| Ulmus boissieri | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification (disputed) | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Ulmaceae |
| Genus: | Ulmus |
| Species: | U. boissieri |
| Binomial name | |
| Ulmus boissieri | |
| Synonyms | |
Ulmus boissieriGrudz., (Persian:نارون برگریز or نارون گلپشهای), a disputedspecies ofelm found inIran, was identified by Grudzinskaya in 1977.[1][4] She equated her "new species" with theU. campestris f.microphylla collected in 1859 inKerman Province[5] and described in hisFlora Orientalis (1879) byBoissier,[2] for whom she named it, treating Boissier's specimen as the "type". The tree is endemic the provinces ofKermanshah (Qasr-e Shirin,Bisotun) andKerman.,[6] and also theZagros forests, growing withQuercus brantii,Celtis australis,Platanus orientalis,Fraxinus sp., andCerasus mahaleb.[7][8]
Although two more recent Iranian treatises maintain the original taxon,[7][6]Richens (1983), in line with Boissier's originalU. campestris identification, sankU. boissieri asUlmus minor, along with six other elms considered species by Soviet botanists.[3] Grudzinskaya (1977) incorrectly stated that "U. boissieri was described by Boissier in the rank of a species". Boissier had in fact listed his small-leaved Persian elm as a form of the species,U. campestris. Grudzinskaya (1977) does not refer to the diagnostic field-elm feature ofroot-suckering.
Ulmus boissieri is distinguished by its small leaves and fruits. Theovate, toothed leaves are 1.5 – 3 cm long, 1.2 – 2 cm broad, typically asymmetric at the base, the upper surfaces glabrous. The leaf veins number from 8 to 12; thepetiole 2 – 3 mm long. Theperfectapetalous wind-pollinated flowers are minute; the suborbiculatesamarae 7 – 9 mm in diameter, with the seed located in the centre.[1][9]
Boissier's 1859 herbarium specimen (Grudzinskaya's "type" tree)[10] shows'Rueppellii'-like leaves and samarae, a field elm from neighbouring Turkestan.[11][12]
Not known.
The extent of cultivation within Iran is unknown. Aside from the old field elm cultivar'Umbraculifera', elm specimens from Iran are extremely rare in cultivation outside the country (see 'Putative specimens' below).[citation needed]
Four putative specimens from Iran are grown at theSir Harold Hillier Gardens, UK (see 'Accessions').[13]
