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Ulmus 'Columella'

Ulmus 'Columella'

Columella Elm

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Description

Ulmus ‘Columella' (‘Columella’ elm) is a very narrowly columnar tree with a semi-open crown. This vigorous elm reaches an ultimate height of fifteen to twenty metres and three to six metres wide. Ulmus 'Columella' belongs to the fourth generation of elms of Dutch elm professor Hans Heybroek - of the Dutch Forestry Research Station ‘De Dorschkamp’ in Wageningen, the Netherlands. This elm was sown in 1967 and introduced in 1989 as one of the Wageningen five. It is a seedling of Ulmus ‘Plantijn’ and thus a triple hybrid between Ulmus glabra, Ulmus minor and Ulmus wallichiana. Like the other four of the Wageningen five, the tree is a reference to someone who had a significant impact on agriculture and forestry: Roman agronomist Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella. 

The leaf of Ulmus 'Columella' is small, glossy, dark green and crimped. The foliage emerges late and is then light green, the autumn colour is yellow and not particularly spectacular. The leaves stay on the tree for a long time however! The light green flowers appear in March to April and are arranged in dense clusters on long stems. The fruits consist of flat, round to oval nuts with a kind of white ‘papery’ wings, arranged in dense clusters together and later turn brown. The bark is smooth and light grey; as it matures it becomes dark grey with dark grooves.

Provided it is planted on its own roots, Ulmus ‘Columella’ is a healthy tree for a range of different conditions. Its narrow form makes it a good vertical accent plant in urban areas: from streets and avenues to squares and car parks. This selection is a great choice in landscapes as a windbreak in particular. Ulmus ‘Columella’ tolerates a very wide range of soils, tolerates wind and paving and - last but not least - is one of the most resistant elms to Dutch elm disease.

Types of planting

Tree types

standard trees feathered trees

Topiary on stem

fval beehive fval block fval cylinder fval cone

Topiary

cylinder cylinder column column

Use

Location

street avenue square car park / parking lot park central reservation in containers large garden small garden cemetery traffic areas, industrial zones windbreak bioswale coastal area

Pavement

none none open open sealed sealed

Planting concepts

solid planting

Characteristics

Crown shape

columnar columnar narrow oval narrow oval

Crown structure

semi-open semi-open

Height

15 - 20 m

Width

3 - 6 m

Winter hardiness zone

5A - 8B

Aspects

Wind

tolerant to wind tolerant to coastal wind

Soil

loess sabulous clay peaty heavy clay light clay sand loamy soil all soils

Nutrient level

moderately rich in nutrients rich in nutrients

Soil moisture level

moist wet

Light requirements

sun

pH range

acidic neutral alkaline

Extreme environments

tolerant to salt spray tolerates air pollution tolerant to short-term flooding resistant to dutch elm disease 5

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Photos

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high-stem standard tree
Ulmus 'Columella' standard tree
high-stem standard tree
Ulmus 'Columella' standard tree
high-stem standard tree
Ulmus 'Columella' standard tree
high-stem standard tree
Ulmus 'Columella' standard tree
high-stem standard tree
Ulmus 'Columella' standard tree
high-stem standard tree
Ulmus 'Columella' standard tree
feathered feathered
Ulmus 'Columella' feathered
high-stem standard tree
Ulmus 'Columella' standard tree
feathered feathered
Ulmus 'Columella' feathered
feathered feathered
Ulmus 'Columella' feathered
feathered feathered
Ulmus 'Columella' feathered
feathered feathered
Ulmus 'Columella' feathered
flowers flowers
Ulmus 'Columella' flowers
flowers flowers
Ulmus 'Columella' flowers
flowers flowers
Ulmus 'Columella' flowers
leaves leaves
Ulmus 'Columella' leaves
fruits fruits
Ulmus 'Columella' fruits
fruits fruits
Ulmus 'Columella' fruits
fruits fruits
Ulmus 'Columella' fruits
fruits fruits
Ulmus 'Columella' fruits
fruits fruits
Ulmus 'Columella' fruits
fruits fruits
Ulmus 'Columella' fruits
autumn-leaves autumn leaves
Ulmus 'Columella' autumn leaves
autumn-leaves autumn leaves
Ulmus 'Columella' autumn leaves
autumn-leaves autumn leaves
Ulmus 'Columella' autumn leaves
autumn-leaves autumn leaves
Ulmus 'Columella' autumn leaves
bark bark
Ulmus 'Columella' bark
bark bark
Ulmus 'Columella' bark
bark bark
Ulmus 'Columella' bark
bark bark
Ulmus 'Columella' bark
twigs twigs
Ulmus 'Columella' twigs
twigs twigs
Ulmus 'Columella' twigs

Seasonal colours

Ulmus 'Columella' seizoenskleur
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Flowers

Flowers

raceme discrete small

Flower colour

pale green

Flowering period

March - April

Leaves

Leaf colour

dark green buds bright green

Leaves

deciduous ovoid polished rough serrate undulate curly

Autumn colour

yellow

Fruits

Fruit colour

brown

Fruits

striking rich fruit yield winged raceme nut

Bark

Bark colour

grey black

Bark

furrowed

Twigs

Twig colour

brown

Twigs

bare vertical branches finely branched short shoots

Root system

Root system

deep central root on own root

For and by green professionals

The TreeEbb is a platform for and by green professionals, in which we collect knowledge and experience from the sector and make this available for users. All the details and photos are free to use for non-commercial purposes. Want to share your tree knowledge? Send photographs and additional information to treeebb@ebben.nl

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Winter hardiness

A plant's winter hardiness is the coldest area in which it is frost-resistant. This is based on the average annual minimum temperature. Winter hardiness zones are thirteen different frost zones in steps of 5.5 degrees Celsius. This format is an international standard for the hardiness of plants. The zones in which the plant is frost-resistant are always included in the description of trees and other vegetation.

Winter hardiness is a genetic characteristic and is not influenced by the location in which the plant is cultivated. This means that a plant that has been cultivated for many years in winter-hardiness zone 6 but has a winter hardiness of 3 is perfectly suited for replanting in a colder zone. It will thrive there thanks to its genetic characteristics.

When choosing planting for a project, the winter hardiness of the plants is extremely important. By choosing species that match the zone in which the project is being created, it is possible to ensure that plants can withstand the minimum temperature in that area.

Winter hardiness map
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