Description
The appeal of the tree lies chiefly in its compact, columnar form, not dissimilar to the Lombardy Poplar. Rarely exceeding a height of 27 m, the tree has long stiff ascending branches forming a narrow pyramidal crown. Older specimens broaden round the 'waist', giving trees with a tapering crown a Chianti-flask shape. Like Cornish elm, a narrow-crowned elm from the same area, Guernsey elm is one of the last British trees to come into leaf, and it retains its dark, lustrous foliage into early winter. The small leaves and samarae are similar to those of the Field Elm group in general and of the Cornish elm in particular. Like others of the group, the tree suckers very freely. The tree often develops highly distinctive cancerous burrs on its branches or trunk.
Read more about this topic: Ulmus Minor Subsp. Sarniensis
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