Ulmus × hollandica
Encyclopedia
Ulmus × hollandica Mill.
, often known simply as Dutch Elm, is a natural hybrid between Wych Elm
Ulmus glabra and Field Elm
Ulmus minor which commonly occurs across Europe wherever the ranges of the two parent species overlap. In England, according to the field-studies of R. H. Richens, "The largest area [of hybridization] is a band extending across Essex
from the Hertfordshire
border to southern Suffolk
. The next largest is in northern Bedfordshire
and adjoining parts of Northamptonshire
. Comparable zones occur in Picardy
and Cotentin in northern France".
F1 hybrid
s between Wych and Field Elm are fully fertile, but produce widely variant progeny. Many also inherit the suckering habit of their Field Elm parent. Both Richens and Rackham
noted that examples in the East Anglian hybridization zone were sometimes pendulous in form. A surviving mature U. × hollandica at Actons Farm, Sawbridgeworth
, Hertfordshire
- if it was not, as has been suggested, a seedling of Vegeta (Huntingdon Elm) from the local Rivers Nursery (see under Vegeta) - is a case in point.
U. × hollandica hybrids, natural and artificial, have been widely planted elsewhere by man.
.
.
, Essex
, was reputedly the largest elm in England, before succumbing to Dutch Elm Disease in the 1980s. A photograph of the tree can be found (plate 402) in Elwes & Henry's Trees of Great Britain & Ireland http://fax.libs.uga.edu/QK488xE4/1f/trees_of_britain_and_ireland_vol_7.pdf published in 1913, wherein it is identified as U. nitens (U. minor subsp. minor).
Examples of mature survivors in the East Anglian hybridisation zone include the elms at the River Can weir, at the western end of Admiral's Park, Chelmsford
, Essex
, and those near Royston
, Hertfordshire
, designated 'Elm of the Year, 2004' by Das Ulmen Büro.
Many old trees still survive in New Zealand
, notably in Auckland
, the finest considered to be the specimen found outside the Ellerslie Racecourse
.
landscape-paintings and drawings of John Constable
were "most probably East Anglian hybrid elms ... such as still grow in the same hedges" in Dedham Vale
, Flatford
and East Bergholt
. Elm trees in Old Hall Park, East Bergholt http://www.john-constable.org/Elm-trees-in-Old-Hall-Park,-East-Bergholt,-1817-large.html is often considered the finest of Constable's elm-studies.
Alba, Angustifolia, Belgica (Belgian Elm), Cinerea, Dampieri, Dauvessei, Daveyi (Davey Elm), Dumont, Elegantissima, Eleganto-Variegata, Fjerrestad, Fulva, Gaujardii, Groeneveld, Haarlemensis, Hillieri, Jacqueline Hillier, Major (Dutch Elm), Macrophylla Aurea, Microphylla, Modiolina, Muscaviensis, Pioneer, Serpentina, Smithii (Downton Elm), Superba (Canterbury Elm), Tricolor, Vegeta (Huntingdon Elm) / Vegeta (Chichester Elm), Virens (Kidbrook Elm), Viscosa, Wredei (Golden Elm), Ypreau.
Philip Miller
Philip Miller FRS was a Scottish botanist.Miller was chief gardener at the Chelsea Physic Garden from 1722 until he was pressured to retire shortly before his death...
, often known simply as Dutch Elm, is a natural hybrid between 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...
Ulmus glabra and Field Elm
Field Elm
Ulmus minor Mill., the Field Elm, is by far the most polymorphic of the European species, although its taxonomy remains a matter of contention. Its natural range is predominantly south European, extending to Asia Minor; its northern outposts are the Baltic islands of Öland and Gotland, although it...
Ulmus minor which commonly occurs across Europe wherever the ranges of the two parent species overlap. In England, according to the field-studies of R. H. Richens, "The largest area [of hybridization] is a band extending across Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
from the Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
border to southern Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
. The next largest is in northern Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
and adjoining parts of Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
. Comparable zones occur in Picardy
Picardy
This article is about the historical French province. For other uses, see Picardy .Picardy is a historical province of France, in the north of France...
and Cotentin in northern France".
F1 hybrid
F1 hybrid
F1 hybrid is a term used in genetics and selective breeding. F1 stands for Filial 1, the first filial generation seeds/plants or animal offspring resulting from a cross mating of distinctly different parental types....
s between Wych and Field Elm are fully fertile, but produce widely variant progeny. Many also inherit the suckering habit of their Field Elm parent. Both Richens and Rackham
Oliver Rackham
Oliver Rackham OBE is a Life Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. He is also Keeper of theCollege Silver.An acknowledged authority on the British countryside, especially trees, woodlands and wood pasture, Rackham has written a number of well-known books, including The History of the...
noted that examples in the East Anglian hybridization zone were sometimes pendulous in form. A surviving mature U. × hollandica at Actons Farm, Sawbridgeworth
Sawbridgeworth
Sawbridgeworth is a small, mainly residential, town and also a civil parish in Hertfordshire, England.- Location :Sawbridgeworth is four miles south of Bishop's Stortford, twelve miles east of Hertford and nine miles north of Epping. It lies on the A1184 and has a railway station that links to...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
- if it was not, as has been suggested, a seedling of Vegeta (Huntingdon Elm) from the local Rivers Nursery (see under Vegeta) - is a case in point.
U. × hollandica hybrids, natural and artificial, have been widely planted elsewhere by man.
.
Pests and diseases
Some examples of the hybrid possess a moderate resistance to 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...
.
Notable trees
With a girth of 22 in 6 in (6.86 m) and a height of 40 metres, the Ulmus x hollandica hybrid elm on Great Saling Green, Great Saling, near BraintreeBraintree, Essex
Braintree is a town of about 42,000 people and the principal settlement of the Braintree district of Essex in the East of England. It is northeast of Chelmsford and west of Colchester on the River Blackwater, A120 road and a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line.Braintree has grown contiguous...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, was reputedly the largest elm in England, before succumbing to Dutch Elm Disease in the 1980s. A photograph of the tree can be found (plate 402) in Elwes & Henry's Trees of Great Britain & Ireland http://fax.libs.uga.edu/QK488xE4/1f/trees_of_britain_and_ireland_vol_7.pdf published in 1913, wherein it is identified as U. nitens (U. minor subsp. minor).
Examples of mature survivors in the East Anglian hybridisation zone include the elms at the River Can weir, at the western end of Admiral's Park, Chelmsford
Chelmsford
Chelmsford is the county town of Essex, England and the principal settlement of the borough of Chelmsford. It is located in the London commuter belt, approximately northeast of Charing Cross, London, and approximately the same distance from the once provincial Roman capital at Colchester...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, and those near Royston
Royston
Royston is the name of several places:* Royston, South Yorkshire, England* Royston, British Columbia, Canada* Royston, Hertfordshire England** Royston Town F.C., an English football club* Royston, Glasgow, a district of Glasgow, Scotland...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, designated 'Elm of the Year, 2004' by Das Ulmen Büro.
Many old trees still survive in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, notably in Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, the finest considered to be the specimen found outside the Ellerslie Racecourse
Ellerslie Racecourse
Ellerslie Racecourse is the main racecourse in Ellerslie, Auckland, New Zealand for thoroughbred racehorses. It is an undulating, grass circuit of approximately 1,900 m.-History:The first race meeting was held at Ellerslie on 25 May 1874...
.
The hybrid elm in art
The elms in the SuffolkSuffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
landscape-paintings and drawings of John Constable
John Constable
John Constable was an English Romantic painter. Born in Suffolk, he is known principally for his landscape paintings of Dedham Vale, the area surrounding his home—now known as "Constable Country"—which he invested with an intensity of affection...
were "most probably East Anglian hybrid elms ... such as still grow in the same hedges" in Dedham Vale
Dedham Vale
Dedham Vale is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the Essex-Suffolk border in east England. It comprises the area around the River Stour between Manningtree and Bures, including the village of Dedham in Essex. It is part of the area known since the artist's lifetime as Constable...
, Flatford
Flatford
Flatford is a small hamlet close to East Bergholt in Suffolk. It is most famous for Flatford Mill, Willy Lott's Cottage and Bridge Cottage, immortalised in the paintings of John Constable.-Access by Road:...
and East Bergholt
East Bergholt
East Bergholt is a village in the south of Suffolk, England, just north of the Essex border. It is "twinned" with the village of Barbizon, France....
. Elm trees in Old Hall Park, East Bergholt http://www.john-constable.org/Elm-trees-in-Old-Hall-Park,-East-Bergholt,-1817-large.html is often considered the finest of Constable's elm-studies.
Cultivars
At least 30 cultivars have been recorded, although over half have now been lost to cultivation because of Dutch elm disease:Alba, Angustifolia, Belgica (Belgian Elm), Cinerea, Dampieri, Dauvessei, Daveyi (Davey Elm), Dumont, Elegantissima, Eleganto-Variegata, Fjerrestad, Fulva, Gaujardii, Groeneveld, Haarlemensis, Hillieri, Jacqueline Hillier, Major (Dutch Elm), Macrophylla Aurea, Microphylla, Modiolina, Muscaviensis, Pioneer, Serpentina, Smithii (Downton Elm), Superba (Canterbury Elm), Tricolor, Vegeta (Huntingdon Elm) / Vegeta (Chichester Elm), Virens (Kidbrook Elm), Viscosa, Wredei (Golden Elm), Ypreau.
North America
- Arnold Arboretum. Acc. nos. 325-81, 7614, 92-38
- Bartlett Tree Experts. Acc. nos. 1245, 1246
- New York Botanical GardenNew York Botanical Garden- See also :* Education in New York City* List of botanical gardens in the United States* List of museums and cultural institutions in New York City- External links :* official website** blog*...
. Acc. no. 508/79 - Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens. Acc. no. 940414
Australasia
- Eastwoodhill ArboretumEastwoodhill ArboretumEastwoodhill is the national arboretum of New Zealand. It covers and is located 35 km northwest of Gisborne, in the hill country of Ngatapa. It was founded in 1910 by William Douglas Cook...
http://www.eastwoodhill.org.nz/gardens--collection/collection.aspx?Type=&G=Ulmus, GisborneGisborne, New Zealand-Economy:The harbour was host to many ships in the past and had developed as a river port to provide a more secure location for shipping compared with the open roadstead of Poverty Bay which can be exposed to southerly swells. A meat works was sited beside the harbour and meat and wool was shipped...
, New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. 24 trees, details not known. - Waite Arboretum http://www.waite.adelaide.edu.au/arboretum/, University of AdelaideUniversity of AdelaideThe University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
, AdelaideAdelaideAdelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Acc. nos. 368, 339
Europe
- Boomwekerijen 'De Batterijen' http://www.treecommerce.com/batterijen/resultaten_pagina.asp?page=10&Taal=&ZoekPlant=Ulmus&ZoekCons=&Groep=&Sortering=, NetherlandsNetherlandsThe 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...
.
Australasia
- Fleming's Nursery http://www.flemings.com.au/, Monbulk, Victoria, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...