''Ulmus glabra'' 'Nigra'
| Ulmus glabra 'Nigra' | |
|---|---|
| Species | Ulmus glabra |
| Cultivar | 'Nigra' |
| Origin | Éire |
The Wych Elm cultivar Ulmus glabra 'Nigra', commonly known as the Black Irish Elm, was first listed by Loddiges, as Ulmus nigra, and described by Loudon in Arboretum et Fruticetum Britannicum (1838), as Ulmus montana nigra.[1][2]
The Späth nursery of Berlin marketed an U. montana nigra in the late 19th century.[3] Späth, like many of his contemporaries, used U. montana both for wych elm cultivars and for those of U. × hollandica.
Though 'Nigra' is sometimes listed as a synonym of 'Cinerea' (see 'Synonymy'), the leaf-descriptions of the two cultivars appear to distinguish them, the latter having leaves recalling those of Exeter Elm.[4]
Description
The tree was said to be of a moderate size, with a spreading habit like wych elm, but comprising rather irregular, contorted branches bearing much smaller, more rugose leaves,[1] of a much deeper green than the species.[5] Späth's U. montana nigra, by contrast, was "large-leaved, with dark-green foliage".[3]
Cultivation
Loudon reported that the tree ripened seed in Ireland.[1] The tree was once grown in the Royal Victoria Park, Bath, in the 19th century, at the western end of the Royal Avenue.[5] U. montana nigra was introduced to the Dominion Arboretum, Ottawa, Canada, probably from Späth, in 1899.[6] The tree is not known to have been introduced to Australasia, nor is it known to be in commerce.
'Cinerea'
If the 'Nigra'–'Cinerea' synonymy is correct, a specimen survives at Wakehurst Place in England (see 'Accessions'), where it is kept cut low as part of a hedge to spare it the attentions of the bark beetles which act as vectors of Dutch elm disease.
Synonymy
- Ulmus cinerea: Kirchner, in Petzold & Kirchner, Arboretum Muscaviense 565, 1864, name in synonymy.
- ?Ulmus glabra 'Cinerea': RBG Electronic Plant Information Centre 2007.
Accessions
- Europe
- ?Wakehurst Place, acc. no. 1973.21051, as U. glabra 'Cinerea'
References
- 1 2 3 Arboretum et Fruticetum Britannicum, 3: 1398, 1838
- ↑ Green, Peter Shaw (1964). "Registration of cultivar names in Ulmus". Arnoldia. Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University. 24 (6–8): 41–80. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
- 1 2 Katalog (PDF). 108. Berlin, Germany: L. Späth Baumschulenweg. 1902–1903. pp. 132–133.
- ↑ 'Cineria' leaves, herbariaunited.org, specimen 295176
- 1 2 Hanham, F. (1857). A Manual for the Park (Royal Victoria Park, Bath). Longman, London.
- ↑ Saunders, William; Macoun, William Tyrrell (1899). Catalogue of the trees and shrubs in the arboretum and botanic gardens at the central experimental farm (2 ed.). pp. 74–75.