SLIPPERY ELM. RED ELM. =Habitat and Range.=--Rich, low grounds, low, rocky woods and hillsides. Valley of the St. Lawrence, apparently not abundant. Maine,--District of Maine (Michaux, _Sylva of North America_, ed. 1853, III, 53), rare; Waterborough (York county, Chamberlain, 1898); New Hampshire,--valley of the Connecticut, usually disappearing within ten miles of the river; ranges as far north as the mouth of the Passumpsic; Vermont,--frequent; Massachusetts,--rare in the eastern sections, frequent westward; Rhode Island.--infrequent; Connecticut,--occasional. South to Florida; west to North Dakota and Texas. =Habit.=--A small or medium-sized tree, 40-60 feet high, with a trunk diameter of 1-2-1/2 feet; head in proportion to the height of the tree, the widest spreading of the species, characterized by its dark, hairy buds and rusty-green, dense and rough foliage. =Bark.=--Bark of trunk brown and in old trees deeply furrowed; larger branches grayish-brown, somewhat striate; branchlets grayish-brown, rough, marked with numerous dots, downy; season's shoots light gray and very rough; inner bark mucilaginous, hence the name "slippery elm." =Winter Buds and Leaves.=--Buds ovate to rounded-cylindrical, acute or obtuse, very dark, densely tomentose, very conspicuous just before unfolding. Leaves simple, alternate, 4-8 inches long, 3-4 inches wide, thickish, minutely hairy above and woolly beneath when young, at maturity pale rusty-green and very rough both ways upon the upper surface, scarcely less beneath, rough and hairy along the ribs; sweet-scented when dried; outline oblong, ovate-oblong, or oval, doubly serrate; apex acuminate; base more or less heart-shaped or obtuse, inequilateral; leafstalk short, rough, hairy; stipules small, soon falling. =Inflorescence.=--March to April. Preceding the leaves, from the lateral buds of the preceding season, in clusters of nearly sessile, purplish flowers; sterile, fertile, and perfect on the same tree; calyx 5-9-lobed, downy; corolla none; stamens 5-9, anthers dark red; ovary flattened; styles two, purple, downy. =Fruit.=--A samara, winged all round, 3/4 inch in diameter, roundish, pubescent over the seed, not fringed, larger than the fruit of _U. Americana_. =Horticultural Value.=--Hardy throughout New England; does well in various situations, but prefers a light, sandy or gravelly soil near running water; grows more rapidly than _U. Americana_, and is less liable to the attacks of insects; its large foliage and graceful outline make it worthy of a place in ornamental plantations. Propagated from seed. [Illustration: PLATE XLIX.--Ulmus fulva.] 1. Winter buds. 2. Flowering branch, 3. Flower, top view. 4. Flower, side view, part of perianth and stamens removed. 5. Pistil. 6. Fruiting branch. =Ulmus racemosa, Thomas.= CORK ELM. ROCK ELM. =Habitat and Range.=--Dry, gravelly soils, rich soils, river banks. Quebec through Ontario.