324 TREES IN WINTER 



ENGLISH ELM 



Ulmus campestris L. 

 U. glabra Mill. 



HABIT — A large tree reaching 100 ft. in height; trunk erect, gen- 

 erally continuous well into the crown, with branches given off at a 

 broad angle and continued horizontally or inclined upward, not drooping 

 at the ends in the graceful curves characteristic of the American White 

 Elm, producing rather an Oak-like appearance with an oblong round- 

 topped head. 



BARK — Dark, with ridges broken transversely into firm oblong blocks. 



T^VIGS — Similar to the White Elm but generally a darker reddish- 

 brown, usually smooth or somewhat downy. 



LiEAR-SCARS — Similar to the White Elm, bundle-scars frequently 

 more than 3. 



BIDS — Similar to the White Elm but of a dark smoky brown color 

 or almost black, smooth or more or less hairy. BUD-SCALES — nearly 

 uniform in color. 



FRl IT — A flat, ovate, smooth, entire-winged fruit, ripening in spring. 



COMPARISONS — The erect Oak-like habit, the firm blocked ridges 

 of the bark, and the smoky smoothish buds will serve to distinguish 

 the English Elm from its American cousins. There are a number of 

 varieties of the English Elm differing in habit of growth, one form 

 having corky ridges. We have described the most familiar type. 



DISTRIBUTION — The English Elm is not confined to England but 

 like the English sparrow occurs through Europe. It is not native to 

 America but was considerably planted formerly in the eastern sections 

 especially in Boston and vicinity, where some fine old specimens are to 

 be found. The trees in the plate were taken from Boston Common, the 

 two at the right being English Elms, while the smaller one, indistinctly 

 outlined at the left, is an American White Elm. They have all been 

 rather severely pruned on account of insect depredations. 



WOOD — Heavy, hard, fine-grained, durable in water, not liable to 

 crack when exposed to sun or weather; used in Europe for ships' blocks 

 and other wooden parts of rigging, for the keels of ships, for pumps 

 and water pipes, piles and other construction under water and for the 

 hubs of wheels. 



