Ulmus glabra 'Nana'

*Ulmus*
Ulmus
	'Nana', Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, UK
Cultivar	'Nana'
Origin	Europe

The elm cultivar Ulmus 'Nana' is a very slow growing shrub that with time forms a small tree. It was believed for many years to be a form of Ulmus glabra and is known widely as the 'Dwarf Wych Elm'. However, the ancestry of 'Nana' has been disputed in more recent years, Melville considering the specimen once grown at Kew to have been a cultivar of Ulmus × hollandica.^[1]

Description

The tree rarely exceeds 5 m in height, but is often broader.^[2]^[3] The dark green leaves are smaller than the type, < 11 cm long by 8 cm broad. Green^[4] describes it as a very distinct variety not growing above 60 cm in 10 to 12 years. A specimen at Kew was described by Henry as 'a slow-growing hemispherical bush that has not increased appreciably in size for many years'.^[5]

'Nana', Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh
Bole of same
'Nana' leaves
'Nana' in winter, Kew
Young 'Nana'

Pests and diseases

The low height of the tree should ensure that it avoids colonisation by Scolytus bark beetles and thus remain free of Dutch elm disease.

Cultivation

The tree is still occasionally found in arboreta and gardens in the UK, and has been introduced to North America and continental Europe; it is not known in Australasia.

Notable trees

The specimen of 'Nana' in the University Parks (North Walk), Oxford, has attained a height of 6 m (2014).^[6]

Synonymy

Ulmus glabra 'Bush': Plant Buyer's Guide, ed. 5, 253, 1949, without description.

Accessions

North America

Arnold Arboretum. Listed as U. glabra 'Nana'. Acc. no. 448–88

Europe

Alexandra Park, East Sussex, 6 m high, 38 cm dia. at 1 m from ground in 1980; possibly now lost.^[7]
Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Listed as U. glabra 'Nana'. Acc. no. 19021001, two trees in excellent condition (2004).
Royal Horticultural Society Gardens Wisley. Listed as U. glabra 'Nana'. Two specimens, no details available.
Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, UK. Listed as U. glabra 'Nana'. Acc. nos. 1978.1680, 1978.4729
University of Copenhagen Botanic Gardens. Listed as U. glabra 'Nana'. No other details available.

Nurseries

North America

None known

Europe

A Touch of Green [1], Amstelveen, Netherlands.
Arboretum Waasland [2], Nieuwkerken-Waas, Belgium.
H. Kolster [3], Boskoop, Netherlands.
PlantenTuin Esveld [4], Netherlands
Szkółki Konieczko [5], Gogolin, Poland.

References

^ Melville, R. (1978). On the discrimination of species in hybrid swarms with special reference to Ulmus and the nomenclature of U. minor (Mill.) and U. carpinifolia (Gled.). Taxon 27: 345-351.
^ Bean, W. J. (1981). Trees and shrubs hardy in Great Britain, 7th edition. Murray, London.
^ White, J. & More, D. (2003) Trees of Britain & Northern Europe. Cassell's, London.
^ Green, Peter Shaw (1964). "Registration of cultivar names in Ulmus" (PDF). Arnoldia. 24 (6–8). Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University: 41–80. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
^ Elwes, Henry John; Henry, Augustine (1913). The Trees of Great Britain & Ireland. Vol. 7. p. 1868.
^ parks.ox.ac.uk/tree/alpha.htm
^ Johnson, Owen (ed.) (2003). Champion Trees of Britain & Ireland. Whittet Press, ISBN 978-1-873580-61-5.

[Melville-1] Melville, R. (1978). On the discrimination of species in hybrid swarms with special reference to Ulmus and the nomenclature of U. minor (Mill.) and U. carpinifolia (Gled.). Taxon 27: 345-351.

[Bean-2] Bean, W. J. (1981). Trees and shrubs hardy in Great Britain, 7th edition. Murray, London.

[White-3] White, J. & More, D. (2003) Trees of Britain & Northern Europe. Cassell's, London.

[Green-4] Green, Peter Shaw (1964). "Registration of cultivar names in Ulmus" (PDF). Arnoldia. 24 (6–8). Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University: 41–80. Retrieved 20 June 2016.

[Elwes-5] Elwes, Henry John; Henry, Augustine (1913). The Trees of Great Britain & Ireland. Vol. 7. p. 1868.

[6] rks.ox.ac.uk/tree/alpha.htm

[Johnson-7] Johnson, Owen (ed.) (2003). Champion Trees of Britain & Ireland. Whittet Press, ISBN 978-1-873580-61-5.

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