# American elm (Ulmus americana)

> The great vase-shaped street tree of pre-1950s America, fast-growing to 60-80 feet with arching limbs and soft yellow fall color. Dutch elm disease killed most of the old ones; disease-resistant selections such as Princeton, Valley Forge and Jefferson have brought it back. In Central Texas it grows along creeks and bottomlands and is a good shade tree where it gets enough water.

Source: https://treerm.org/trees/ulmus-americana · Updated 2026-11-08 · License CC BY 4.0

## Facts

- Also called: White elm
- Family: Ulmaceae
- Type: Broadleaf, loses its leaves in winter
- Mature height: 22 m; spread 15 m
- Growth: Fast growing; lives about 200 years
- USDA hardiness zones: 3 to 9
- Light: Sun or part shade
- Water: Moderate water
- Soil: Moist, fertile sand, loam, clay or limestone soils; tolerates wet and occasionally dry sites
- Native range: Eastern North America from Nova Scotia to Saskatchewan, south to Florida and central Texas

**Benefits:** Shade, Fast canopy, Wildlife, Birds, Fall color, Flood tolerant

**Good for:** Street tree, Yard shade, parks

**Watch out for:** Pest prone, Large roots

## Care

Buy a Dutch-elm-disease-resistant cultivar. Water deeply and regularly the first two summers and in long droughts. Prune in winter to build strong branch structure. Watch for wilting, yellowing branches (a sign of Dutch elm disease) and for elm leaf beetles, scale and leaf miners. Avoid pruning in spring and early summer when bark beetles are active.

## Where it stands

- **Native:** United States (Also native across most of the eastern and central United States and southern Canada (USDA PLANTS distribution)); AL, United States; AR, United States; FL, United States; GA, United States; LA, United States; MS, United States; NC, United States; OK, United States; SC, United States; TN, United States; TX, United States
- **Recommended:** Calgary, AB, Canada (On the City of Calgary Top Tree Species for Calgary list); Toronto, ON, Canada (On the City of Toronto Street Tree Planting Program brochure species list); Denver, CO, United States (On the Denver Office of the City Forester Approved Street Tree List); Washington, DC, United States (On the Casey Trees Tree Rebate eligible species list); Atlanta, GA, United States (On the Trees Atlanta Top 50 Atlanta Trees list); Boston, MA, United States (On the City of Boston Urban Forestry Division recommended public street trees list); Dallas, TX, United States (On the City of Dallas Article X Approved Tree List)

## Sources

- https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/ULAM
- https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=ULAM
- https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/ulmus-americana/
- https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/tree/ulmame/all.html