If you’re looking for a fast growing shade tree for a tough site, consider one of our disease resistant elms. The glossy, deep green leaves provide beautiful shade and these trees often exhibit a lovely vase shape.
One of the fastest growing trees we carry, elms are also super adaptable and a superb choice for challenging sites that could use some shade in a hurry. With our disease resistant selections, it’s a delight to be able to invite this lovely shade tree back into our landscapes!
Elms do well with fall planting, so now is a great time to get them in and enjoy the soft yellow fall color. For some extra insulation, mulch your new tree with 2-3″ of wood mulch to protect the root zone over winter. As always, make sure mulch isn’t piled up against the bark- keep it about 2 inches away from the trunk to avoid bark rot. No volcanoes!
Princeton American Elm
Wondering how to prune your new disease resistant elm? Click here to find out what the forest service has to say and see some helpful graphics.
Here are some quick pruning tips:
*Remove branches that are at an extremely acute angle.
*Remove spindly or weakly attached branches.
*Branches that are crossing or rubbing could become an issue, prune so that branches do not touch.
*To thin dense groups of branches, pick a large healthy branch to keep and remove the little guys.
*Avoid cutting into the collar, the swollen ring at the base of each branch. Also avoid leaving a large nub.
As always, use a sterile, sharp cutting tool!
