American Elm/Chestnut status?

rogdan · May 10, 2007

I heard on NPR yesterday that Home Depot is selling and American strain of elm that is naturally resistant to Dutch Elm disease. I believe the researcher who has been working on this said it came from Connecticut but I'm not sure. I plan to check out my local HP but I bet it is pricey.
This got me to thinking about the American chestnut as well and wondered if anything new had been developed in the way of its recovery. The last I heard a year or two ago was failure at the plan of sucessive crossing with the Chinese chestnut. They had planned to cross until they arrived at a high 90% American version that retained the blight resistance of the Chinese. I am planting trees at out new house site now and would love to plant a couple of the elms if it were half way reasonable price and success wise.

BamaRob · May 10, 2007

I'm not sure about the Elm, but I think they're getting close with the Chestnut. My dad has been watching the progress of the Chestnut for a while. He (and I) would like to plant a few when they get them viable.

Check out the American Chestnut Foundation. You should be able to find all you want to know about the re-establishment of the chestnut there.

Later,

BR

ToadHill · May 10, 2007

Both the Elm and Chestnut breeders have had some success. Last I heard the Elm was about ready to bee introduced. The Am. Chestnut breeders have been crossing the gene pool of the few large old trees that they have found with the Chinese chestnut which is resistant to the blight. After many crosses they have a tree that is almost all Am. Chestnut but continues to carry the Chinese resistance.

Just a bit of information on the Dutch Elm disease. The disease is caused by a fungal condition that plugs up the "vascular" system of the trees, It's carried by a bark beetle. Some success has been achieved by micro-injecting a fungal control into the tree to keep the "vascular" system clean. I had a number of customers that had Am. Elm trees over 4 ft in diameter and doing very well with treatment. It's not cheap but it is effective.

meledward23 · May 10, 2007

Ulmus americana 'princeton'

Princeton American Elm

Description

Selected 80 years ago, this cultivar has thrived on the streets of New Jersey for three quarters of a century forming one of the most beautiful tree plantings in the world. The most recent research from the National Arboretum ranks Princeton at the top of the list, equal to Valley Forge, in disease tolerance. This tree has the widest habitat range of any tree we grow.

Hardiness: Zone 3 to 9
Texture: Medium
Growth Rate: Fast
Native Habitat: Eastern & Central U.S.
Fall Color: Yellow
Adaptability: Easy to Transplant
Foliage: Dark green
Shape: Vase
Mature Size: 60' X 40'

(all above info is from www.boldspring.com a Tree Nursery)

I have never reviewed what exactly disease tolerance means in terms of survival. But that should give you a start if you really are interested in reading up on it.