I have moved into a house that has two fairly big elm trees, one in the front yard, and one in the back yard. They SEEM to be the same kind of elm but I don't know that for sure. The leaves are too small to be American Elm, and too big to be Cedar Elm, so I think that means they must be either Siberian Elms or Lacebark Elms. The one in front yard is in bad shape. It has some weird bark peeling near the base and is not leaving out very much. I will remove that one for sure soon - I have planted a Shumard Red Oak that will sort of replace it but I plan to let it get established a little before removing the elm. The one in the back yard seems to be OK for now. If I was sure that it was a Siberian Elm I would probably go ahead and have that removed whenever I have the one in front removed, but if it's a Lacebark Elm then I want to keep it. The bark on the tree in back doesn't quite look like the bark in the front - the front yard tree has a lighter bark. But the tree in back has shallow roots, and little Elms pop up between mowings. This makes me think it probably is a Siberian Elm. Does anybody know if Lacebark Elms have shallow roots? Anybody have suggestions for how to distinguish between the two?

Here are some pictures:


Here's a couple of shots of the one in the back yard that is doing OK.



And here are some shots of the one in front that is in terrible shape:

Can't tell from the pics, does the elm in question have a kind of pretty multi-grey-tone and orange highlight mix to it's bark, especially in the younger limbs? Lacebarks have that and as far as I know Siberians don't.

_________________
Shepherd of the Trees
It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succor of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields we know so that those who live after may have clean earth to till.

It has furrowed bark, like some pictures I've seen of Siberian Elms, with a little bit of orange but it's not mottled like I've seen in some pictures of Lacebark Elms. The more research I do, the more I tend to think it's unfortunately a Siberian Elm.

I tend to agree- my condolences.

It's pretty young looking so It'd be no major loss to axe it and replace with a well suited tree like a Shantung Maple, Shumard Red Oak or a Texas Ash.

_________________
Shepherd of the Trees
It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succor of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields we know so that those who live after may have clean earth to till.