The elm cultivar ''Ulmus'' 'Betulaefolia Nigrescens', the Black Birch-leaved Elm, reportedly a seedling of a purplish-leaved elm, was first described by Pynaert in 1879 as ''U. campestris betulaefolia nigrescens''. An ''U. campestris betulaefolia nigrescens'' Hort. was distributed by the

Späth nursery The Späth (often spelt ''Spaeth'') family created one of the world's most notable plant nurseries of the 19th and early 20th centuries. The nursery had been founded in 1720 by Christoph Späth but removed to the erstwhile district of Baumschulen ...

, Berlin, in the 1890s and early 1900s.Späth, L., Catalogue 79 (1890-91; Berlin), p.113
/ref> Green considered the 1930s' cultivar ''U. nigricans'' (''U.'' 'Nigricans') a synonym of 'Betulaefolia Nigrescens'. The cultivar is not to be confused with Pynaert's ''U. campestris latifolia nigricans'', described in the same 1879 publication (Green's ''U.'' 'Latifolia Nigricans').

Description

The tree was said to have dark, birch-shaped leaves. Späth's cultivar was described as having "brownish leaves". No herbarium leaf-specimens of this cultivar are known.

Pests and diseases

Not known.

Cultivation

No specimens are known to survive. One tree was planted in 1897 as ''U. campestris betulaefolia nigrescens'', the 'Black Birch-leaved Elm', at the

Dominion Arboretum The Dominion Arboretum (french: Arboretum du Dominion) is an arboretum part of the Central Experimental Farm of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Originally begun in 1889, the Arboretum covers about of rolling land ...

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, Canada. Three specimens supplied by Späth to the

RBGE The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is a scientific centre for the study of plants, their diversity and conservation, as well as a popular tourist attraction. Founded in 1670 as a physic garden to grow medicinal plants, today it occupies ...

in 1902 as ''U. campestris betulaefolia nigrescens'' may survive in Edinburgh, as it was the practice of the Garden to distribute trees about the city (viz. the Wentworth Elm); the current list of Living Accessions held in the Garden ''per se'' does not list the plant. A specimen of ''U.'' 'Betulaefolia Nigrescens', obtained from Späth before 1914, stood in the

Ryston Hall Ryston Hall, Ryston, Norfolk, England is a 17th-century country house built by Sir Roger Pratt for himself. The house was constructed between 1669 and 1672 in the Carolean style. In the late 18th century, John Soane made alterations to the hous ...

arboretum, Norfolk,rystonhall.co.uk/
/ref> in the early 20th century. The cultivar is not known to have been introduced to Australasia.

Putative specimen

An old, slow-growing elm on Duncan Place, Leith Links (2023), with dark browny-green leaves not dissimilar to those of some species of birch, may be one of the three Späth 'Betulaefolia Nigrescens' sent to Edinburgh in the early 20th century. It stands one tree away from the convex-leaved elm Späth sent at the same time as (erroneously) ''Ulmus racemosa''. File:Unidentified Ulmus cultivar. Duncan Place, Edinburgh (2).jpg, Duncan Place birch-leaved elm, summer File:AZ0001 Ulmus. Duncan Place (02).jpg, Duncan Place birch-leaved elm, spring File:AZ0001 Ulmus. Duncan Place (03).jpg, Duncan Place birch-leaved elm, fruit File:Unidentified Ulmus cultivar. Duncan Place, Edinburgh.jpg, Duncan Place birch-leaved elm, branching File:Foliage of unidentified Ulmus cultivar. Duncan Place, Edinburgh.jpg, Duncan Place birch-leaved elm, foliage File:Leaves of unidentified Ulmus cultivar. Duncan Place, Edinburgh.jpg, Duncan Place birch-leaved elm, dried leaves File:AZ0001 Ulmus. Duncan Place (01).jpg, Duncan Place birch-leaved elm, bark

References

{{Elm species, varieties, hybrids, hybrid cultivars and species cultivars , state=collapsed Ulmus Ulmus articles missing images Missing elm cultivars Ulmus Edinburgh Spath 1902