Young Dutch elm – Three different types of bark on new branch

[AGentleman]

Hi there,

I wish you all a happy new year!

I have a young Dutch Elm growing from a root cutting. It has three different types of bark on the branches grown during this growing season (roughly 3 months). I think it looks very unusual and I am curious about it.



The bark of the branch starts out much like that of the trunk it grew from, then it starts to look corky. After that it goes back to the familiar hairy stem of fresh growth.





The root is planted in quality potting mix (like soil from a nursery) and the whips were threaded through some sheet metal with a hole just wide enough for the trunk. The aim was to ground layer the whips away from the big root. The metal in the photo below was placed there just as a reminder. The actual metal used was drilled much closer to the diameter of the trunks.



I was wondering if the change of bark was a stress response to the whip thickening inside the metal collar under the soil.

Also, as far as I’m aware, there is no Dutch Elm Disease in Australia.

What do you reckon?
Thanks,
Greg

 

[coachspinks]

I'm not familiar with a dutch elm species. Just the disease. The leaves and bark make me think winged elm. There are also some other varieties that have similar leaves, leaf patterns and bark. Two that I am aware of are cork bark elms and smooth leaved elms. I know that there are winged elms in Australia but I don't know about the other two. I think your little tree is fine!

 

[rockm]

The different types of bark are typical for elms. Stronger shoots develop patches of bark. Not a big deal. Can be more pronounced in some species, less so in others.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

The Dutch elms I find here in Dutch country, tend to go corky on young wood if it's exposed to harsh sunlight.
In shaded positions it hardly corks, in sunny spaces they can produce up to 1cm deep ridges on >1 year old wood. Pretty funny.

I'm growing a couple with these traits because I want to see how they behave.
It's not stress related at all, as far as I can tell.

 

[Shibui]

Dutch elm in Australia is probably also known as English elm. Formerly Ulmus procera but I believe now Ulmus minor.
Corky wings are common on younger, mature shoots. The wings seem to grow for a couple of years then gradually fall off to leave smoother mature bark on older branches. Some individuals seem to have more corky wings and others little or none. I have not noticed if that's environment or genetic.

 

[BrianBay9]

That looks like some of my Ulmus minor starts. They can get really corky. Took me a bit to get the ID correct.

Thread 'Very corky American elm?'

Nov 27, 2018

I ran across this at the beach today. It appears to be an American elm, at least by the leaf. But the corking is extravagant! Never seen any corky elm like it. Is this something unique or have I just not seen enough elms?

• BrianBay9
• Replies: 25
• Forum: Elms

• 

 

[Davidlpf]

The Dutch elms I find here in Dutch country, tend to go corky on young wood if it's exposed to harsh sunlight.
In shaded positions it hardly corks, in sunny spaces they can produce up to 1cm deep ridges on >1 year old wood. Pretty funny.

I'm growing a couple with these traits because I want to see how they behave.
It's not stress related at all, as far as I can tell.

I agree, the more sun, the more corky bark they develop

Take a look of this tree, it has a really thick skin, It grows free in the country in the middle of Spain suffering hot and dry summers. With no human care at all, as far as I know

This another, that I planted in the ground from a shoot of one of my trees, have a good bark too, especially in the areas that more sun get

Cheers

P.S I already started a thread about this topic here click,click

 

[AGentleman]

Thanks for all your replies.
I'm glad to hear my tree is fine, it had a rocky start!

What @Wires_Guy_wires said makes a lot of sense. I didn't have much hope for the root cutting, but when it started doing well, I put it in a better position where the sun can get harsh. Which explains the change to corky bark half way through the branches growth.

I obviously don't know what type of elm it is @Shibui . In a park near my house, an avenue of honour was planted after the First World War. It contained "Dutch Elms" as well as other trees. These elms have now colonised my suburb.

The tree the root cutting was taken from (don't ask) is very old and has fantastic bark. I'll try to send one of my sons up into the canopy to see how the bark on the new branches develop.

Thanks for the link to your thread @BrianBay9 I'm watching it and hope that you update it in Spring. My cutting looks similar to your tree except the bark isn't as extreme. It's also interesting you mention it likes to take angular turns. I noticed that aspect it mine too.



It's leaves look similar to yours too. Especially the new ones (photo of an old one).



It also seems to be more resistant to blackspot which rampaged through my Chinese elms.

Hopefully I can separate the ground layers after another year in that pot.

By the way, it is friggin hot here and so far my trees are doing fine!

Greg

 

[AGentleman]

I agree, the more sun, the more corky bark they develop

Take a look of this tree, it has a really thick skin, It grows free in the country in the middle of Spain suffering hot and dry summers. With no human care at all, as far as I know

This another, that I planted in the ground from a shoot of one of my trees, have a good bark too, especially in the areas that more sun get

Cheers

P.S I already started a thread about this topic here click,click

Thanks for this. I'll check out your thread after I cook dinner. Greg