Elms

Does anyone have experience with the elms that are supposed to be tolerant to Dutch elm disease ? I have been reading about the Princeton selection recently planted on Penna Ave in Wash DC and was thinking of replacing a nearly dead Pin Oak with one. Our street used to be lined with beautiful elms.

Thanks

I have some experience, very limited but some. I will do my best.

Were you dead set on buying a Princeton? There are others out there that may be superior to Princeton. Valley Forge, Homestead, Patriot, Pioneer, New Harmony, Dynasty, Frontier, Pathfinder, and Prospector all appear to have very good resistance. More DED resistant elms are hitting the market every year. I am giving you these names should you want to do a little checking on your own. Princeton has a good level of disease resistance but no where near the level of Valley Forge or New Harmony. If my memory serves me, Valley Forge is going to be your best bet. I have one here however I also have others. Accolade is another one I have that you might want to consider. The Accolade is an introduction from my neck of the woods. Although it does not appear to be as DED resistant as Valley Forge, it does appear to have resistance to both the elm leaf beetle and leaf miner. I do not know if Valley Forge is resistant to those. I also planted New Harmony last year but I would really like to get my hands on Washington and Jefferson as they look very promising. I haven't been able to locate either one but there's always next year. Wouldn't it be great to see Elm silhouettes gracing the landscape again!

Where is StarhillForest? He'd be able to answer any questions you have and could probably add a few new releases that I haven't mentioned.

Wow, Equilibrium gave you a great list! He/she must have quite an elm collection.

The only thing I might add is to clarify that Accolade is not an American elm selection but rather an Asian hybrid that looks much like American. It was selected and identified by Dr. George Ware from an older tree growing at the Morton Arboretum. I believe it is fully resistant to DED.

A few of the selections above might have trouble with elm yellows (a phytoplasma disease with symptoms similar to DED), so you probably should ask a knowledgable local source if that is prevalent in your area. We don't see it much, if at all, here in Illinois, but I believe it is more common out East in your region.

Guy S.

Yes, the Accolade was developed at the Morton Arboretum and currently is out front for having that traditional slingshot Elm shape we all know and love. That's why I liked it although I don't believe it has any American Elm DNA in it, does it? So the Accolade is fully DED resistant? Didn't know that, thanks for the good news. I deliberted long and hard over purchasing it because I didn't believe it had a drop of anything native in it but I figured I'd take a walk on the exotic side.

If ya like my Elm collection, you should see my Chestnut list (you actually helped me make my selections). Many of which have some American Chestnut DNA. I like oaks, don't have nearly as many as you, but some day.... Oaks, along with Hickories, are my favorites. Such a staple in the landscape.

Oh, and I am a she.
And, I absolutely love it that you are here at Dave's Garden sharing your overflowing fountain of knowledge. Native trees are the way to go.

Equil

And do a little research - the Elm trees around here are weed trees, giving off tons of seeds that seem to all germinate. But that is for another thread...