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{{SPlantbox
{{SPlantbox
|familia=Ulmaceae
|familia=Ulmaceae
|genus=Ulmus
|genus=Ulmus
|species=procera
|species=procera
|common_name=English Elm
|common_name=English Elm
|Max wd metric=ft
|Max wd metric=ft
|width_ref=Flora - A Gardener's Encyclopedia
|width_ref=Flora - A Gardener's Encyclopedia
|lifespan=perennial
|exposure=sun
|exposure=sun
|sun_ref=Flora - A Gardener's Encyclopedia
|sun_ref=Flora - A Gardener's Encyclopedia
|features=deciduous
|Temp Metric=°F
|Temp Metric=°F
|min_zone=4
|min_zone=4
|usda_ref=Flora - A Gardener's Encyclopedia
|usda_ref=Flora - A Gardener's Encyclopedia
|max_zone=9
|max_zone=9
|image=Upload.png
|image=Large English Elm at West Point, NY 4 Sep 2009.jpg
|image_width=240
|image_width=200
}}
}}
'''''Ulmus procera''''' <small>Salisb.</small>, the '''English Elm''' or '''Atinian Elm''' was, before the advent of [[Dutch elm disease]], one of the largest and fastest-growing [[deciduous]] [[tree]]s in Europe. A survey of genetic diversity in [[Spain]], [[Italy]] and the [[UK]] revealed that the English Elms are genetically identical, clones of a single tree, the Atinian Elm once widely used for [[training vines]], and brought to the British Isles by [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] for the purpose of supporting and training vines<ref>Tree News, Spring/Summer 2005,Publisher Felix Press, [http://www.treecouncil.org.uk]</ref>. Thus, the origin of ''U. procera'' is widely believed to be [[Italy]], although it is possible the tree hailed from what is now [[Turkey]], where it is still used in the cultivation of [[raisin]]s.<ref name=Gil>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3959561.stm</ref>
The tree often exceeded 40 m in height with a trunk < 2 m [[diameter at breast height|d.b.h]] <ref name=Bean>Bean, W. J. (1981). ''Trees and shrubs hardy in Great Britain''. Murray, London.</ref>. The largest specimen ever recorded in England, at [[Forthampton]] Court, near [[Tewkesbury]], was 46 m tall.<ref name=Elwes>Elwes, H. J. & Henry, A. (1913). ''The Trees of Great Britain & Ireland''. Vol. VII. pp 1848-1929. Private publication. [http://fax.libs.uga.edu/QK488xE4/7tgbi/]</ref>
The [[leaf|leaves]] are dark green, almost [[leaf shape|orbicular]], < 10 cm long, without the pronounced [[leaf shape|acuminate]] tip at the apex typical of the genus. Wind-pollinated, the small, reddish-purple [[plant sexuality|hermaphrodite]] [[apetalous]] [[flower]]s appear in early spring before the leaves . The tree does not produce fertile [[seed]] as it is female-sterile, and propagation is entirely by [[root]] suckers.<ref name=Richens>Richens, R. H. (1983). ''Elm''. Cambridge University Press </ref><ref name=Stace>Stace, C. A. (1997). ''New Flora of the British Isles''. Cambridge University Press.</ref> <ref name=White>White, J. & More, D. (2002). ''Trees of Britain & Northern Europe''. Cassell's, London </ref>
==Cultivation==
==Cultivation==
===Pests and diseases===
===Pests and diseases===
Owing to its homogeneity, the tree has proven particularly susceptible to [[Dutch elm disease]], but immature trees remain a common feature in the English countryside courtesy of the ability to sucker from roots. After about 20 years, these suckers too become infected by the fungus and killed back to ground level. English Elm was the first elm to be [[genetically engineered]] to resist disease, at the [[University of Abertay Dundee]].<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/print/0,3858,4246134-103690,00.html]</ref> It was an ideal subject for such an experiment, as its sterility meant there was no danger of its introgression into the countryside.
In the [[USA]], ''U. procera'' was found to be one of the most preferred elms for feeding by the Japanese Beetle ''[[Popillia japonica]]''.<ref name=Miller,b>Miller, F., Ware, G. and Jackson, J. (2001). [http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1603/0022-0493%282001%29094%5B0445%3APOTCEU%5D2.0.CO%3B2 Preference of Temperate Chinese Elms (Ulmuss spp.) for the Feeding of the Japanese Beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)]. ''Journal of Economic Entomology'' 94 (2). pp 445-448. 2001. Entom. Soc.of America.</ref>
The leaves of the English Elm in the UK are mined by ''[[Stigmella ulmivora]]''.
==Varieties==
==Varieties==
There has been a small number of [[cultivar]]s raised since the early 19th century,<Ref name=Green>Green, P. S. (1964). Registration of cultivar names in Ulmus. ''Arnoldia'', Vol. 24. Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University. [http://arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/1605.pdf]</ref> three of which have now almost certainly been lost to cultivation:
*[[Ulmus 'Acutifolia'|Acutifolia]], [[Ulmus 'Argenteo-Variegata' (English Elm cultivar)|Argenteo-Variegata]], [[Ulmus 'Folia Aurea'|Folia Aurea]], [[Ulmus 'Louis van Houtte'|Louis van Houtte]], [[Ulmus 'Pyramidalis' (English Elm cultivar)|Pyramidalis]].
==Gallery==
==Gallery==
<gallery perrow=5>
<gallery perrow=5>
Image:World Champion English elm.JPG|The largest known English Elms in the UK, the 'Preston Twins', Brighton, 2008.
Image:English Elm avenue.jpg|English Elms in [[Fitzroy Gardens, Melbourne]]
Image:English elm in east sussex.jpg|English Elms in hedgerow, [[Alfriston]], UK
Image:Upload.png| photo 1
Image:Upload.png| photo 1
</gallery>
</gallery>
