What is Siberian Elm Doing in New Mexico? Ben Wright Good Elm Bad Elm A Hearty Traveler

Ulmus Pumila in the Gobi Desert

Ulmus pumila in Santa Fe, NM Ulmus pumila Native Habitat

Mongolia Gobi Desert Northern China Southern Siberia North Korea

Reproduced from Wesche et al.2011 Native Habitat Characteristics

Wikipedia

https://foxstudio.biz/2014/03/12/the- wildart-mongolia-expedition-part-8-en- route-to-takhiin-tal/ Tolerant Genetics

• Tolerates extreme environments • Roots are adept at finding water • Hybridizes easily with other elm species • Helps colonization process • Resistant to Dutch Elm Disease

Virginia Tech Energetic Reproduction and Growth • Flowers in Spring • High Pollination Range • Massive Seed Dispersal volume and high rates of Germination • Early Seedling stage is the most sensitive time for water limitation • Fast Growth • Reproductive age ~ 10 years

4 Month old seedling at Parr Field, Taos, NM Oct. 2015. Physiological Response to Drought

• Does not close stomata in response to water loss through leaves • Roots spread deep for groundwater and wide for surface water • Will shut off sections of canopy structure to reduce transpiration loss • Clonal reproduction when necessary Siberische Ulme Wikipedia Ecological Characteristics

• Individuals or clumps • Closed canopy • Establishes on disturbed sites • Tends to dominate sites • Allelopathy may be possible but research is not yet convinced

Romo Wetlands adjacent to Baca Park, Taos, NM Introduction to North America

• Introductions began in early 1860’s and took off in early 1900’s • Rave reviews by nursery sellers • Used for wind breaks, erosion control, and street and landscape trees • Possibly the most planted landscape tree in N. America

1908 Frank Nicholas Meyer Near Fengtai, Chihli , China A Willing Performer

http://lakeshorebonsai.com/?tag=siberian-elm

https://livingtorontojournal.com/2016/03/16/a-property-of-art-toronto-topiary/ Siberian Elm Vs. Chinese Elm

Ulmus pumila Ulmus parvifolia Adaptation in North America

• Widely Distributed • Listed on invasive species lists for 25 states • Regulated in Illinois, New Hampshire and New Mexico • Invasive characteristics most pronounced in the Southwest EDDMapS. 2017. Early Detection & Distribution Mapping System. The University of Georgia - Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health. Available online at http://www.eddmaps.org/; last accessed January 16, 2017 Adaptation to New Mexico • Governor Tingley enthusiastically encouraged its distribution through the state in the 1930’s • Created a tree canopy in many communities for the first time • It is often poorly regarded and management is difficult • Listed by the USDA as Class C noxious weed in NM Problems with Pumila

You Tell Me!

Pumila in Toronto Problems with Pumila

• Co-dominance • Brittle Limbs and Weak Structure • Dieback especially under water stress • Aggressive seeding habit • Tingley Snow • Difficult to Manage • Crowds out native vegetation • Roots grow into pipes • Pollen allergies

Pumila in Toronto How to manage ULPU to maximize benefits

• Management planning and resource allocation • Map their locations • Choose their spots by elimination • Prune for good structure • Reducing Co-dominance • Perpetual Crown Cleaning • Eradicate Seedlings ASAP • Irrigate when practical • Stage Removal and Replacement

NM Tech – Jennifer Dann Management and Planning

• Technical Support and Leadership • Collaboration! • Education • For agencies, land managers, trades • Information • Public • Integrated Vegetation Management • Prevention • Containment • Control • Restoration • Reestablish native vegetation • Monitoring Mapping ULPU

• Strategies for multi-trunk form and tendency towards thickets • Ignore below a specified size • Map areas as polygons • Clumping into average size and counting stems • Satellite mapping? Uses for Siberian Elm Wood

• Tight interlocking grain • Dense wood with dark and light grain • Pliable and bends well Randall Laub Studio Santa Fe http://www.laubworkshop.com/ • Resistant to decay when permanently wet • Not as desirable as Parvifolia but still useful. Seeds can be composted or…

Salad Greens Carrot shavings and elm samaras with horseradish dressing

https://wildfoodgirl.com/2016/elm-samaras-edible-gourmet/ Ulmus Alternatives

• Dutch Elm Resistant • Sterile Seed • Seeding in Fall • Hearty to NM climate • Flexibility in choices is required

American Elms – Last elm standing - Ulmus americana New Harmony, Princeton, Jefferson Asian Elms Emerald Sunshine Elm - Ulmus propinqua Allee 2 - Ulmus parvifolia

Asian Elm Hybrids Accolade Elm - Ulmus (japonica x wilsoniana) ‘Morton’ © 2009 Keith Warren, J. Frank Schmidt & Son Co. Frontier Elm - Ulmus (carpinifolia x parvifolia) ‘Frontier Triumph Elm - Ulmus (wilsoniana x japonica x pumila) How to Kill Ulmus pumila

Extremely resistant to mortality • Persistence • Excavation • Air Knife Excavation • Girdling • Herbicide Ongoing Research

• Specific Tests and experiments • NM Forest Analysis Project • Community Outreach and Education

CLovis, NM – Photo Jennifer Dann Resources and Collaboration

• Federal Agencies • NM Native Plant Society • NM Interagency Weed Action Group • NM State Forestry • NM Urban Forest Council • NMSU Cooperative Extension Service • Schools • Colleges and Universities • Tree Boards • Volunteer groups and organizations Summary • Think Trees THANK YOU! • NM Urban Forest Council • NM State Forestry • NM Native Plant Societies • Taos Tree Board • Taos Heartwood Coalition • Oregon State University References

Bertolasi B. et al. 2015. “A last stand in the Po Valley: genetic structure and gene flow patterns in Ulmus minor and U. pumila” Annals of Botany. 115: 683-692.

Brunet et al. 2013. “Hybridization and introgression between the exotic Siberian elm, Ulmus pumila, and the native Field elm, U. Minor, in Italy.” Biological Invasions. 15: 2717-2730.

“Conservation Plant Characteristics for Ulmus pumila (Siberian Elm)” USDA. Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Distribution Map for Ulmus pumila. Plants Data Base. Web download. 3/13/16. https://www.usanpn.org/nn/Ulmus_pumila

Dulamsuren, Choimaa, et al. 2009. “Performance of Siberian elm (Ulmus pumila) on steppe slopes of the northern Mongolian mountain taiga: Drought stress and herbivory in mature trees.” Environmental and Experimental Botany. 66: 18-24.

Dulamsuren, Choimaa. et al. 2009. “Establishment of Ulmus pumila seedlings on steppe slopes of the northern Mongolia mountain taiga.” Acta Oecologica. 35: 563-572.

“Field Guide for Managing Siberian Elm in the Southwest.” 2014. USDA Forest Service.

Foresry Forum. http://www.forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=72813.20. Web Accessed 3/13/16. Khamzina, A., J.P.A> Lamers, and P.L.G. Vlek. 2008. “Tree establishment under deficit irrigation on degraded agricultural land in the lower Amu Darya River region, Aral Sea Basin” Forest Ecology and Management. 255: 168-178.

Khamzina, A. et al. 2009. “Transpiration and early growth of tree plantations established on degraded cropland over shallow saline groundwater table in northwest Uzbekistan” Agriculture and Forest Meteorology. 149: 1865-1874.

Leopold, Donald J. 1980. “Chinese and Siberian Elms”. Journal of Arboriculture. 6(7): 175-179.

Li gang et al. 2011. “Biomass carbon storage and net primary production in different habitats of Hunshandake Sandland, China” Acta Ecologica Sinica. 31: 217-224.

McIlvain, E. H. and C. G. Armstrong. 1965. “Siberian Elm: A Tough New Invader of Grasslands”. Weeds. 13(3): 278-279.

Moore, Lincoln M. “Plant Guide: Siberian Elm” USDA. NRCS. ed. 2003.

Moore, Lincoln M. “Plant Fact Sheet: Siberian Elm” USDA. NRCS. ed. 2006.

Perez-Corona, Esther M. et al. 2013. “Allelopathic potential of invasive Ulmus pumila on understory plant species.” Allelopathy Journal. 32: 101-112.

Radosevich, Steven R., Jodies S. Holt, and Claudio M. Ghersa. 2007. Ecology of Weeds and Invasive Plants. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons.

Sibirische Ulme. Wikipedia auf Deutsch. Web download. 3/14/16.

Virgina Tech Images. http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=134

Webb, Walter E. 1948. “A report on Ulmus pumila in the Great Plains Region of the United States” Journal of Forestry. 274- 278.

Weeds U.S. Database. Web download. 3/13/16. http://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/fact/ulpu1.htm

Wesche, Karsten et al. 2011. “Trees in the desert: reproduction and genetic structure of fragmented Ulmus pumila forests in Mongolian drylands” Flora. 206: 91-99.

Wikipedia. “Ulmus pumila in Gobi desert” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulmus_pumila Accessed: 3/13/16.

Yellowjacket Canyon. Southwest Colorado Wildflowers. Web download. http://www.swcoloradowildflowers.com/Tree%20Enlarged%20Photo%20Pages/ulmus%20pumila.htm

Zalapa, Juan E., Johanne Brunet, and Raymond P. Guries. 2010. “The extent of hybridization and its impact on the genetic diversity and population structure of an invasive tree, Ulmus pumila (Ulmaceae).” Evolutionary Applications. Blackwell Publishing. 3: 157-168.