Station 35
Botanical Name: Ulmus americana
Common Name: American Elm
Major Deciduous Tree
Native Origin: North America
Height: 60’-80’
Spread: 30’-60’
Form: Vase Shaped
Flowers: Green Red - Inconspicuous
Fruit: Round Samara
Bark: Gray With Ridges and Can Be Scaly
Comments: The American elm has a sad story associated with it. Once it was a common street and shade tree in many American cities. This tree was known to take the urban conditions of the city well. Numerous cities overplanted this tree creating a monoculture. Then Dutch elm disease invaded North America killing many of the elms that lined this country’s streets. This unhappy story stresses the importance of planting trees that will create cultural diversity in the landscape to prevent this from happening again.