160 FORESTS, WOODS, AND TREES 
Nevertheless, their extended cultivation is of considerable 
importance, as they supply a useful wood, always in demand 
for local purposes, and should be introduced into suitable 
spots in lowland plantations. 
1. Wych elm (Ulmus montana) occurs wild all over 
Great Britain and Ireland, being a constant companion in 
woods of sessile oak on siliceous soils and of ash on lime- 
stone soils. It is much less exacting in its demands on 
soil and climate than the other species, ascending to a con- 
siderable height in the mountains, up to 1000 feet in the 
Pennines. It is very hardy, bears wind and exposure well, 
and never suffers from spring frosts. Wych elm requires 
much light and space, forming, when still young, a large 
crown with wide-spreading branches, and is difficult to 
grow in plantations on that account. It can, however, be 
planted with beech in patches in woods in hilly districts 
and in shelter belts which are alongside conifer plantations. 
It is the only elm that will thrive in the exposed and colder 
parts of Ireland, and in most districts of Scotland and the 
north of England. It is easily raised from seed which 
ripens in most years. 
2. English elm (Ulmus campestris) is a native of 
southern England, growing in hedgerows, where it repro- 
duces itself only by suckers, as fertile seeds are never borne 
by the tree in this country. It is common in the Thames 
valley, and southward to the Isle of Wight, westward to 
Devon, and northward in the basin of the Severn to 
Hereford, Worcester, and Warwick. Elsewhere in Britain 
and Ireland it is unknown except as a planted tree, being 
replaced in Cornwall by the Cornish elm. On the continent 
of Europe it occurs only in Spain. It requires for its de- 
velopment a warm climate and unexposed position ; and in 
northern England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland never 
thrives except in sheltered favoured spots. It is unsuitable 
for elevated land in any part of the country. 
Its main value is for planting in hedges around pasture 
land in the southern and midland counties of England, as 
it does little injury to grass, and produces a considerable 
