Elms being planted again in city

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It’s been 70 years since fountain-shaped elm trees grew tall on Schenectady’s streets. But now they may be able to return.

Horticulturists believe they have created elm strains that are resistant to the Dutch elm disease that killed every elm in Schenectady generations ago.

Now that new elm strains have been grown successfully in greenhouses for years, ReTree Schenectady is slowly adding elms to the city’s treescape.

“We are very interested in getting elms back in Schenectady,” said ReTree President Betsy Henry. “It’s a really beautiful tree.”

Years ago the elms were replaced with maples, many of which are now nearing the end of their lives. They have also grown statuesque, increasing the possibility of damage if a heavy limb falls and making it more expensive to remove the tree.

Maples had been seen as the ideal streetside tree, but as they age, they’re no longer viewed quite as positively. On the other hand, elms grow tall too, although they last longer.

“Over the years I’ve come to realize there’s no perfect street tree. They all have weaknesses,” Henry said. “The city is predominantly maple. Our goal is to increase diversity.”

Her main fear: if another disease strikes, this time hitting the maples that make up much of the city’s trees, the city could be deforested again.

It’s not just disease that can destroy trees. Two types of beetle are killing ash trees in the New York City area, which led ReTree to stop planting ash.

“If the beetle ever makes it up here, we don’t want to have a lot of the tree it eats,” Henry said. “So the last couple years, we haven’t been planting ash trees.”

As for the elms, it’s not yet clear whether they will survive.

“We’ve had some mixed results,” Henry said.

About half of the Zelkovas planted by ReTree in the last few years have died. Zelkovas are in the elm family but are shorter than the American Elm.

Henry said she thinks the Zelkovas split and died in the cold.

“We replaced four or five last year with another elm hybrid,” she said.

Those trees are growing near Wright Street at the entrance to Central Park. They appear more hardy.

“Most of them did well,” Henry said. “We only lost one.” And that one died of the normal transplant problems that can affect any tree.

“So far it looks very good,” she said. “I think everybody’s pretty hopeful.”

ReTree has only planted a few of the elms, but at this point it’s more a problem of money than a fear of Dutch elm disease.

“The thing that’s held us back is we focus on bare-root trees,” Henry said. “It’s cheaper and you can lift them up with one person.”

The half-grown elms are much more expensive, but it’s worth it, she said.

“There’s been huge progress in hybrid elms that are resistant to the disease. We’re very hopeful,” she said.

Dutch elm disease was introduced to the United States on diseased logs from Europe in the 1930s, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service. Beetles carried the disease into the trees, almost all of which died within three years.

ReTree Schenectady is a nonprofit organization funded by the city, the state Department of Environmental Conservation, National Grid’s tree-growing program and private donations.