Ulmus 'Densa'

The elm cultivar ''Ulmus'' Densa was described from specimens growing near Ashkabad as ''U. densa'' Litv. in ''Schedae ad Herbarium Florae Rossicae'' (1908). Litvinov, reporting it growing wild in the mountains of Turkestan, Ferghana, and Aksu, as well as in cultivation, considered it a species, a view upheld by the Soviet publications ''Trees and Shrubs in the USSR'' (1951) and ''Flora of Armenia'' (1962), and by some current plant lists.The Plant List
Ulmus densa Litv.
accessdate: December 14, 2016Tropicos
Name - Ulmus densa Litv.
accessdate: December 14, 2016''Ulmus densa'' was one of two elm "species" determined by Litvinov; the second, his ''Ulmus celtidea'', has not been accepted by other authorities (''Journal of the Arnold Arboretum'', vol.19, 1938; p.264). Other authorities take it to be a form of ''U minor'', distinctive only in its dense crown and upright branching.Plantarium
Ulmus densa - Галерея субтаксонов - Плантариум
(in Russian), accessdate: December 18, 2016 The Moscow State University herbarium gives (2020) ''Ulmus minor'' as the "accepted name" of ''U. densa'' Litv..

Litvinov considered ''U. minor'' 'Umbraculifera', with its "denser crown and more rounded form", a cultivar of ''U. densa'', calling it ''U. densa'' var. ''bubyriana''. Rehder (1949) and Green (1964), ignoring reports of the wild form, considered ''U. densa'' a synonym of 'Umbraculifera'. The ''U. densa'' photographed by Meyer in Aksu, Chinese Turkestan on his 1911-12 expedition does not appear to be the tidy grafted cultivar 'Umbraculifera' and was said to be named 'Seda'.Meyer's photograph (5675) o
Ulmus densa Turkestan
Aksu, Turkestan. February 1911Meyer's photograph (5676) o
Ulmus densa Turkestan
Aksu, Turkestan. February 1911 Zielińksi in ''Flora Iranica'' (1979) considered 'Umbraculifera' an ''U. minor'' cultivar.

In its natural range ''U. densa'' overlaps with ''U. pumila''. The extent of hybridization between the two is not known.

Description

Litvinov noted that the tree "differed little from ''U. glabra'' Mill." ''U. minor''except in its erect branches and dense oblong crown. The leaves were "generally smaller" and the branches "smooth and lighter in colour". As with the hybrid ''U.'' × ''androssowii'', its compact branch structure helps the tree conserve moisture.World Digital Library
Elm Trees. Samarkand
accessdate: December 18, 2016

Pests and diseases

Not known.

Cultivation

Litvinov said that ''U. densa'' was "widely cultivated" in gardens in Turkestan. It is one of a number of elms known locally as 'karagach' or 'karagatch' 'black tree' = elm In western Europe ''U. densa'' Litv. was distributed by Hesse's Nurseries, Weener, Germany, in the 1930s.

File:A travers le Turkestan russe. p. 81.jpg, Dense-branched elm, upright form, Turkestan, c.1900
File:A travers le Turkestan russe. facing p. 16.jpg, Dense-branched elm, spreading form, Turkestan, c.1900
File:The Duab of Turkestan fig 32.jpg, Dense-branched elm (left), Turkestan, c.1912
File:Ulmus densa in Urumqi Botanical Garden 乌鲁木齐市植物园内的圆冠榆.jpg, ''Ulmus densa'' in Urumqi Botanical Garden, Xinjiang, China (2021)

Notable trees

A large, well-grown specimen stands in Dushanbe Botanic Gardens, Tajikistan (2019).''U. minor'' / ''Ulmus densa'' Litv. www.plantarium.ru
/ref>Google Maps
Dushanbe Botanic Gardens - Google Maps (May 2019)
accessdate: August 21, 2019

Cultivars

These include one of the oldest of elm cultivars, 'Umbraculifera', and a number of elms introduced to the West by the Späth nursery of Berlin.
* ''U. minor'' 'Umbraculifera', (?) ''U. minor'' 'Rueppellii', (?) ''U.'' 'Globosa', (?) ''U.'' 'Koopmannii'

Meyer (1912) identified three cultivars of ''U. densa'': 'Stamboul', 'Kitaisky' and 'Seda'.Meyer, F. N. (1912)
Seeds and plants imported during the period from January 1 to March 31, 1912
Inventory No.30, Nos 32829–32831. ''Bureau of Plant Industry - Bulletin No. 282''. Washington, Government Printing Office, 1913.

Hybrid cultivars

The tree, or its cultivar form 'Umbraculifera', has hybridised with ''U. pumila'' to produce ''U.'' × ''androssowii''.

Accessions

None known.

Notes

References

External links

efloras.org: ''U. densa'' Litv. illustrations (figures 10 to 14)Photographs labelled ''U. densa'' on Plant Photo Bank of China, ppbc.iplant

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4130197

Ulmus articles with images
Ulmus
Elm cultivars