Ulmus 'Night Rider'

Last updated
Ulmus 'Night Rider'
Genus Ulmus
Hybrid parentage (U. davidiana var. japonica × U. pumila) × U. davidiana var. japonica
Cultivar 'Night Rider'
OriginCanada

Ulmus 'Night Rider' is a hybrid elm cultivar raised from a crossing of 'Sapporo Autumn Gold' (female parent, a cross between Japanese elm and Siberian elm) and Japanese elm (male parent), by Rick Durand of the Prairie Shade Nursery in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, c.2013. Notable for its high resistance to Dutch elm disease and for its purple fall leaves, it was released by Durand in 2020 at Bylands Nurseries, West Kelowna, British Columbia, as one of Bylands' research program elms. [1] [2] [3] Durand was one of the partners who raised the Japanese elm cultivars 'Discovery' and 'Freedom'.

Contents

Purple fall leaves are rare in elms, where yellow is the norm. Cultivars with burgundy fall leaves include 'Frontier' and 'Burgundy Glow' = Northern Empress.

Description

A fast growing elm, adding 2 to 3 ft. a year, attaining about 35 ft. tall and wide, and developing a rounded vase shape. The seed is central in a narrow-winged samara smaller than that of Siberian elm. [4] Leaves are glossy dark green and rough-toothed, intermediate between the parent species, about 4 to 5 in. long by 1.5 to 2 in. wide, with 10 to 12 vein-pairs; fall colour is orange-red to predominantly purple, with occasional yellow. [5] North Dakota State University wrote (November 2023): "Early evaluations indicate good cold hardiness and excellent burgundy fall colour. However, caution should be exercised as this cultivar appears to have heavy seed production". [6] Seed-production on individual elms, however, varies from year to year, with heavy seeding often followed by lean years, owing to natural cycles and to environmental factors. [7] Durand describes the seed production of 'Night Rider' as "sparse" compared with that of Siberian elm. [4]

Pests and diseases

'Night Rider', being 75 per cent Japanese elm and 25 per cent Siberian, is highly resistant to Dutch elm disease, [1] [5] [2] showing less than 15 per cent damage from DED after inoculation. "The damage on 'Night Rider' is typical for Asian elms," noted Durand. "When the Asian elms get the disease, their response is not always immediate, but they quickly 'wall off' the infection" (i.e. the affected portion dies but the rest of the tree survives). By comparison, 'Burgundy Glow' = Northern Empress Japanese elm, which was developed at North Dakota State University, lost approximately 50 to 60 per cent of its branches before it 'walled off' the DED infection. [1]

Cultivation

'Night Rider' is one of the Bylands research elms planted at the DED project site at Futura Farms, Saint Andrews, Selkirk, Manitoba. These are also being assessed in five trials across different regions of the prairies: three in Alberta (Strathmore, Red Deer and Edmonton), one in Saskatoon and one at Jeffries Nursery in Portage la Prairie. The trees are being planted in urban areas and evaluated for their disease resistance and cold hardiness to the prairie climate. [3]

'Night Rider' is not known to be in cultivation beyond Canada and North Dakota.

Nurseries

North America

Related Research Articles

<i>Ulmus americana</i> Species of tree

Ulmus americana, generally known as the American elm or, less commonly, as the white elm or water elm, is a species of elm native to eastern North America. The trees can live for several hundred years. It is a very hardy species that can withstand low winter temperatures, but it is affected by Dutch elm disease.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dutch elm disease</span> Elm tree fungal disease, spread by beetle

Dutch elm disease (DED) is caused by a member of the sac fungi (Ascomycota) affecting elm trees, and is spread by elm bark beetles. Believed to be originally native to Asia, the disease was accidentally introduced into America, Europe, and New Zealand. In these regions it has devastated native populations of elms that did not have resistance to the disease. The name "Dutch elm disease" refers to its identification in 1921 and later in the Netherlands by Dutch phytopathologists Bea Schwarz and Christine Buisman, who both worked with professor Johanna Westerdijk. The disease affects species in the genera Ulmus and Zelkova, therefore it is not specific to the Dutch elm hybrid.

<i>Ulmus</i> San Zanobi Elm cultivar

Ulmus 'San Zanobi' is a hybrid elm cultivar raised by the Istituto per la Protezione delle Piante (IPP) in Florence, from a crossing of the Dutch hybrid 'Plantyn' and the Siberian Elm Ulmus pumila clone 'S 15'; it was released to commerce in 2002. 'San Zanobi' was introduced to the UK in 2004 by Hampshire & Isle of Wight Branch, Butterfly Conservation, as part of its assessment of DED-resistant cultivars as potential hosts of the endangered White-letter Hairstreak.

<i>Ulmus</i> Frontier Elm cultivar

Ulmus 'Frontier' is an American hybrid cultivar, a United States National Arboretum introduction derived from a crossing of the European Field Elm Ulmus minor with the Chinese Elm Ulmus parvifolia in 1971. Released in 1990, the tree is a rare example of the hybridization of spring- and autumn-flowering elms. Tested in the US National Elm Trial coordinated by Colorado State University, 'Frontier' averaged a survival rate of 74% after 10 years.

<i>Ulmus</i> Homestead Elm cultivar

Ulmus 'Homestead' is an American hybrid elm cultivar raised by Alden Townsend of the United States National Arboretum at the Nursery Crops Laboratory in Delaware, Ohio. The cultivar arose from a 1970 crossing of the Siberian Elm Ulmus pumila with the hybrid N 215, the latter grown from seed sent in 1960 to the University of Wisconsin-Madison elm breeding team by Hans Heybroek of the De Dorschkamp Research Institute in the Netherlands. Tested in the US National Elm Trial coordinated by Colorado State University, 'Homestead' averaged a survival rate of 85% after 10 years in the US National Elm Trial. However, planting of the tree was not recommended, owing principally to its 'ugly' shape and susceptibility to Southwest injury. 'Homestead' was released to commerce without patent restrictions in 1984.

Ulmus 'Morton Plainsman' is a hybrid cultivar raised by the Morton Arboretum from a crossing of Siberian Elm and a Japanese Elm grown from openly pollinated seed donated by the Agriculture Canada Research Station at Morden, Manitoba. Tested in the US National Elm Trial coordinated by Colorado State University, Vanguard averaged a survival rate of 78% after 10 years.

The Siberian elm cultivar Ulmus pumila 'Green King' was once believed to have been derived from a crossing of the Siberian Elm Ulmus pumila with the American Red Elm Ulmus rubra. However, it is now apparent the tree originated as a sport of U. pumila in 1939 at the Neosho Nurseries, Neosho, Missouri.

<i>Ulmus</i> Cathedral Elm cultivar

Ulmus 'Cathedral' is a hybrid cultivar raised at University of Wisconsin–Madison patented in 1994. Arising from a chance crossing of the Japanese elm and Siberian elm, seed was sent in 1958 by Prof. Nobuku Takahashi and his colleagues at the Sapporo Botanical Garden of Hokkaido University, Sapporo, to Eugene Smalley at Wisconsin–Madison; 'Cathedral' is thus a sibling of 'Sapporo Autumn Gold'.

<i>Ulmus americana</i> Princeton American elm cultivar

The American Elm cultivar Ulmus americana 'Princeton' was originally selected in 1922 by New Jersey nurseryman William Flemer of Princeton Nurseries for its aesthetic merit. 'Princeton' was later found to have a moderate resistance to Dutch elm disease (DED).

The Japanese Elm cultivar Ulmus davidianavar.japonica'Discovery' is a cold-resistant selection from Canada, raised along with 'Freedom' in the 1980s by Dr Wilbert Ronald, of Jeffries Nurseries Ltd. and Rick Durand of Shade Consulting Services, Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.

The Japanese Elm cultivar Ulmus davidianavar.japonica 'Freedom' is another cold-resistant selection from Canada, raised along with 'Discovery' in the 1980s by Dr Wilbert Ronald, of Jeffries Nurseries Ltd., and Rick Durand of Shade Consulting Services, Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.

<i>Ulmus davidiana</i> var. <i>japonica</i> Jacan Elm cultivar

The Japanese Elm cultivar Ulmus davidianavar.japonica 'Jacan' is a cold-resistant selection from Canada. The tree was one of a group of second-generation japonica seedlings raised in the 1970s, originally for use in the prairie regions, by the Morden Research Station, Morden, Manitoba. It was first distributed in 1977, and was later among the Asiatic elms, some sourced from Canada, donated to the UK in 1980 by the London branch of Mitsui & Co.

Ulmus davidianavar.japonica 'Thomson' is a hardy, cold-resistant cultivar of the Japanese Elm assessed by the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) Nursery at Indian Head, Saskatchewan, in the 1970s as part of its shelterbelt tree research..

The Japanese Elm cultivar Ulmus davidianavar.japonica 'Mitsui Centennial' is a cold-resistant selection raised at the Morden Experimental Station, Manitoba, Canada, in the 1970s, originally for use in the prairie regions. It was named to mark the centenary in 1980 of the London branch of Mitsui & Co., being one of a batch of Asiatic elms, some sourced from Canada, donated to the UK in that year by the company.

<i>Ulmus pumila</i> Dropmore Elm cultivar

The Siberian elm cultivar Ulmus pumila 'Dropmore' was grown from seed collected in Harbin, Manchuria, China, by F. L. Skinner, of Dropmore, Manitoba. Green reported (1964) a suggestion to merge the Siberian elm cultivars 'Harbin' and 'Manchu' with 'Dropmore', as all came from the Harbin area. In the event, 'Dropmore' appears to have superseded these earlier cultivars.

<i>Ulmus americana</i> Lewis & Clark Elm cultivar

The American elm cultivar Ulmus americana 'Lewis & Clark' is a development from the North Dakota State University (NDSU) Research Foundation breeding programme, released in 2004 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the eponymous expedition. The cultivar was cloned from a tree discovered in 1994 along the Wild Rice River south west of Fargo, North Dakota, where all those around it had succumbed to Dutch elm disease; the tree remains in perfect health (2008). Prairie Expedition proved only moderately successful in the US National Elm Trial, averaging a survival rate of 62.6% overall, potentially due to environmental factors rather than susceptibility to Dutch elm disease. Nevertheless, Prairie Expedition is considered the hardiest of the American Elm cultivars, able to survive in Zone 3.

Ulmus davidianavar.japonica 'JFS-Bieberich' is a Japanese Elm cultivar that was raised by the Sunshine Nursery, Oklahoma, from seed collected in China by proprietor Steve Bieberich. Emerald Sunshine proved only moderately successful in the US National Elm Trial, averaging a survival rate of 70% overall.

<i>Ulmus</i> Patriot Elm cultivar

Ulmus 'Patriot' is a hybrid cultivar raised by the United States National Arboretum in 1980. Derived from a crossing of the American hybrid 'Urban' with the Wilson's Elm cultivar 'Prospector', 'Patriot' was released to commerce, free of patent restrictions, in 1993. Tested in the US National Elm Trial coordinated by Colorado State University, 'Patriot' averaged a survival rate of 85% after 10 years.

<i>Ulmus</i> Fiorente Elm cultivar

Ulmus 'Fiorente' is a hybrid cultivar elm derived from a crossing of the Siberian Elm Ulmus pumila clone 'S.10' from Lucca, Italy, with the Ulmus minor clone 'C.02' from Lungarno, Florence, by the Istituto per la Protezione delle Piante (IPP), part of the Italian National Research Council, in Florence. The tree is protected by Plant Breeders' Rights bestowed by the EU on 25 March 2010.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.