''Ulmus'' × ''diversifolia'', also known as the diverse leaved elm, was originally described by Melville in 1939 as a new species, ''U. diversifolia'', though he later believed it a natural hybrid of Coritanian elm, Plot elm and

Wych elm ''Ulmus glabra'' Hudson, 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 and Sicily, where the species reaches i ...

. He recorded its distribution in Hertfordshire, between Hatfield, Hertford and

Watton-at-Stone Watton-at-Stone is a village in the English county of Hertfordshire, situated midway between the towns of Stevenage and Hertford in the valley of the River Beane. The 2011 census showed a population of 2,272 living in 946 households. Watton-at ...

, and in Suffolk, where it was common along the coastal plain from

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...

and

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to Lowestoft and

Beccles Beccles ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . The town is shown on the milestone as from London via the A145 and A12 roads, north-east of London as the crow fl ...

, occurring inland as far as Diss and

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, and probably extending further north into

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

and south towards

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. He accordingly referred to it as "the East Anglian elm". The inclusion of the disputed ''U. coritana'' in its parentage has affected the reception of ''U.'' × ''diversifolia''. Richens, who rejected the former, ignored × ''diversifolia'' in his study of East Anglian elms.

Description

''Ulmus'' × ''diversifolia'' was described as an upright tree less than 20 m high with spreading branches and rather slender wiry branchlets.

Gerald Wilkinson Gerald Sedgewick Wilkinson, (9 February 1926 – 10 March 1988''Reading Evening Post'', Tuesday 20 February 1990; p.9) was a British illustrator, art historian, naturalist, photographer, artist and book-designer, known for his books on J. M. W. Tu ...

described its supposed distinguishing feature — about ten per cent of leaves on short symmetrical shoots — as "rather subtle". Melville included a drawing of the leaves in his 1946 paper, 'The British Elms', in ''The New Naturalist'', and placed specimens in the Kew herbarium.; ; ; ; ; ; ; Sheets described as Ulmus diversifolia Melville

Pests and diseases

East Anglian hybrid elms, including those Melville's considered ''U. × diversifolia'', are susceptible to

Dutch elm disease Dutch elm disease (DED) is caused by a member of the sac fungi (Ascomycota) affecting elm trees, and is spread by elm bark beetles. Although believed to be originally native to Asia, the disease was accidentally introduced into Americas, America ...

, but as they produce abundant root-suckers immature specimens probably survive in their areas of origin.

Cultivation

A rooted sucker was taken from a tree from the Hatfield to Hertford road and transferred to the arboretum nursery at Kew. Specimens held by the Royal Botanic Gardens at

Wakehurst Place Wakehurst, previously known as Wakehurst Place, is a house and botanic gardens in West Sussex, England, owned by the National Trust but used and managed by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It is near Ardingly, West Sussex in the High Weald (gr ...

were listed as ''U. coritana'' × ''U. plotii'' × ''U. glabra'' and ''U. glabra'' × ''U. coritana'' × ''U. plotii''.

Notable trees

Melville's type tree (ref 36.265) was situated on the south side of the Hatfield to Hertford road about three miles east of Hatfield.

Accessions

Europe

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,10 ...

, UK. Acc. no. not known.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulmus diversifolia diversifolia Ulmus hybrids Ulmus articles with images Plant nothospecies