''Ulmus gaussenii'' W. C. Cheng, the Anhui, or hairy, elm, is a medium size deciduous tree whose natural range is restricted to the valleys of the Langya limestone mountains of

Chu Xian Chu or CHU may refer to: Chinese history * Chu (state) (c. 1030 BC–223 BC), a state during the Zhou dynasty * Western Chu (206 BC–202 BC), a state founded and ruled by Xiang Yu * Chu Kingdom (Han dynasty) (201 BC–70 AD), a kingdom of the Ha ...

Geographical Names: Chu Xian, Anhui, satellite photograph. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, Bethesda, MD, US

/ref> in Anhui Province, eastern

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

.Fu, L. and Xin, Y. 'Elms of China' in Dunn, C. P. (ed.) (2000). ''The Elms - Breeding, Conservation, and Disease Management.'', Part 1, Taxonomy, 21-44. Springer Science + Business Media, New York. The tree was most commonly found on the flood plains, indicating a tolerance of periodic inundation. However, ''U. gaussenii'' is now possibly the rarest and most endangered elm species, with only approximately 30 trees known to survive in the wild in 2009.Grimshaw, J. & Bayton, R. (2009). ''New Trees - Recent Introductions to Cultivation''. RBG Kew, London. The tree was introduced to the West in 1995, at the Morton Arboretum, Illinois, as part of an evaluation of Chinese elms for landscape use.Ware, G. (1995). Little-known elms from China: landscape tree possibilities. ''Journal of Arboriculture'', (Nov. 1995). International Society of Arboriculture, Champaign, Illinois, US

However, closer examination of the leaves at the Morton suggests that their trees are in fact '' Ulmus castaneifolia''.Brookes, A. H. (2022). ''Great Fontley Elm Trial, 2022 Report''. Butterfly Conservation, Lulworth, England.

Description

The tree can grow to a height of about 25 m, with a slender trunk < 0.8 m d.b.h. The bark is longitudinally fissured and almost black. The leaves are generally obovate, < 11 cm long, borne on densely pubescent reddish twigs, sometimes featuring flat corky wings. The wind-pollinated apetalous flowers appear in March, the large orbicular samarae < 28 mm in diameter ripen in April.Fu, L. & Jin J. (eds). (1992). ''China Red Data Book. Rare and endangered plants. Vol. 1''. Science Press, BeijingFu, L., Xin, Y. & Whittemore, A. (2002). Ulmaceae, in Wu, Z. & Raven, P. (eds) ''Flora of China'', Vol. 5 (Ulmaceae through Basellaceae). Science Press, Beijing, and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis, USA

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Pests and diseases

The tree is resistant to Dutch elm disease and the elm leaf beetle '' Xanthogaleruca luteola''.

Cultivation

The species is cultivated in Jiangsu (Nanjing), but remains very rare in cultivation in the West. In artificial freezing tests at the Morton Arboretum the

LT50 LT50 is the median Lethal Time (time until death) after exposure of an organism to a toxic substance or stressful condition. LT50 is commonly used in toxicology studies to quantify amount of a stressor necessary to kill an organism. LT50 can be use ...

(temp. at which 50% of tissues die) was found to be -30.7 ° C.Shirazi, A. M. & Ware, G. H. (2004). ''Evaluation of New Elms from China for Cold Hardiness in Northern Latitudes''. International Symposium on Asian Plant Diversity & Systematics 2004,

Sakura A cherry blossom, also known as Japanese cherry or sakura, is a flower of many trees of Prunus, genus ''Prunus'' or Prunus subg. Cerasus, ''Prunus'' subg. ''Cerasus''. They are common species in East Asia, including China, Korea and especia ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The Anhui elm was considered of particular interest, as its riparian habitat suggests it tolerates anoxic ground during prolonged flooding.Dirr, M. (2009). 'Future Tree Selections'. ''Western'', Spring 2009, p.8. Western Nursery & Landscape Association, St Joseph, Missour

/ref> Very few specimens are cultivated (2019) in Europe, notably in the UK and the Netherlands. There are no known cultivars of this taxon, nor is it known to be in commerce.

Etymology

The tree was named in 1939 for Marcel-Henri Gaussen (1891–1981), a French botanist who travelled widely in Asia.Cheng, W. C. (1939). 'Ulmus gaussenii'. ''Travaux du Laboratoire Forestier de Toulouse''. 3(3): 110. 1939.

Accessions

;North America *

Brenton Arboretum The Brenton Arboretum is a 141-acre arboretum and public garden in Dallas Center, Iowa, United States, established in 1997. The arboretum displays 175 native Iowa trees and shrubs suitable to the site, as well as many other tree species which can ...

, US. No accession details available. * Chicago Botanic Garden, US. Planted in West Collections Area. * Denver Botanic Gardens, US. Neither acc. no. nor origin disclosed *Morton Arboretum, US. Acc. no. 49–95. Wild collected, Anhui Province, China. * United States National Arboretum, Washington, D.C., US. Acc. nos. 76224, 68980.

Europe

* Grange Farm Arboretum, Lincolnshire, UK. Grafted tree, acc. no. 699. * Great Fontley Elm Trial Plantation, Butterfly Conservation, Funtley, Hampshire, UK. One sapling planted 2017, grafted on wych elm rootstock. *

Sir Harold Hillier Gardens The Sir Harold Hillier Gardens is an arboretum comprising 72 hectares (180 acres) accommodating over 42,000 trees and shrubs in about 12,000 taxa, notably a collection of oaks, camellia, magnolia and rhododendron. The Gardens are located nor ...

, Hampshire, UK. Rooted cutting in propagation unit (2018), acc. no. 2017.0369

References

External links

''U. gaussenii'' description, Flora of China, vol.5 p.3, efloras.org''U. gaussenii'' fruit and leaves illustration, Flora of China, efloras.orgPhotographs labelled ''U. gaussenii'' on Plant Photo Bank of China, ppbc.iplant
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5491816 gaussenii Trees of China Flora of Anhui Critically endangered plants Ulmus articles missing images Elm species and varieties