Tree Description:
A medium or large tree to 70 feet tall and a trunk to 2 feet in diameter, with an open, somewhat vase-shaped crown, and graceful, pendant branches.
Range/Site Description:
In East Texas, south to the valley of the Guadalupe River, on a variety of sites, from dry, sandy uplands to moist soils along streams and swamps.
Leaf:
Simple, alternate, 2" to 4" long and 1" to 2" wide, oval or elliptical in shape, pointed at the tip, margin coarsely double-toothed, dark green and smooth above, paler and often pubescent below with prominent veins. Leaf base can vary from slightly lopsided to wedge-shaped. Twigs with prominent corky wings on the twigs, with gaps at the leaf nodes.
Flower:
Borne in early spring, long before the leaves unfold, as drooping clusters. One of the first trees to flower, often in late January or early February.
Fruit:
Ripening in spring about the time the leaves appear, as a reddish-brown, oblong, winged seed ("samara"), 0.25" to 0.33" long, hairy, especially along the margin, and tipped with two small, incurved beaks.
Bark:
Light brown tinged with red, divided by irregular shallow fissures into flat ridges.
Wood:
Similar to that of the other elms: heavy, hard, and difficult to split, occasionally used for tool handles or furniture parts.
Similar Species:
Water-elm (Planera aquatica) occurs in wetlands in East Texas and has a small cone-like fruiting structure; cedar elm (Ulmus crassifolia) has smaller leaves, seeds that ripen in the fall, and corky wings on the twigs that don't have gaps at the leaf nodes.
Interesting Facts:
Early settlers used the inner bark to fashion coarse rope to bind the covers of cotton bales.
