2012 Urban Tree of the Year

Accolade is one of many elms on Arthur Lee Jacobsen’s page.

Ever since the demise of the American Elm tree due to the deadly combination of Dutch Elm disease and the beetle that spread it, arborists, landscapers, and gardeners alike have looked for and hoped that a replacement might be found.

Once upon a time American city streets were lined with these majestic trees. Now, the Society of Municipal Arborists has elected an Ulmus variety, ‘Accolade’ as their Urban Tree of the year for 2012. It is a hybrid of Ulmus japonica and U. wilsoniana, originating from seed collected at the Arnold Arboretum in 1924. There are high hopes for it to be the long awaited elm tree that will bear resemblance to those stately urban street trees of the past, since it is reputed to be resistant to Dutch Elm disease, the elm leaf beetle, and elm yellows. The tree grows to 50 to 60 feet tall, and 30 to 40 feet wide, in the famous vase shape that made the American Elm so admired. There has been a long standing effort to find a replacement for the ill fated American Elm. Maybe this is it.