58-635: The Wych Elm cultivar Ulmus glabra 'Camperdownii' , commonly known as the Camperdown Elm , was discovered about 1835–1840 (often mis-stated as '1640') as a young contorted elm (a sport ) growing in the forest at Camperdown House , in Dundee , Scotland, by the Earl of Camperdown's head forester, David Taylor. The young tree was lifted and replanted within the gardens of Camperdown House where it remains to this day. The original tree, which grows on its own roots,
116-625: A Gardener's Chronicle article in 1934 as a 'Vegeta'-type hybrid; it was propagated by Heybroek in 1958 and cultivated at the Baarn elm research institute as clone P41. The tree survived till the 1960s. Like the Queens' College Chichester elms in Cambridge, the Magdalen College trees were not observed to produce root suckers , though The Grove at Magdalen has long been a deer park, and any sucker growth
174-532: A 28-foot crown and 7 foot trunk circumference. In Alfred, NY the “Umbrella Tree” is a beloved landmark on the Alfred University campus. Frequently it's a temporary home to students nestled in its branches or artwork hanging from its limbs. Found in front of the Powell Campus Center it was planted circa 1905. Originally it sat in front of Kenyon Memorial Hall, the first building on this site. It once had
232-449: A consequence of Dutch elm disease and/or other factors: NB: 'Exoniensis', Exeter Elm , has traditionally been classified as a form of U. glabra , but its identity is now a matter of contention. U. glabra hybridises naturally with U. minor , producing elms of the Ulmus × hollandica group, from which have arisen a number of cultivars: However, hybrids of U. glabra and U. pumila ,
290-564: A mid-Victorian passion for curiosities in the 'Gardenesque' gardens then in vogue. Many examples were planted, as 'rarities', in Britain and America. There are many on university campuses, often planted as memorials, such as at the campus of the University of Idaho . Others featured in townscapes such as at the Lakeview Cemetery, Seattle , and Kripalu Yoga Center, Stockbridge , MA. The tree
348-636: A similar specimen, located next to the Boer War Memorial fountain, which displays the same characteristics as the Prospect Park tree. The UK TROBI Champion trees are in Scotland, at Baxters Park , Dundee , and at Ayr Cemetery . In France, two grow by the gate at corner of rue de Buzenval and rue de Lagney in the Square Sarah Bernhardt , Paris (20th Arrondissement). NB: Two Corkscrew Willows at
406-446: A spectacular canopy. www.dkwarrenhouse.com, Circa. 1885 In Port Gamble, Washington there is a Camperdown Elm next to the historic Walker-Ames House. Planted in 1875, this individual measures 20 feet tall, with a 26-foot crown and 7-foot trunk circumference. In Kingston, Washington there is a Camperdown Elm on an old homestead that is now the community center called The Village Green. It was planted in 1885, it measures 20 feet tall, with
464-406: A wych elm before being identified by Elwes as a 'Vegeta' -type hybrid, was for a time the largest elm known in Britain before it was blown down in 1911. It measured 44 m tall, its trunk at breast height being 2.6 m in diameter, and comprised an estimated 81 cubic metres (2,900 cu ft) of timber, making it the largest tree of any kind in Britain and possibly the largest north of
522-472: A “twin” located just a few yards away that was removed in 1974 due to ill health. A third one was once located next to the School of Theology building (The Gothic), currently the site of Herrick Memorial Library. In Saint John, New Brunswick, there is a Camperdown Elm on Red Head Road on the front yard of a former farm, currently a private residence. The owner is currently trying to locate the tree's history; its age
580-607: Is a Camperdown Elm on the Smith College campus which was planted as part of an arboretum by Frederick Law Olmsted at the turn of the 20th century. The Post University campus in Waterbury, Connecticut, hosts a Camperdown Elm, which once served as the backdrop for the university's logo. In Warrenton, Oregon there is a Camperdown Elm on the property of the DK Warren House. This is actually 2 trees that have intertwined together for
638-416: Is also a significant amount of trunk rot and large missing limbs. As of late June 2010, a local resident, Nate Thibault, has taken action to create a restoration plan for the tree. The tree's age is undetermined but believed to have reached its maturity. [UPDATE: The new owner of this property has unfortunately failed to recognize the historical significance of this tree and had it completely removed!] There
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#1732883936066696-762: Is believed to be the tree (girth 5.2 m) in the former grounds of Duddingston House , now Duddingston Golf Course. Other notable specimens in Edinburgh are to be found in Learmonth Gardens and The Meadows . In Europe, a large tree planted in 1620 grows at Bergemolo, 5 km south of Demonte in Piedmont , Italy (bole-girth 6.2 m, 2.0 m DBH, height 26 m., 2008). Other ancient specimens grow at Styria, in Austria, and at Grenzhammer, Germany (see Gallery). In 1998, over 700 healthy, mature trees were discovered on
754-474: Is by seed alone. The tree is notable for its very tough, supple young shoots, which are always without the corky ridges or 'wings' characteristic of many elms. The alternate leaves are deciduous, 6–17 cm long by 3–12 cm broad, usually obovate with an asymmetric base, the lobe often completely covering the short (<5 mm) petiole ; the upper surface is rough. Leaves on juvenile or shade-grown shoots sometimes have three or more lobes near
812-428: Is its contorted branching, what Mitchell (1982) called the "head of furiously twisting branches". The ultimate size and form of 'Camperdownii' depends on such factors as latitude and location, on what part of the parent tree the cuttings come from, on the 'stock' on which it is grafted, and on possible continuing mutation. Specimens may therefore vary in appearance. Grown in lower latitudes like Victoria , Australia,
870-453: Is less favoured as a host by the elm bark beetles, which act as vectors. Research in Spain has indicated the presence of a triterpene , alnulin , rendering the tree bark less attractive to the beetle than the field elm , though at 87 μg/g dried bark, its concentration is not as effective as in Ulmus laevis (200 μg/g). Moreover, once the tree is dying, its bark is quickly colonized by
928-503: Is less than 3 m tall, with a weeping habit and contorted branch structure. The earl's gardener is said to have produced the first of what are commonly recognised as Camperdown elms by grafting a cutting to the trunk of a wych elm ( U. glabra ). Henry and Bean record that in early days both 'Camperdownii' and a reportedly similar-looking cultivar called 'Serpentina' were marketed as U. montana pendula nova . Koch had listed an U. serpentina in 1872, and an U. montana serpentina
986-534: Is likely to have been cropped. The Oxford zoologist Robert Gunther attributed the larger tree's unusual size to the fact (discovered in 1926) that it had been growing on a phosphate-rich bone-bed, made up of the remains of mammoths and other prehistoric animals. With a girth of 6.9 m (22.6 ft) and a height of 40 metres (130 ft), the Ulmus × hollandica hybrid elm on Great Saling Green, Great Saling , near Braintree , Essex , reckoned at least 350 years old,
1044-622: Is often listed as a regional form of Ulmus glabra . The word "wych" (also spelled "witch") comes from the Old English wice , meaning pliant or supple, which also gives definition to wicker and weak. Jacob George Strutt 's 1822 book, Sylva Britannica attests that the Wych Elm was sometimes referred to as the "Wych Hazel", a name now applied to the unrelated species Hamamelis , commonly called "wych hazels". Some botanists, notably Lindquist (1931), have proposed two subspecies : Much overlap
1102-486: Is open to the public. In Cazenovia, New York , there is a Camperdown Elm planted in the gardens of The Brewster Inn. Two large trees are situated outside 315 Eureka Street, Ballarat , Victoria , Australia, (2014), planted c.1900. Measured in 2011, one (girth 2.7 m) was 13.7 m tall and 14.3 m broad, the other (girth 2.6 m) 13 m tall and 13 m broad. The largest recorded specimens are located in New Zealand . The cultivar
1160-453: Is seen between populations with these characters, and the distinction may owe to environmental influence, rather than genetic variation; the subspecies are not accepted by Flora Europaea . The type sometimes reaches heights of 40 m (130 ft), typically with a broad crown where open-grown, supported by a short bole up to 2 m (6.6 ft) diameter at breast height (DBH). Normally, root suckers are not seen; natural reproduction
1218-406: Is undetermined. In Leamington, Ontario, there is a mature Camperdown Elm on Seacliff Drive in the back yard of a garden center. In Eastport, Maine, there is a Camperdown Elm at the corner of High Street and Shackford Street. The tree is on the corner near the original Anderson home built circa the 1850s. It is 3 feet in diameter at the widest part of its trunk. Eastport is the easternmost city in
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#17328839360661276-551: The First World War , and were to prove vulnerable to the much more virulent strain of the disease that arrived in the late 1960s. However, further research eventually produced several trees effectively immune to disease, which were released after 1989. Ulmus %C3%97 hollandica Ulmus × hollandica Mill. , often known simply as Dutch elm , is a natural hybrid between Wych elm ( U. glabra ) and field elm Ulmus minor which commonly occurs across Europe wherever
1334-461: The fungus Phoma , which radically reduces the amount of bark available for the beetle to breed on. In European trials, clones of apparently resistant trees were inoculated with the pathogen, causing 85 – 100% wilting, resulting in 68% mortality by the following year. DNA analysis by Cemagref (now Irstea ) in France has determined the genetic diversity within the species is very limited, making
1392-534: The Alps. However, as Elwes pointed out, its calculated age would place its planting in the late 17th or early 18th century, long before the introduction of the Huntingdon elm , making the tree in question more likely to be a Chichester elm . A second tree nearby, described by Elwes as "similar in habit and foliage" and 130 feet (40 m) tall by 23 feet (7.0 m) in girth in 1912, was confirmed by Nellie Bancroft in
1450-458: The British Isles, one at Little Blakenham , Suffolk , measuring 160 centimetres (5.2 ft) d.b.h. in 2008, the other at Nounsley , Essex , 17 metres (56 ft) high by 150 centimetres (4.9 ft) d.b.h. in 2005. The so-called W. G. Grace Elm, a majestic spreading hybrid (labelled just "Dutch elm"), the last survivor (2009) of a ring of elms round East Oval, Ballarat , Victoria ,
1508-563: The Elms', 'leaman' being the plural form of leam or lem, 'elm'. Closely related species, such as Bergmann's elm U. bergmanniana and Manchurian elm U. laciniata , native to northeast Asia , were once sometimes included in U. glabra ; another close relative is the Himalayan or Kashmir elm U. wallichiana . Conversely, Ulmus elliptica from the Caucasus, considered a species by some authorities,
1566-560: The Italian elm breeding programme circa 2000. Hybrids with U. glabra in their ancestry have featured strongly in recent artificial hybridization experiments in Europe, notably at Wageningen in the Netherlands , and a number of hybrid cultivars have been commercially released since 1960. The earlier trees were raised in response to the initial Dutch elm disease pandemic that afflicted Europe after
1624-578: The Siberian elm, have not been observed in the field and only achieved in the laboratory, though the ranges of the two species, the latter introduced by man, overlap in parts of Southern Europe, notably Spain. A crossing in Russia of U. glabra and U. pumila produced the hybrid named Ulmus × arbuscula ; a similar crossing was cloned ('FL025') by the Istituto per la Protezione delle Piante (IPP), Florence, as part of
1682-692: The United States. In Spiers Old School Grounds near Beith , Scotland is a fine specimen dating from the late 1880s planted by the Earl of Eglinton 's head gardener on behalf of the Spier's Trust (see photograph). In Newport, Rhode Island , there is a Camperdown Elm at the Chinese Tea House in the Marble House estate, a historic mansion built by Mr. and Mrs. William Kissam Vanderbilt between 1888 and 1892, which
1740-444: The apex. The perfect hermaphrodite flowers appear before the leaves in early spring, produced in clusters of 10–20; they are 4 mm across on 10 mm long stems, and being wind-pollinated, are apetalous . The fruit is a winged samara 20 mm long and 15 mm broad, with a single, round, 6 mm seed in the centre, maturing in late spring. While the species is highly susceptible to Dutch elm disease , it
1798-537: The chances of a resistant tree evolving rather remote. A 300-year-old example growing in Grenzhammer , Ilmenau has allegedly been scientifically proven to be resistant to Dutch elm disease. The Swedish Forest Tree Breeding Association at Källstorp produced triploid and tetraploid forms of the tree, but these proved no more resistant to Dutch elm disease than the normal diploid form. In trials conducted in Italy,
Ulmus glabra 'Camperdownii' - Misplaced Pages Continue
1856-401: The characteristic fissures and markings of 'burr elm' wood. Bosses fringed with shoots are burrs, whereas unfringed bosses are burls. In 18th century France, the inner bark of Ulmus glabra , orme pyramidale , had a brief reputation as a panacea ; "it was taken as a powder, as an extract, as an elixir, even in baths. It was good for the nerves, the chest, the stomach — what can I say? — it
1914-613: The disease do not feed on wych elm, however, its leaves are heavily damaged there by the elm leaf beetle Xanthogaleruca luteola , elm yellows [2] , and disfigured by leaf-mining and leaf-rolling insects , such as the elm casebearer, Coleophora ulmifoliella [3] . Every 'Camperdownii' is descended (through cuttings) from the original sport and usually grafted on a wych elm trunk. Other grafting stock has been used, including Dutch elm U. × hollandica , Siberian elm U. pumila , and English elm U. minor 'Atinia' (although this ultimately produces suckers). Camperdown elms satisfied
1972-424: The entrance near the corner of rue de Lagny & rue Mounet Sully look the same during winter. In Gardner, Massachusetts, there is a Camperdown Elm on Parker Street in the front yard of a former store now currently a private residence, towering over the peak of the two-story building with a trunk circumference of over 9 feet. The tree has not been touched for decades and is infested with leaf miners and borers; there
2030-594: The gated entrance to a private residence on Constitution Terrace in the Crescents Conservation Area. Both trees have grown so they intertwine with each other and create the illusion of one tree in the summer months. The trees are likely to have been cultivated around 1850, the same age as the Victorian mansion situated in the grounds which was built around 1850, therefore are among the oldest in Dundee. These trees are
2088-424: The house of the title and is said to have a "...girth that a dozen men could not have spanned..." Forster describes the tree as "...a comrade, bending over the house, strength and adventure in its roots." The wych elm of the novel had pigs' teeth embedded in the trunk by country people long ago and it was said that chewing some of the bark could cure toothache. In keeping with the novel's epigraph, "Only connect...",
2146-475: The only known 'twin trees' of their kind. In Prospect Park, Brooklyn , a Camperdown Elm planted in 1872 near the Boat House has developed into a picturesque weatherbeaten specimen, no more than four metres high, like an oversized bonsai . Described by the poet Marianne Moore as "our crowning curio," the Prospect Park tree is considered the outstanding specimen tree in the park. Halifax Public Gardens contains
2204-509: The parent species are also classified as U. × hollandica . Ulmus × hollandica hybrids, natural and artificial, have been widely planted elsewhere. The botanical name hollandica was first used for an elm variety by Plukenet in 1697 in describing a cultivar of this group now called 'Major' . In form and foliage, the trees are broadly intermediate between the two species. F1 hybrids between wych and field elm are fully fertile, but produce widely variant progeny. Many also inherit
2262-548: The ranges of the 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". Crosses between U. × hollandica and either of
2320-435: The roots, and any seedlings are often consumed by uncontrolled deer populations, regeneration is very restricted, limited to sprouts from the stumps of young trees. The resultant decline has been extreme, and the wych elm is now uncommon over much of its former range. It is best propagated from seed or by layering stooled stock plants, although softwood cuttings taken in early June will root fairly reliably under mist. Wych elm
2378-449: The same name include ' Fastigiata Glabra ', ' Fastigiata Macrophylla ', ' Latifolia ', and ' Rugosa '. In the 19th century and early 20th, Ulmus × hollandica cultivars (as well as those of wych elm) were often grouped under Ulmus montana . The elms in the Suffolk landscape-paintings and drawings of John Constable were "most probably East Anglian hybrid elms ... such as still grow in
Ulmus glabra 'Camperdownii' - Misplaced Pages Continue
2436-414: The serpentining branches of 'Camperdownii' may have contributed to the impression of two different trees. In this omission they were followed by Bean (1925; corrected 1981), Green (1964), Hillier (1972– 2002), Krüssmann (1976), and White (2003), the first four of whom, like Elwes and Henry, list 'Serpentina' as a cultivar distinct from 'Camperdownii'. Although usually classed as a cultivar of wych elm,
2494-569: The southern tip of Greenland ( 61°N ). The tree was by far the most common elm in the north and west of the British Isles and is now acknowledged as the only indisputably British native elm species. Owing to its former abundance in Scotland, the tree is occasionally known as the Scotch or Scots elm; Loch Lomond is said to be a corruption of the Gaelic Lac Leaman interpreted by some as 'Lake of
2552-554: 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. Some examples of the hybrid possess a moderate resistance to Dutch elm disease . The hybrid has been introduced to North America and Australasia . The great elm in The Grove of Magdalen College, Oxford , photographed by Henry Taunt in 1900, long believed to be
2610-521: The tree can attain a height and spread of over 13 m. 'Camperdownii' is susceptible to Dutch elm disease , however, there are still many examples to be found in parks and gardens across the British Isles as it often avoids detection by the Scolytae beetle (a major vector of Dutch elm disease) because of its diminutive height. In North America it often escapes infection possibly because the American vectors of
2668-431: The tree was considered a nothomorph of Ulmus × hollandica 'Vegeta' by Green (1964). The tree is sometimes confused with the 'Horizontalis' (Weeping Wych Elm) owing to both being given the epithet 'Pendula'. The grafted Camperdown Elm slowly develops a broad, flat head that may eventually build as high as 4 m (13 feet), and a commensurately wide crown with a weeping habit. Its chief diagnostic feature
2726-565: The tree was found to have a slight to moderate susceptibility to elm yellows , and a high susceptibility to the elm leaf beetle Xanthogaleruca luteola . The wych elm is moderately shade-tolerant, but requires deep, rich soils as typically found along river valleys. The species is intolerant of acid soils and flooding, as it is of prolonged drought. Although rarely used as a street tree owing to its shape, it can be surprisingly tolerant of urban air pollution, constricted growing conditions, and severe pollarding. As wych elm does not sucker from
2784-604: The upper slopes of Mount Šimonka in Slovakia , but they are believed to have survived courtesy of their isolation from disease-carrying beetles rather than any innate resistance; 50 clones of these trees were presented to the Prince of Wales for planting at his Highgrove Estate , and at Clapham , Yorkshire . E. M. Forster cites a particular wych elm, one that grew at his childhood home of Rooks Nest, Stevenage , Hertfordshire , 16 times in his novel Howards End . This tree overhangs
2842-1094: The widest range of the European elm species, from Ireland eastwards to the Ural Mountains , and from the Arctic Circle south to the mountains of the Peloponnese and Sicily , where the species reaches its southern limit in Europe; it is also found in Iran. A large deciduous tree, it is essentially a montane species, growing at elevations up to 1,500 m (4,900 ft), preferring sites with moist soils and high humidity. The tree can form pure forests in Scandinavia and occurs as far north as latitude 67°N at Beiarn Municipality in Norway. It has been successfully introduced as far north as Tromsø and Alta in northern Norway (70°N). It has also been successfully introduced to Narsarsuaq , near
2900-413: The wych elm may be seen by some as a symbol of the connection of humans to the earth. Margaret Schlegel, the novel's protagonist, fears that any "....westerly gale might blow the wych elm down and bring the end of all things..." The tree is changed to a chestnut in the 1991 film adaptation of Howards End . About 40 cultivars have been raised, although at least 30 are now probably lost to cultivation as
2958-457: Was a true panacea." It was this so-called "pyramidal elm bark" about which Michel-Philippe Bouvart famously quipped "Take it, Madame... and hurry up while it [still] cures." It still appeared in a pharmacopeia of 1893. Possibly the oldest wych elm in Europe grew at Beauly Priory in Inverness-shire , Scotland; the tree succumbed to DED in 2022 and collapsed the following year. The priory
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#17328839360663016-479: Was also introduced to Australia, where a number still survive, notably in Victoria , where it was marketed from 1873. Camperdown Elm is cold hardy, suffering more from summer drought than winter cold (to zone 4), although 90% of the University of Minnesota elm trials specimens were lost during the exceptionally severe winter of 2002–2003. In Dundee , Scotland, there are two well established Camperdownii Elms at
3074-725: Was founded circa 1230, the tree already in existence. The UK Champion listed in the Tree Register of the British Isles was at Brahan in the Scottish Highlands (died 2021 ); it had a girth of 703 cm (2.23 m DBH) and a height of 24 m. Possibly the oldest specimen in England was found in 2018 in a field north of Hopton Castle in Shropshire. Coppiced long ago, its bole girth measured 6.3 m in 2018. The oldest specimen in Edinburgh
3132-677: Was marketed in the late 19th century and early 20th by the Späth nursery in Berlin , and by the Ulrich nursery in Warsaw . In Späth catalogues between 1902 and 1920, 'Serpentina' appears while 'Camperdownii' is absent; by 1930 'Camperdownii' appears but 'Serpentina' is absent. This suggests that 'Serpentina' may have been a continental name for 'Camperdownii', and that Späth dropped the name 'Serpentina' c.1930 in favour of 'Camperdownii'. Elwes and Henry's failure to mention
3190-486: Was popular with early settlers and there are several trees with girth measurements over 2.8 metres listed on the New Zealand Tree Register. The largest tree, situated at 8 Harakeke Street, Christchurch has a girth of 3.5 m, is 9.6 m high and has an average canopy spread of 11.4 m (2016). (Widely available) (Widely available) Wych Elm Ulmus glabra Hudson , the wych elm or Scots elm , has
3248-823: Was reputedly planted by W. G. Grace himself in 1874 during a tour by the England cricket team. It has been shown, however, to date from 1900. 'W. G. G.' had attained a spread round the middle of 31 m by 1982. At least 40 cultivars have been recorded, although some may not have survived Dutch elm disease: Others provisionally identified as Ulmus × hollandica include 'Scampstoniensis' and 'Virens (by Green ); 'Purpurea' and 'Louis van Houtte' (by F. J. Fontaine); 'Escaillard' and 'Hillieri' (by Buisman ); 'Rugosa Pendula' (by Arnold and Morton arboreta); and Späth 's 'Fastigiata Glabra' (by Melville ). Cultivars at one time or another identified as U. × hollandica , but which may have suffered misidentification through confusion with U. glabra Huds. cultivars that share
3306-531: Was reputedly the largest elm in England, before succumbing to Dutch Elm Disease in the 1980s; Elwes and Henry (1913) misidentified it as U. nitens ( Ulmus minor ). Examples of mature survivors in the East Anglian hybridisation zone include those near Royston, Hertfordshire , designated 'Elm of the Year, 2004' by Das Ulmen Büro . An example of the weeping form survives at Actons Farm, Sawbridgeworth , Hertfordshire . There are two notable TROBI Champion trees in
3364-605: Was widely planted in Edinburgh in the 19th century as a park and avenue tree, and despite losses, it remains abundant there, regenerating through seedlings. It was introduced to New England in the 18th century, to Canada (as U. montana at the Dominion Arboretum , Ottawa ) and Australia in the 19th century. Wych elm wood is prized by craftsmen for its colouring, its striking grain, its 'partridge-breast' or 'catspaw' markings, and when worked, its occasional iridescent greenish sheen or 'bloom'. The bosses on old trees produce
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