The American Elm

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture, ...

''Ulmus americana'' 'Moline' was

cloned Cloning is the process of producing individual organisms with identical or virtually identical DNA, either by natural or artificial means. In nature, some organisms produce clones through asexual reproduction. In the field of biotechnology, c ...

from a wild seedling transplanted to Moline, Illinois, from nearby Rock River Valley in 1903 and propagated from 1916 by the Klehm Nurseries, Arlington Heights, Illinois.'Three novelties for 1928: ''Ulmus americana'' 'Molinii', ''Ulmus americana'' 'Urnii', ''Populus alba'' 'Richardii' ' : bulletin of Klehms' Nurseries, Illinois
/ref>Welch, G. L. & Co. ''The Plumfield Nurseries, 1929 Catalog''. Plumfield Nurseries, Fremont, Nebraska.

Description

'Moline' is distinguished by its narrow but open form, likened to a Lombardy Poplar when young, the branches of the older trees being ultimately horizontal. The leaves, of a dark rich shade of green,Brand Peony Farms; 1930 catalogue (Faribault, Minnesota; p.16)
/ref> could be exceptionally broad, measuring 15 cm across. A photograph captioned 'The Moline elm as it is growing in Moline, Illinois' in the

Arnold Arboretum The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University is a botanical research institution and free public park, located in the Jamaica Plain and Roslindale neighborhoods of Boston, Massachusetts. Established in 1872, it is the oldest public arboretum in N ...

paper 'Elms grown in America' (1951) in fact shows a specimen of the

field elm ''Ulmus minor'' Mill., the field elm, is by far the most polymorphic of the European species, although its taxonomy remains a matter of contention. Its natural range is predominantly south European, extending to Asia Minor and Iran; its northern ...

cultivar 'Umbraculifera' in Moline.

Pests and diseases

'Moline' was 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 ...

. In trials at the Morton Arboretum,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, the tree was eschewed by the Elm Leaf Beetle '' Xanthogaleruca luteola''. No other specific information available, but the species as a whole is highly preferred for feeding by the Japanese Beetle ''

Popillia japonica The Japanese beetle (''Popillia japonica'') is a species of scarab beetle. The adult measures in length and in width, has iridescent copper-colored elytra and a green thorax and head. It is not very destructive in Japan (where it is control ...

''. ''U. americana'' is the most susceptible of all the elms to

verticillium wilt Verticillium wilt is a wilt disease affecting over 350 species of eudicot plants. It is caused by six species of ''Verticillium'' fungi: ''V. dahliae'', ''V. albo-atrum'', ''V. longisporum'', ''V. nubilum'', ''V. theobromae'' and ''V. tricorpu ...

.Pegg, G. F. & Brady, B. L. (2002). ''Verticillium Wilts''. CABI Publishing.

Cultivation

In earlier field trials at Morton, 'Moline' was found to have a relatively fast growth rate, exceeding 7.7 m (25 ft) in height in 10 years. The clone was hardy through Iowa, Illinois, Southern Wisconsin, and Michigan, but was susceptible to frost further north. By 1928 Minnesota winters had claimed most of the 568 'Moline' in Victory Memorial Drive in North Minneapolis, commemorating the war dead of Hennepin County; they were replaced with hardier 'Minneapolis Park'.Brand Peony Farms; 1930 catalogue (Faribault, Minnesota; p.16)
/ref> In Lake City and

Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

, 'Moline' and its stablemate 'Vase' were found to be vulnerable to frost crack and

sun scald Sun scald is the freezing of bark following high temperatures in the winter season, resulting in permanent visible damage to bark. Fruits may also be damaged. In the northern hemisphere, it is also called southwest injury. Causes The reason the ...

, and were replaced by the cultivar 'Lake City', the bark of which grew rough at a younger age.''The Lake City Elm'' (booklet), Lake City Nurseries (Lake City, Minnesota);1932
/ref> 'Moline' was still in cultivation in the 1950s,Moffet, L. A. ''The Plumfield Nurseries, Bulletin No. 2, March 7, 1934''. Plumfield Nurseries, Fremont, Nebraska but was by then considered by ''Trees Magazine'' "an inferior type of American elm".''Trees Magazine'', Vol.12 no.1, November-December 1951, p.22
/ref> It is not known to have been introduced to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

Australasia Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...

Synonymy

*''Ulmus americana'' var. ''molinensis'': Bailey & Bailey, ''Hortus Second'' 746, 1941.

Hybrid cultivars

'Moline' was crossed with American Elm W-185-21 to create the moderately disease-resistant cultivar 'Independence'.

Accessions

North America

* Morton Arboretum, US. Acc. no. 1297-27.

References

External links

* ''Ulmus americana'' var. 'Moline' (

specimen, 1930) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ulmus Americana 'Moline' American elm cultivar Ulmus articles with images Ulmus