Olmo

Class

Dicotyledoneae

Division

Angiospermae

Family

Ulmaceae

Order

Rosales

Genus

Ulmus

Species

parvifolia

Description

Plant of the Ulmaceae family. In the wild, it is a spontaneous tree from south-eastern Asia with a globular crown and branches extending from the base. It has a grey, fairly smooth bark, which flakes off with age, showing a light-coloured underlying bark.
The leaf is deciduous, small, toothed, elliptical, simple and fits into the branch with a very short petiole. The upper page is deep green, with a slightly wrinkled lamina and small whitish hairs. The lower page is paler.
It is grown in pots of different sizes, from 10 cm up to 50-60 cm for special specimens. It is more common to find it in 12-25 cm pots.

Curiosities and special features

Very similar to Zelkova serrata, a species with which it is often confused and which is also widely used for bonsai cultivation but from which it differs in the different conformation of the leaf margin.

Because of its resistance and ability to adapt to different styles, it is one of the most popular species in the art of bonsai, a technique for growing miniature trees that originated in China and spread to Japan, with profound meanings that reconcile philosophical and spiritual principles in the search for a symbiosis between man and nature. Today, also thanks to cultural exchanges and international events in the sector, bonsai cultivation has developed throughout the West.

Origin and distribution

A native species in a range extending from central and southern China to Vietnam, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan. In its natural habitat it is a tree that can reach a height of 25 metres.