1374- ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETL'M. FAUT III. 



which give a knotteil character to the leafless branches, before they are fully 

 developed ; hut vvliich afterwards, from their colour, and their being supported 

 oi\ peduncles, look like little tufts of red fiiii!,'e. The seetls of the elm, also, 

 dirt'cr in the diHerent kinds. " The inner bark of the elm is sliuhtly bitter 

 and astringent ; but it docs ncjt ap[)ear to possess any important (|uality. The 

 substance which exudes spontaneously from it is calleil ulmine." {Lindhy'.i Xaf. 

 Si/sl. of Hot., |). 179.) Small bladders wliicli possess considerable vulnerary pro- 

 perties are found on the leaves of elms, particularly in warm countries. The 

 elm is a native of Europe and North America, and part of Asia and Africa, 

 extending as far south as the coast of Barbary, and as for north as Kussia. 

 The elm has been a well known tree since the time of the Romans; and, 

 of all the European trees, it is that which is the most generally cultivated, 

 and most commonly a])plied to agricidtural j)urposes. The reasons for 

 this preference, no doubt, are, that its culture is extremely easy; its growth 

 rapid ; and that it will thrive in almost any soil or situation. It jnay also 

 be transplanted, with con)parative safety, at almost any age ; and the timber 

 will remain uninjured for a greater length of time than any other, when 

 exposed to moisture. To counterbalance these advantages, the timber is 

 very apt to shrink and warp, unless it be constantly moist, or the wood be 

 kept for several years, after it is cut, before it is used. The tree, w hile in a 

 living state, is also very often attacked by insects; and the timber is liable to 

 become worm-eaten. Trees grown on a dry soil, and singly, make the best 

 timber ; but they arc neither so large nor so long-lived as those grown in a 

 moister soil, wliich form what is called in France Ic bok gras. Notwith- 

 standing this, the elm will not thrive in very moist soil, as it is by no means 

 an aquatic tree, like the alder. The wood of elms that have been frequently 

 |)runed becomes knotted; and this wood, when polished, is very ornamental. 

 To obtain it, the trees in France are sometimes ke[)t loi)i)ed, and headed dow n 

 every three or four years. The variety called the twisted elm (orme tor- 

 tillard) is also much esteemed for its wood; as are the monstrosities, or knobs, 

 found occasionally on all the species of ehn ; and which, when cut into thin 

 slices, and polished, are kept by cabinet-makers for the purpose of veneering. 

 The elm is remarkable for the aptitude of the different species to vary from 

 seed ; so much so that it is extremely difficult to say in this genus which are 

 species and which are varieties; or even to what species the varieties belong. 

 To us it a[)pears, that there are only two sorts which are truly distinct ; 

 viz. U. campestris and U. montana. U. americana, we are assured by Mr. 

 Masters of Canterbury, who has [jaid great attention to the genus, and raised 

 many sorts, both from American and" European seeds, is identical, or apparently 

 so, with what is called the Huntingdon elm ; a variety raised at Huntingdon, 

 between 80 and 90 years ago, from seeds gathered from trees in that neigh- 

 bourhood. U. glabra and U. major seem intermediate between U. campes- 

 tris and U. montana. U. effiisa appears very distinct; but is probably only 

 a variety of U. campestris. Of all the numerous varieties which may be 

 procured in British nurseries, the best kinds for cultivation for their timber 

 appear to l)e, the Huntingdon elm (f.\ m. glabra vcgcta), and the wych elm 

 ( t/^. montana) ; and for ornament, the weeping elm ( f,\ montana pendula), 

 the subevergreen elm ( U. cam|)estris virens), and the twiggy elm ( C cam- 

 pestris viminalis). The sucker-bearing elms are chiefly the varieties of U. 

 campestris, and these selilom produce seeds; but U. montana, and U. m. 

 glabra, and their varieties, which never throw up suckers, produce seeds in the 

 greatest abundance every year. U. campestris does indeetl produce seeds 

 occasionally, though rarely, in England ; and the U. c. viminalis is a British 

 seedling. In France, U. campestris ripens seeds much more freely, and these 

 have given rise to many varieties. 



f 1. C/. cami'e'stris L. The English, Held, or common smal/-/cavcd,¥Am. 



Idenlification. Lin. Sp. PI., 327. ; Willd. .Sp. PI., p. 1,324. ; Host Fl. Austr., 1. p. .330. ; Sm. Engl. 

 1"1., 2. p. 20. ; Lindl. Synop*., p. 226. ; Hook. Br. Fl., cd. 2., p.141. ; Mackay Fl. Hibernica, pt. 1. p. 240. 



