Ulmus 'Myrtifolia'

Ulmus 'Myrtifolia'
GenusUlmus
Cultivar'Myrtifolia'
OriginEngland?

The elm cultivar Ulmus 'Myrtifolia', the Myrtle-leaved Elm, first appeared in nursery and horticultural lists from the 1830s, as Ulmus myrtifolia and Ulmus campestris myrtifolia,[1][2][3] the name Ulmus myrtifolia Volxem being used at Kew Gardens from 1880.[4] Lawson's nursery of Edinburgh appears to have been the earliest to list the tree.[1] 'Myrtifolia' was listed by Nicholson in Kew Hand-List Trees & Shrubs (1896), but without description.[5] It was later listed as a cultivar and described by Rehder in 1939[4] and by Krüssmann in 1962.[6]

The specimen under this name in the Herb. Nicholson at Kew was considered by Melville to be a probable U. minor × Ulmus minor 'Plotii' hybrid.[7]

The cultivar 'Myrtifolia Purpurea', which has larger leaves, is not related to 'Myrtifolia'.[4]

Description

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'Myrtifolia' was described as having leaves ovate or rhombic-ovate to oblong-ovate, 2–5 cm long with nearly simple teeth, loosely pilose on both sides. The petiole is 2 to 4 mm long, the samarae 12 to 15 mm long.

Cultivation

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A 'Mytifolia' was present in North Road, Bath in 1902.[8] There were specimens at Arnold Arboretum in the mid-20th century, sourced in the 1920s from a tree in Cleveland, Ohio.[4]

The tree is not known to remain in cultivation.

Putative specimen

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A small, slow-growing, dense-crowned old elm (15 m, girth 2 m), with very small narrow myrtle-like leaves, stands near 90 Lower Granton Rd, Edinburgh (2016), in a garden that was once part of the elm-planted grounds of Wardie House (demolished 1955).[9] Ulmus campestris myrtifolia appeared in the lists of the adjacent Wardie Nursery (Lawson Nursery group) in the late 19th century,[3] and Ulmus myrtifolia in the Lawson's of Edinburgh lists from the 1830s.[10] Its leaves, which flush and fall late,[11] are lance-shaped or oval (2–4.5 cm by 1.3–2 cm; petioles 0.5–1 cm). The tree, which has smooth branchlets, has been grafted on to a suberose U. minor stock.

Synonymy

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  • Ulmus campestris (: minor) var. myrtifolia Hort.: Nicholson, in Kew Hand-List Trees & Shrubs 2: 135, 1896.
  • Ulmus buxifolia Hort.: Nicholson, Kew Hand-List Trees & Shrubs 2: 135, 1896, in synonymy.
  • Ulmus procera var. myrtifolia: Bean (1934)[12]
  • Ulmus procera f. myrtifolia: Rehder (1939)[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b Loudon, J. C., Hortus lignosus londinensis: or, A catalogue of plants ... cultivated in the gardens and grounds in the neighbourhood of London: with all their synonyms, including their French, German, and Italian names; ... To which are added ... hardy trees and shrubs in the principal nurseries of London and Edinburgh, and at Bollwyller in France, and in Hamburg (London, 1838), p.145
  2. ^ Report of the Board on behalf of United States Executive Departments at the International Exhibition held at Philadelphia 1876 (Washington 1884), vol 2, The Department of Agriculture: Horticultural and Propagating Division; p.311
  3. ^ a b The Lawson Company's List, no. IV, Forest Trees & Shrubs, Nov. 1874; Lawson Seed & Nursery Co., Edinburgh & London, p.25
  4. ^ a b c d e Rehder, Alfred (1939). "Rehder, new species, varieties and combinations". Journal of the Arnold Arboretum. 20: 87–88. Retrieved 12 August 2016.
  5. ^ Nicholson, Kew Hand-List Trees & Shrubs, vol.2 (London 1896), p.135
  6. ^ Krüssmann, J. G., Handbuch der Laubgehölze 2: 540, 1962
  7. ^ Green, Peter Shaw (1964). "Registration of cultivar names in Ulmus". Arnoldia. 24 (6–8). Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University: 41–80. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  8. ^ Inman, T. Frederic (1905). "The Elm". Proceedings of the Bath Natural History and Antiquarian Field Club. 10: 37. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  9. ^ Around Edinburgh - Lower Granton Road and Wardie from Granton Harbour Around Edinburgh - Lower Granton Road and Wardie from Granton Harbour, accessdate: August 12, 2016
  10. ^ Loudon, J. C., Hortus lignosus londinensis (London, 1838), p.145-6
  11. ^ Google Maps: A901 - Google Maps, accessdate: August 12, 2016
  12. ^ Bean, W. J., Kew Hand-list of Trees and Shrubs, 1934, p.341
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