Ulmus procera 'Louis van Houtte'

Infobox Cultivar | name = "Ulmus procera"
cultivar = 'Louis van Houtte'


image_caption = 'Louis van Houtte', Brighton. Photo: Ronnie Nijboer, Bonte Hoek kwekerijen
origin = Belgium

'Louis van Houtte' is one of the better known English Elm "Ulmus procera" cultivars first mentioned by Deegen in "Ill. Monatsch. Gartenb." 5: 103 , 1886.

Description

When young, the tree has leaves entirely yellow, a colour retained throughout summer. However, as the tree ages, the colouring begins a gradual reversion to green.

Pests and diseases

'Louis van Houtte' is as vulnerable to Dutch elm disease as the species. A specimen at the Ryston Hall [http://www.rystonhall.co.uk/] , Norfolk, arboretum, obtained from the Späth nursery in Berlin before 1914 Ryston Hall Arboretum catalogue, circa 1920] , was killed by the earlier strain of Dutch elm disease prevalent in the 1930s, and two specimens planted at Kew Gardens succumbed very rapidly to the same fate in 1931.

Cultivation

The tree is believed to have been first cultivated in Belgium circa 1863 Boom, B. K. [http://asaweb.huh.harvard.edu:8080/databases/botanists?id=129895] (1959), "Ned. Dendr." 1: 158, 1959 ] Green, P. S. (1964). Registration of cultivar names in Ulmus. "Arnoldia", Vol. 24. Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University. [http://arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/1605.pdf] ] . Two trees are known in the British Isles, and it remains in commercial cultivation at a nursery in the USA; several old trees still survive in Australasia.

ynonymy

*'Ludwig van Houtte': Spath-Buch, 1720 - 1920, 229, 1921, in error.
*"Ulmus montana lutescens van Houttei": Schelle in Beissner et al., "Handb. Laubh.-Benenn." 86. 1903, in error.
*"Ulmus minor foliis flavescentibus": Miller, "Gard. Dict." ed. 6. "Ulmus" No. 8, 1752.

Etymology

The cultivar is named for the Belgian horticulturist and plant collector Louis Benoit van Houtte, 1810 - 1876.

Accessions

North America

None known.

Europe

*Brighton & Hove City Council, UK, NCCPG Elm Collection [http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/index.cfm?request=c1108042] . UK champion: Carden Park, 21 m high, 61 cm d.b.h. (1996) Johnson, Owen (ed.) (2003). "Champion Trees of Britain & Ireland". Whittet Press, ISBN 9781873580615.] .
*National Botanic Gardens [http://www.botanicgardens.ie] , Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland, location A3 (156)

Australasia

*Christchurch Botanic Gardens, Christchurch, New Zealand. 1 tree, details not known
*Eastwoodhill Arboretum [http://www.eastwoodhill.org.nz/gardens--collection/collection.aspx?Type=&G=Ulmus] , Gisborne, New Zealand, 2 trees, details not known.
*Manukau Cemetery, Papatoetoe, Auckland, New Zealand. One tree. Auckland Botanical Society (2003). "Journal" Vol. 58 (1), June 2003. ISSN 0113-41332 ] .

Nurseries

North America

*Foothills Nursery [http://www.foothillsnursery.com/trees.htm] , Mt. Airy, North Carolina, USA

References