the adult elm leaf beetle Xanthogaleruca luteola
http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1603/0022-0493%282001%29094%5B0162%3AROTCEU%5D2.0.CO%3B2 and feeding by the Japanese Beetle Popillia japonica http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1603/0022-0493%282001%29094%5B0445%3APOTCEU%5D2.0.CO%3B2 in the USA. Tests in Italy confirmed the American findings, and also determined a moderately high susceptibility to Elm Yellows
, meanwhile in the Netherlands
the species was also found to be susceptible to coral spot fungus Nectria cinnabarina
.
The tree was first introduced to the West in the 1920s, with the arrival of a specimen at the Arnold Arboretum from Chamba
, a hill station overlooking the north Indian plain. The tree soon proved eminently unsuited to the cold Boston winters and died, but not before a five-budded cutting could be sent to S. G. A. Doorenbos
, Parks Director at The Hague
, in 1929. Doorenbos was able to graft four of the buds, and the following year had a row of strongly growing plants. The trees were again badly damaged by frost, but in 1938 were used as a source of anti-fungal genes in the Dutch elm breeding programme and crossed with the winter-hardy Wych Elm Ulmus glabra clone 'Exoniensis'
(see Hybrid cultivars).
U. wallichiana is grown in several arboreta in the UK, but by far the largest number is held by Brighton & Hove
City Council, the NCCPG elm collection holder, which has some 60 specimens, including the TROBI
Champion in school grounds at Rottingdean
.http://www.mybrightonandhove.org.uk/page_id__9847_path__0p116p174p1196p.aspx The tree tends to be rather short-boled in Brighton & Hove, and readily defoliates in times of drought.
In North America, the species is represented only by two specimens at the U.S. National Arboretum
, Washington D. C..
There are no known cultivar
s of this taxon, nor is it known to be in commerce.
and xanthoderma
, and a variety tomentosa
identified by Melville & Heybroek , distinguished largely by variations in pubescence of the leaves and young stems.
, 'Lobel', and 'Plantyn'. 'Plantyn' was in turn to play a vital part in the third generation of Dutch hybrids; two selfed specimens were selected and released as 'Columella'
and, much later, 'Wanoux' (Vada), while 'Plantyn' itself was crossed with U. 'Bea Schwarz'
to create 'Nanguen' (Lutèce), arguably the most successful Dutch elm cultivar released to date. 'Plantyn' was also selected for use in the Italian elm breeding programme that started in the 1970s, and was crossed with varieties of the Siberian Elm
U. pumila to create a number of hardy trees renowned for their rapid upright growth: 'Arno'
, 'Plinio', and 'San Zanobi'.
Europe
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, through northern Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and northern India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
to western Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
at elevations from 800 m to 3000 m. Although dissimilar in appearance, its common name is occasionally used in error for the Cherry Bark Elm
Cherry Bark Elm
Ulmus villosa Brandis ex Gamble, the Cherry-bark Elm, is one of the more distinctive Asiatic elms, and a species capable of remarkable longevity...
Ulmus villosa, which is also endemic to the Kashmir, but inhabits the valleys, not the mountain slopes. The species is closely related to the Wych Elm
Wych Elm
Ulmus glabra, the Wych elm or Scots elm, has the widest range of the European elm species, from Ireland eastwards to the Urals, and from the Arctic Circle south to the mountains of the Peloponnese in Greece; it is also found in Iran...
U. glabra.
Description
The Himalayan Elm grows to 30 m tall, with a broad crown featuring several ascending branches. The bark of the trunk is greyish brown and longitudinally furrowed. The leaves are elliptic-acuminateLeaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...
, < 13 cm long and 6 cm broad on petioles 5 mm - 10 mm long. The samarae
Samara (fruit)
A samara is a type of fruit in which a flattened wing of fibrous, papery tissue develops from the ovary wall. A samara is a simple dry fruit and indehiscent . It is a winged achene...
are usually orbicular, < 13 mm in diameter .
Pests and diseases
The tree has a high resistance to the fungus Ophiostoma himal-ulmi endemic to the Himalaya and the cause of Dutch elm diseaseDutch elm disease
Dutch elm disease is a disease caused by a member of the sac fungi category, affecting elm trees which is spread by the elm bark beetle. Although believed to be originally native to Asia, the disease has been accidentally introduced into America and Europe, where it has devastated native...
there. However U. wallichiana was found to be one of the most preferred elms for feeding and reproduction by the adult elm leaf beetle Xanthogaleruca luteola
Xanthogaleruca luteola
Xanthogaleruca luteola, commonly known as the Elm Leaf Beetle, is a serious pest of the elm. Indigenous to Europe, it was accidentally introduced to North America. Both the imagines and larvae feed on the emergent leaves of the elm...
http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1603/0022-0493%282001%29094%5B0162%3AROTCEU%5D2.0.CO%3B2 and feeding by the Japanese Beetle Popillia japonica http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1603/0022-0493%282001%29094%5B0445%3APOTCEU%5D2.0.CO%3B2 in the USA. Tests in Italy confirmed the American findings, and also determined a moderately high susceptibility to Elm Yellows
Elm Yellows
Elm Yellows is a plant disease of elm trees that is spread by leafhoppers or by root grafts. Elm Yellows, also known as Elm Phloem Necrosis, is very aggressive, with no known cure. Elm Yellows occurs in the Eastern United States and southern Ontario in Canada. It is caused by phytoplasmas which...
, meanwhile in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
the species was also found to be susceptible to coral spot fungus Nectria cinnabarina
Nectria cinnabarina
Nectria cinnabarina is a plant pathogen that causes cankers on many tree species and also a disease known as coral spot.- External links :* *...
.
Cultivation and uses
Endemic to an impoverished region with no fossil fuel resources, U. wallichiana is heavily lopped for firewood, and also for fodder, leaving it in danger of extermination in some areas. Elsewhere however, it has been deliberately planted near villages and farmhouses. Recognizing its predicament, efforts have been made in India to conserve the tree by drying the seeds and placing them in refrigerated storage . A species of considerable commercial potential, research has also been undertaken into optimal propagation methods .The tree was first introduced to the West in the 1920s, with the arrival of a specimen at the Arnold Arboretum from Chamba
Chamba
Chamba may refer to:*Chamba, Himachal Pradesh, city in Himachal Pradesh, India*Chamba district, Himachal Pradesh, India*Chamba State, princely state*Chamba, Uttarakhand, small town in Tehri-Garhwal district, Uttarakhand, India...
, a hill station overlooking the north Indian plain. The tree soon proved eminently unsuited to the cold Boston winters and died, but not before a five-budded cutting could be sent to S. G. A. Doorenbos
Simeon Gottfried Albert Doorenbos
Simeon Doorenbos was a Dutch horticulturist best known for his work as Director of The Hague Parks Department from 1927 until his retirement in 1957, with a brief interruption during the Second World War when he was dismissed and evicted by the Nazis for refusing to remove trees and shrubs to...
, Parks Director at The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
, in 1929. Doorenbos was able to graft four of the buds, and the following year had a row of strongly growing plants. The trees were again badly damaged by frost, but in 1938 were used as a source of anti-fungal genes in the Dutch elm breeding programme and crossed with the winter-hardy Wych Elm Ulmus glabra clone 'Exoniensis'
Ulmus glabra 'Exoniensis'
Ulmus glabra Exoniensis, the Exeter Elm, was discovered near Exeter, England, in 1826, and propagated by the Ford nursery in that city. Its fastigiate shape when young, upward-curving tracery, small samarae and leaves, late leaf-flush and late leaf-fall, taken with its south-west England...
(see Hybrid cultivars).
U. wallichiana is grown in several arboreta in the UK, but by far the largest number is held by Brighton & Hove
Brighton & Hove
Brighton and Hove is a unitary authority area and city on the south coast of England. It is England's most populous seaside resort.In 1997 Brighton and Hove were joined to form the unitary authority of Brighton and Hove, which was granted city status by Queen Elizabeth II as part of the millennium...
City Council, the NCCPG elm collection holder, which has some 60 specimens, including the TROBI
The Tree Register
The Tree Register, or more fully, the Tree Register of the British Isles , is a registered charity collating and updating a database of notable trees throughout Britain and Ireland...
Champion in school grounds at Rottingdean
Rottingdean
Rottingdean is a coastal village next to the town of Brighton and technically within the city of Brighton and Hove, in East Sussex, on the south coast of England...
.http://www.mybrightonandhove.org.uk/page_id__9847_path__0p116p174p1196p.aspx The tree tends to be rather short-boled in Brighton & Hove, and readily defoliates in times of drought.
In North America, the species is represented only by two specimens at the U.S. National Arboretum
United States National Arboretum
The United States National Arboretum is an arboretum in Washington, D.C., operated by the United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service as a division of the Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center...
, Washington D. C..
There are no known cultivar
Cultivar
A cultivar'Cultivar has two meanings as explained under Formal definition. When used in reference to a taxon, the word does not apply to an individual plant but to all those plants sharing the unique characteristics that define the cultivar. is a plant or group of plants selected for desirable...
s of this taxon, nor is it known to be in commerce.
Subspecies & varieties
There are two subspecies, wallichianaUlmus wallichiana subsp. wallichiana
Ulmus wallichiana subsp. wallichiana Melville & Heybroek was identified by Melville and Heybroekafter the latter's expedition to the Himalaya in 1960.-Description:...
and xanthoderma
Ulmus wallichiana subsp. xanthoderma
The elm, Ulmus wallichiana subsp. xanthoderma was identified by Melville and Heybroekafter the latter's expedition to the Himalaya in 1960. The tree is endemic to Afghanistan and the Kashmir.-Description:...
, and a variety tomentosa
Ulmus wallichiana var. tomentosa
Ulmus wallichiana var. tomentosa was identified by Melville & Heybroek after the latter's expedition to the Himalaya in 1960.-Description:The tree is very similar to Ulmus wallichiana subsp...
identified by Melville & Heybroek , distinguished largely by variations in pubescence of the leaves and young stems.
Hybrid cultivars
U. wallichiana was crossed with the Exeter Elm U. glabra 'Exoniensis' in the Netherlands in 1938, from which progeny was selected clone '202', destined to become a fundamental component of the Dutch elm breeding programme in the 1960s and 1970s . Selfed or hybridized with U. minor or earlier Dutch hybrids, its progeny include 'Clusius', 'Dodoens'Ulmus 'Dodoens'
The Dutch hybrid cultivar Ulmus Dodoens was derived from a selfed seedling of a hybrid of the Exeter Elm Ulmus glabra 'Exoniensis', and the Himalayan Elm Ulmus wallichiana...
, 'Lobel', and 'Plantyn'. 'Plantyn' was in turn to play a vital part in the third generation of Dutch hybrids; two selfed specimens were selected and released as 'Columella'
Ulmus 'Columella'
Ulmus Columella is a Dutch cultivar raised by the Dorschkamp Research Institute in Wageningen from a selfed seedling of the hybrid 'Plantyn' sown in 1967...
and, much later, 'Wanoux' (Vada), while 'Plantyn' itself was crossed with U. 'Bea Schwarz'
Ulmus 'Bea Schwarz'
The elm cultivar Bea Schwarz was cloned at Wageningen, the Netherlands ostensibly from a selection of Ulmus minor found in France in 1939...
to create 'Nanguen' (Lutèce), arguably the most successful Dutch elm cultivar released to date. 'Plantyn' was also selected for use in the Italian elm breeding programme that started in the 1970s, and was crossed with varieties of the Siberian Elm
Siberian Elm
Ulmus pumila, the Siberian Elm, is native to Central Asia, eastern Siberia, Mongolia, Xizang , northern China, India and Korea . It is also known as the Asiatic Elm, Dwarf Elm and Chinese Elm. Two varieties are recognized: var pumila and var. arborea, the latter known as Turkestan elm...
U. pumila to create a number of hardy trees renowned for their rapid upright growth: 'Arno'
Ulmus 'Arno'
Ulmus Arno is a cultivar derived from a crossing of the Dutch hybrid cultivar 'Plantyn' with the Siberian Elm Ulmus pumila clone S.2. It was raised by the Istituto per la Protezione delle Piante in Florence, patented, and released to commerce in 2007.-Description:'Arno' is of erect habit with...
, 'Plinio', and 'San Zanobi'.
Accessions
North America- U S National ArboretumUnited States National ArboretumThe United States National Arboretum is an arboretum in Washington, D.C., operated by the United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service as a division of the Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center...
, Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, USA. Acc. nos. 76238, 76246.
Europe
- Brighton & HoveBrighton & HoveBrighton and Hove is a unitary authority area and city on the south coast of England. It is England's most populous seaside resort.In 1997 Brighton and Hove were joined to form the unitary authority of Brighton and Hove, which was granted city status by Queen Elizabeth II as part of the millennium...
City Council, NCCPG Elm Collection http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/index.cfm?request=c1254274. UK champion: Longhill School, 17 m high, 57 cm d.b.h. . Other locations include some 60 trees in Crespin Way, Hollingdean; Withdean Park (2 trees). - Grange Farm ArboretumGrange Farm ArboretumThe Grange Farm Arboretum is a small private arboretum comprising 3 hectares accommodating over 800 trees, mostly native and ornamental species or cultivars, notably oaks, ashes, walnuts and elms, growing on a calcareous loam....
, Sutton St JamesSutton St JamesSutton St James is a village and civil parish in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England, about south west of Long Sutton.Lying in the Lincolnshire Fens, Sutton St James did not exist at the time of Domesday Book of 1086...
, SpaldingSpalding, LincolnshireSpalding is a market town with a population of 30,000 on the River Welland in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England. Little London is a hamlet directly south of Spalding on the B1172 road....
, LincolnshireLincolnshireLincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
. Acc. details not known. - Royal Botanic Garden, Wakehurst Place, UK. acc. no. 1992-2028, wild collected in western Nepal.
- Sir Harold Hillier GardensSir Harold Hillier GardensThe Sir Harold Hillier Gardens is an arboretum comprising 72 hectares accommodating over 42,000 trees and shrubs in about 12,000 taxa, notably a collection of oaks, camellia, magnolia and rhododendron....
, UK. acc. no. 1977-6072, area N 100, provenance unknown.