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American elm

American elm is a survivor of the Dutch elm disease which devastated elm populations elsewhere in the world.

Latin Name

Ulmus rubra

Other Common Names

slippery elm, brown elm, grey elm

American_elm_big
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American red elm trees are now naturally regenerating in some regions making supplies patchy. Distribution is widespread but trees are greatly influenced by site conditions. Trees are relatively small, often with divided trunks.

FOREST GROWTH

FIA data shows U.S. elm growing stock is 298 million m3, 2.0% of total U.S. hardwood growing stock. American elm is growing 5.9 million m3 per year while the harvest is 2.5 million m3 per year. The net volume (after harvest) is increasing 3.41 million m3 each year. U.S. elm growth exceeds harvest in most significant producing states with the exception of Ohio. Despite surviving Dutch elm disease American elm is still susceptible to the disease which has impacted on growth and harvest in some States.

 

Alabama Arkansas Arizona California Colorado Connecticut District of Columbia Delaware Florida Georgia Iowa Idaho Illinois Indiana Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Massachusetts Maryland Maine Michigan Minnesota Missouri Mississippi Montana North Carolina North Dakota Nebraska New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico Nevada New York Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Virginia Vermont Washington Wisconsin West Virginia Wyoming Volume of live trees on forest land, 1000 m³ 0 3.5K All data derives from The Forest Inventory and Analysis Database developed in 2001, a component of the U.S. Forest Service, Department of Agriculture.Data was compiled by AHEC in May 2020 using the most recent state inventory available (2018 for most states).“Forest volume” refers to “Net volume of live trees on forest land" as defined by FIA (see glossary). FIA forest volume data is available for 49 U.S. states (Hawaii and Washington D.C. are omitted) with total commercially significant hardwood forest volume of 14.6 billionWith the 2008 Farm Bill, every US State was tasked to prepare a Forest Action Plan by 2010, reviewed in 2015, to include comprehensiveassessment of forest condition and a strategy for sustainable forestry. Further details are available from theNational Association of State Foresters
Back to whole mainland U.S. 0-20K 20K-40K 40K-60K 60K-80K 80K-100K 100K-120K > 120K Volume of live trees on forest land, 1000 m³ 0 200K
-15K -10K -5K 0 5K 10K 15K 20K 25K GROWTH AND REMOVALS, 1000 m³ -10K -9K -8K -7K -6K -5K -4K -3K -2K -1K 0 1K 2K 3K 4K 5K 6K 7K 8K 9K 10K GROWTH AND REMOVALS, 1000 m³ -2000 -1750 -1500 -1250 -1000 -750 -500 -250 0 250 500 750 1000 1250 1500 1750 2000 GROWTH AND REMOVALS, 1000 m³ -300 -200 -100 0 100 200 300 400 500 GROWTH AND REMOVALS, 1000 m³ Removals 0 Growth 0 Net growth 0
0 200K 400K 600K 800K 1M 1.2M FOREST VOLUME, 1000 m³ 0 40K 80K 120K 160K 200K 240K 280K 320K 360K 400K 440K FOREST VOLUME, 1000 m³ 0 10K 20K 30K 40K 50K 60K 70K 80K 100K FOREST VOLUME, 1000 m³ 0 4K 8K 12K 16K 20K FOREST VOLUME, 1000 m³ Forest volume 0

LCA Tool

6.43
seconds
it takes 10.65 seconds to grow 1m³ of American elm
The replacement rate is calculated from total U.S. annual increment of the specified hardwood species derived from the U.S. Forest Service Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program and assumes that 2 m³ of logs is harvested to produce 1 m³ of lumber (i.e. 50% conversion efficiency). The rapid rate of replacement is due to the very large volume of hardwood trees in U.S. forest.
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Elm from the USA is available in very limited commercial volumes and sawn lumber is produced mainly in 4/4" (25.4mm) thickness. As a result specifications and grades for export may be difficult to source on a regular basis. Veneer may also be available from specialist suppliers.

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The close grain red elm may be straight or severely interlocked, with a coarse texture. The narrow sap is greyish white to light brown and the heartwood is light to dark brown in colour. Bird pecks are found in elm and are regarded as a natural characteristic and not considered a defect under NHLA Grading Rules.

Mechanical Properties

The wood of red elm is moderately heavy, hard and strong. It is stiff with excellent bending and shock resistance.

  • 0.53

    Specific Gravity (12% M.C.)

    593 kg/m3

    Average Weight (12% M.C.)

    11%

    Average Volume Shrinkage (Green to 6% M.C.)

    89.635 MPa

    Modulus of Rupture

    10,274 MPa

    Modulus of Elasticity

    43.852 MPa

    Compressive strength (parallel to grain)

    3,825 N

    Hardness
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Un-oiled
elm_unoiled
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  • Red elm machines fairly well and it nails and screws easily. It glues well and can be sanded, stained and polished to a good finish. It dries well with minimum degrade and has little movement in performance.

     
  • The wood is rated non-resistant to heartwood decay but is classed as permeable to preservatives.
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American elm, when it is available is an attractive and desirable species for furniture and cabinet making and can also be used for internal joinery, flooring and panelling.

Flooring
Furniture
Panelling
Cabinets

Examples of Use

The Butterfly chair by Ercol
Melun Music and Dance School by Deso Architects
Bahrain National Theatre by AS Architecture
Melun Music and Dance School by Deso Architects
Bahrain National Theatre by AS Architecture