# Ulmus glabra 'Lutescens'
**Ulmus glabra 'Lutescens'**, commonly known as the golden elm or golden wych elm, is a cultivar of the wych elm (*Ulmus glabra* Huds.) grown as a medium-sized deciduous ornamental tree for its yellow foliage, which is soft cream-yellow in spring, greenish-yellow in summer, and golden-yellow in autumn.[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) The Royal Horticultural Society lists the name status as accepted, with *Ulmus americana* 'Lutea' given as a synonym.[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Botanical name | *Ulmus glabra* 'Lutescens', family Ulmaceae; accepted name[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) |
| Common names | Golden Elm, Golden Wych Elm[2](https://plantselector.botanicgardens.sa.gov.au/Plants/Details/17959) • [3](https://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-10/Exceptional%20Tree%20Register%20Information.pdf) |
| Origin | Found in a nursery in the York area in the early 19th century[3](https://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-10/Exceptional%20Tree%20Register%20Information.pdf) |
| Size | Height 10–12 m and spread 8–12 m in South Australian conditions; RHS gives max height higher than 12 m and spread wider than 8 m[2](https://plantselector.botanicgardens.sa.gov.au/Plants/Details/17959) • [1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) |
| Foliage | Leaves emerge soft cream-yellow, turn greenish-yellow in summer and golden-yellow in autumn; insignificant reddish-brown flowers followed by winged fruits[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) |
| Hardiness | RHS rating H6, hardy in all of the UK and northern Europe (−20 to −15 °C)[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) |
| Main disease risk | May be susceptible to Dutch elm disease, coral spot, honey fungus and *Phytophthora*[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) |
## Description and habit
The cultivar is a medium-sized deciduous tree with a vase shape when young, developing a rounded canopy as it matures; Australian growers describe it as wide spreading, becoming wider than it is tall with age.[4](https://www.frankpmatthews.com/catalogue/ornamental-trees/ulmus/ulmus-lutescens/) • [5](https://www.specialitytrees.com.au/trees/compare/ulmus-glabra-lutescens-nezwl) The ovate, coarsely toothed leaves emerge a soft cream-yellow, turn yellowish-green in summer, and become golden-yellow in autumn before falling.[4](https://www.frankpmatthews.com/catalogue/ornamental-trees/ulmus/ulmus-lutescens/) • [1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) The intensity of the green summer color varies with position and exposure to sunlight.[5](https://www.specialitytrees.com.au/trees/compare/ulmus-glabra-lutescens-nezwl) Flowers are insignificant reddish-brown clusters followed by winged fruits (samaras).[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) • [2](https://plantselector.botanicgardens.sa.gov.au/Plants/Details/17959)
The parent species *Ulmus glabra*, the wych or Scotch elm, is native to Europe from the mountains of northern Spain to western Russia, and its samaras have the seed situated in the middle.[6](https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/ulmus/ulmus-glabra/) A 1981 New Zealand study used these characters to settle the golden elm's identity: compared with the English elm (*U. procera*) it has larger leaves and the seed in the center of the fruit, and when propagated on its own roots from cuttings it does not sucker, a common feature of *U. procera*.[7](https://www.rnzih.org.nz/Newsletter/Horticulture_in_New_Zealand_Vol_19_Autumn_1981.pdf)
## Identity and naming history
**A settled name after long confusion.** In New Zealand the golden elm was usually identified as *Ulmus procera* 'Louis Van Houtte'. J.P. Salinger's 1981 note in *Horticulture in New Zealand* records that staff at the RHS Laboratory at Wisley confirmed the tree grown there is not *U. procera* 'Louis Van Houtte' but *U. glabra*, probably the cultivar 'Lutescens', and that the long-established name 'Louis Van Houtte' should be discarded in favor of *Ulmus glabra* 'Lutescens'.[7](https://www.rnzih.org.nz/Newsletter/Horticulture_in_New_Zealand_Vol_19_Autumn_1981.pdf) The same note observed that published descriptions of 'Lutescens' did not fully match the New Zealand tree, whose leaves are golden yellow on emergence and more golden green in mid-summer.[7](https://www.rnzih.org.nz/Newsletter/Horticulture_in_New_Zealand_Vol_19_Autumn_1981.pdf) The common name "golden elm" is also applied to other cultivars, and the tree can be confused with *Ulmus × hollandica* 'Wredei' and *Ulmus* 'Louis van Houtte'.[8](https://www.thenamesdictionary.com/references-for/ulmus-dodoens)
## Cultivation
The tree grows in any well-drained soil in full sun or partial shade, tolerating chalk, clay, loam, and sand, with acid, alkaline, or neutral pH, and it tolerates both exposed and sheltered sites.[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) Australian guidance adds that it tolerates some dry periods and a variety of urban locations but does best in moist, well-drained soils, with moderate supplementary watering, and that it tolerates pollution and waterlogging.[2](https://plantselector.botanicgardens.sa.gov.au/Plants/Details/17959) It is better suited to larger parks and gardens than small spaces.[2](https://plantselector.botanicgardens.sa.gov.au/Plants/Details/17959) Time to maturity is 20 to 50 years.[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details)
Propagation is by softwood cuttings in summer; chip budding and grafting may also be used.[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) Pruning follows RHS pruning group 1, which covers trees that need minimal pruning.[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details)
## Pests and diseases
The cultivar may be susceptible to aphids, bark beetles, horse chestnut scale, and elm gall mites, and to the diseases [Dutch elm disease](https://www.edgepedia.org/dutch-elm-disease), coral spot, honey fungus, and *Phytophthora*.[1](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details) Dutch elm disease is caused by the fungi *Ophiostoma ulmi* and *Ophiostoma novo-ulmi*, which block the tree's water conduction and kill the tree; the fungus is spread mainly by elm bark beetles of the genus *Scolytus* and by root grafting between neighboring trees.[9](https://inspection.canada.ca/en/plant-health/invasive-pests-and-plants/plant-diseases/dutch-elm-disease) The species *U. glabra* as a whole has been seriously compromised in Europe since the 1970s by the disease.[10](https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2745.12994) Photographs in the Trees and Shrubs Online account show mature 'Lutescens' specimens that have so far escaped elm disease in south-west Scotland, and note that the cultivar is a very effective golden tree where Dutch elm disease is absent.[6](https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/ulmus/ulmus-glabra/)
## Use in landscapes
The golden wych elm is one of the most popular elms in Australia, where the trees are widespread and form a dense, rounded canopy; the Friends of the Elms project records that branches start a few meters above the ground and the leaves are lime-green in spring, turning yellow during summer to create a fairly even yellow canopy.[11](https://biocollect.ala.org.au/ala/project/index/240e13b6-4138-40e8-8fe2-c8ff7ffd23e2) It is planted for ornament and shade, provides foliage contrast in larger gardens and parks, and gives autumn color and filtered light in summer.[2](https://plantselector.botanicgardens.sa.gov.au/Plants/Details/17959) • [5](https://www.specialitytrees.com.au/trees/compare/ulmus-glabra-lutescens-nezwl) Specimens are recorded on exceptional tree registers in Australia, including a Golden Wych Elm in Ballarat, Victoria.[3](https://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-10/Exceptional%20Tree%20Register%20Information.pdf) In Britain it is planted in parks and streets, with recorded specimens in [Aberdeenshire](https://www.edgepedia.org/aberdeenshire), Brighton, and Stranraer.[6](https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/ulmus/ulmus-glabra/)
## References
1. [Ulmus glabra 'Lutescens', RHS Plant Profile](https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/51798/ulmus-glabra-lutescens/details)
2. [Ulmus glabra 'Lutescens' (Golden Elm), Plant Selector+, Botanic Gardens of South Australia](https://plantselector.botanicgardens.sa.gov.au/Plants/Details/17959)
3. [Tree 95: Ulmus glabra 'Lutescens', Golden Wych Elm, City of Ballarat Exceptional Tree Register](https://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-10/Exceptional%20Tree%20Register%20Information.pdf)
4. [Ulmus glabra 'Lutescens', Frank P Matthews nursery catalogue](https://www.frankpmatthews.com/catalogue/ornamental-trees/ulmus/ulmus-lutescens/)
5. [Compare Ulmus glabra 'Lutescens', Speciality Trees](https://www.specialitytrees.com.au/trees/compare/ulmus-glabra-lutescens-nezwl)
6. [Ulmus glabra, Trees and Shrubs Online](https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/ulmus/ulmus-glabra/)
7. [J.P. Salinger (1981). The Identity of the Golden Elm in New Zealand, Horticulture in New Zealand Vol. 19](https://www.rnzih.org.nz/Newsletter/Horticulture_in_New_Zealand_Vol_19_Autumn_1981.pdf)
8. [References for Ulmus Dodoens, The Names Dictionary](https://www.thenamesdictionary.com/references-for/ulmus-dodoens)
9. [Dutch elm disease, Canadian Food Inspection Agency](https://inspection.canada.ca/en/plant-health/invasive-pests-and-plants/plant-diseases/dutch-elm-disease)
10. [Thomas, P. (2018). Biological Flora of the British Isles: Ulmus glabra, Journal of Ecology](https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2745.12994)
11. [Golden wych elm (Ulmus glabra 'Lutescens'), Australian elm tree project, BioCollect / Atlas of Living Australia](https://biocollect.ala.org.au/ala/project/index/240e13b6-4138-40e8-8fe2-c8ff7ffd23e2)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Life and health › Plants and algae › Cultivars and cultivated forms › Tree cultivars › Elm cultivars and hybrid elms*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license