The Field Elm cultivar Ulmus minor 'Hunnybunii' was originally identified as U. nitens var. Hunnybunii Moss by Mosskiki.huh.harvard.edu in The Cambridge British Flora (1914). 'Hunnybunii' was reputed to have been commonly planted in the parklands and hedgerows of Essex, Cambridgeshire, and Huntingdonshire before the advent of Dutch elm disease. Melville considered the tree a hybrid of 'Coritana'.
The tree was named for C. E. Moss's collaborator, the botanical artist E. W. Hunnybun.Edward Walter Hunnybun
Description Moss described 'Hunnybunii' as a taller tree than 'Sowerbyi', with the lower branches spreading at right angles, the upper less tortuous; leaves even more asymmetrical at the base, more acuminate at the apex.Lynch, R I. (1915). Trees of the Cambridge Botanic Garden, in Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society (Ed.: Chittenden), Vol. 41, part 1, p. 17, 1915. Samara and leaf drawings by E. W. Hunnybun appear in The Cambridge British Flora (1914). Sheet labelled U. foliacea Gilibert var. hunnybunnii; leaves specimen, Cambridge; Sheet labelled U. foliacea hunnybunnii; leaves specimen, Cambridge (Den Haag 1931); Sheet labelled U. nitens Hunnybunnii; twigs specimen, Cambridge (Den Haag 1931); Sheet labelled U. nitens var. Hunnybunnyi; samarae specimen, Cambridge, 1938; Sheet labelled U. carpinifolia 'Hunnybunnii'; Wageningen specimen, 1962; Sheet labelled U. carpinifolia 'Hunnybunnii'; Wageningen specimen, 1962
Pests and diseases Though susceptible to Dutch Elm Disease, field elms produce suckers and usually survive in this form in their area of origin.
Cultivation Moss in The Cambridge British Flora (1914) described 'Hunnybunii' as "often planted, as in the grounds of St. John's College, Cambridge". Late 19th and early 20th century photographs of the St John's New Building lawn show elms matching the 'Hunnybunii' description.Photograph of elms, St John's New Building lawn, oldstratforduponavon.com/sitebuilder/images/cambridgestjohns2-620x413.jpgfrancisfrith.com 26441, St John's College, Cambridge c.1890Photo of elm on St John's New Building lawn, 101 Views of Cambridge (Rock Bros. Publishing, London, 1900) The tree was cultivated in The Netherlands (The Hague and Wageningen) in the mid-20th century as part of the elm collection assembled there the 1930s for DED-testing by Christine Buisman, on behalf of the Dutch Elm Committee.Christine Buisman, 'Verslag van de onderzoekingen over de iepenziekte, verricht in het phytopathologisch laboratorium Willie Commelin scholten te Baarn, gedurende 1932 (1)', Tijdschrift over Planteziekte, Vol 39 Iss 4, April 1933, p.84
No specimens are known to survive, but three mature elms (2021) beside Dean Road, Bartlow, near the Cambridgeshire-Essex border, resemble var. 'Hunnybunii' in form.'Elms of the Essex / Cambridgeshire border'; resistantelms.co.uk/galleries'Hunnybunii'-like elms, Dean Road, Bartlow, near Cambridgeshire-Essex border - Google Maps, August 2008, access date: February 11, 2022'Hunnybunii'-like elms, Bartlow, from A1307, near Cambridgeshire-Essex border - Google Maps, October 2021, access date: February 11, 2022 Their leaves appear close to the 1962 Wageningen specimen WAG.1852692 of U. carpinifolia 'Hunnybunnii'.bioportal.naturalis.nl, specimen WAG.1852692, U. carpinifolia 'Hunnybunnii'; Wageningen specimen, 1962 Moss regarded the elm as a variety not a clone, allowing for some variability in leaf-shape.
Varieties 'Hunnybunii pseudo-Stricta'
References