Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Rosales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Ulmus rubra
FAMILY
Ulmaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
You may also want to check Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of North Carolina
Read more about Slippery Elm at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Ulmus rubra
FAMILY
Ulmaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Ulmus rubra
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 056-01-001:
Ulmus rubra FAMILY Ulmaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Ulmus fulva
COMMON NAME:
Slippery Elm, Red Elm
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
Trees You Want to Know (Peattie, 1934); illustration by F.A. Michaux dcp34_p26
)
JK Marlow jkm191222_2363_u_rubra
Clay County AL
Cheaha State Park
)
Manual of the Trees of North America (Exclusive of Mexico) (Sargent, 1905) mtna_i_345
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_ulfu_001_lvd
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide pnd_ulru_002_lvd
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_ulmus_rubra
March
)
JK Marlow jkm120414_914
April Pickens County SC
Jocassee Gorges
Leaf tips abruptly acuminate, leaf bases rounded to unequal, per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
)
JK Marlow jkm210401_9057
April Polk County NC
Fruit a flat, nearly round samara, its tip slightly notched & wing hairless, per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
)
JK Marlow jkm250424_2720
April Greenville County SC
Poinsett Bridge Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm250424_2732
April Greenville County SC
Poinsett Bridge Heritage Preserve
)
Ron Lance rwl_ulmus_rubra_bark
May Jackson County NC
Big Ridge Preserve
Bark light brown, with interlacing ridges, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
)
Ron Lance rwl_20240226_131707
June Jackson County NC
Big Ridge Preserve
)
Stephanie C. Brundage scb_081821blairsville29
August Union County GA
Georgia Mountain Research & Education Center, University of Georgia
)
Stephanie C. Brundage scb_081821blairsville31
August Union County GA
Georgia Mountain Research & Education Center, University of Georgia
)
JK Marlow s070927_b
September Pickens County SC
Jocassee Gorges
Leaves mostly 4-6" long, doubly-toothed, sandpapery above, hairy below, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
)
JK Marlow s101121_slipperyelm
October Greenville County SC
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_u_rubra_slipperytwig
November
Flower buds larger than vegetative buds, globular, rusty-woolly on top half, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_ulmus_rubra_3
November
Buds 5-6mm long, with 6 or more dark scales, rusty-hairy near tip, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmurubra_bark
Month Unknown
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmurubra_toe
Month Unknown
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Ulmus rubra
FAMILY
Ulmaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Ulmus rubra
FAMILY
Ulmaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Ulmus rubra
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 056-01-001:
Ulmus rubra
FAMILY
Ulmaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Ulmus fulva
1567
Tree
Perennial
Habitat: Moist to fairly dry calcareous forests, rich bottomlands, rich cove forests in the low Mountains, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common (uncommon to rare in Coastal Plain)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Deciduous
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring
Greenish
4-8 lobed calyx
Petals absent
Superior ovary
Bisexual
Flowers numerous in compact fascicles
FRUIT:
Spring
Samara
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Identifying Trees: An All-Season Guide to Eastern North America (Williams, 2007) p194
- Landscaping with Native Trees (Sternberg & Wilson, 1995) p253
- Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007) p343
- Field Guide to the Rare Plants of Georgia (Chafin, 2007) p419
- Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988) p236
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p43
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p266
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p357
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