Common Name: Japanese Elm

General Information

Ulmus davidiana is a deciduous shrub or a tree with a broad crown; it can grow up to 15 metres tall. The bole is up to 30cm in diameter[].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

, ,

Range

E. Asia - east Siberia, Russian Far East, Mongolia, China, Japan, Korea.

Habitat

Slopes, wetlands near streams and valleys; at elevations up to 2,300 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	12.00 m
Growth Rate	Fast
Pollinators	Wind
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Prefers a fertile soil in full sun[], but it is easily grown in any soil of at least moderate quality so long as it is well drained[].
A fast-growing tree.
This species is resistant to 'Dutch elm disease', a disease that has destroyed the greater part of all the native elm trees growing in countries such as Britain and the USA. The disease is spread by means of beetles. There is no effective cure (1992) for the problem, but most E. Asian, though not Himalayan, species are resistant (though not immune) to the disease so the potential exists to use these resistant species to develop new resistant hybrids with the native species[].
The various species of this genus hybridize freely with each other and pollen is easily saved, so even those species with different flowering times can be hybridized[].

Edible Uses

Leaves - raw or cooked[, ].

Young fruits - cooked[, ]. The fruit is about 15mm long and 10mm wide[].

Inner bark - dried, ground into a powder and used as a thickening in soups or added to cereal flours when making bread etc[, ].

Medicinal

The bark is diuretic, nervine and purgative[].
The bark of the var japonica is used in traditional Korean medicine for the treatment of dysuria, swelling, rhinitis, and inflammatory ulceration of the GastroIntestinal tract. It was recently reported that a glycoprotein isolated from this tree has anti-inflammatory activities[].

Other Uses

A fibre is obtained from the inner bark[]. It is used to make coarse cloth, ropes and sandals[, ]. Traditionally, the bark was soaked for 7 - 10 days in water, the inner and outer barks were then separated and the inner bark was stripped into strands and made into thread by chewing it[].

The inner bark is used as an ingredient in the composition of incense[].

The brownish wood is hard, heavy, tough and very durable in water. It is cross-grained and can be difficult to work. It is much used in wood-working industries[]. It is used for making axles, hubs etc[, ].

Propagation

Seed - if sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe, it usually germinates within a few days[]. Stored seed does not germinate so well and should be sown in early spring[]. The seed can also be harvested 'green' (when it has fully developed but before it dries on the tree) and sown immediately in a cold frame. It should germinate very quickly and will produce a larger plant by the end of the growing season[]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Plants should not be allowed to grow for more than two years in a nursery bed since they form a tap root and will then move badly.
Layering of suckers or coppiced shoots[].