Heritage Elm Tree Paintings

Heritage Elm Tree Paintings
Painted by Aleta Karstad, lead author of “Island of Biodiversity – a natural
history of the North Russell Shale Hill”, a series of magnificent Elm trees,
commissioned by Owen Clarkin and donated to CESA-EO.
Online Auction ends 30 Nov 2015
Rock Elm (Ulmus thomasii)
Growing beside the historic Percival House mansion in downtown
Merrickville.
"The Rock Elm frequently develops a rugged growth form with deeply
ridged mature bark, pendulous "claw-like" branches, and corky twigs. To
me this tree (the "Merrickville Monster") signifies how the common can
become rare and eventually obscure, given that Rock Elm is poorly known
to the public at present. Rock Elm was historically documented as being
a common tree in Ontario, being exported to England as square timber
for shipbuilding (etc.) and supporting industries such as the manufacture
of hockey sticks, piano frames, vehicle frames, and tool handles. The
wood of the species is one of the hardest, strongest, and toughest of any
large tree, and it tends to grow with a “good form” for lumber, often with
a long straight trunk.
"Rock Elms were reported to frequently attain large sizes, with common
mature dimensions being given in literature as 100 feet tall (30.4 metres)
with a diameter of 3.5 feet (one metre) in diameter. While not as
imposing as its very large and much better known cousin the American
Elm, it is clear that Rock Elms often were large, majestic trees. "Drastic
overcutting", to quote the well-known author Harlow, and a lack of replanting effort combined with Dutch Elm Disease has resulted in a
present-day landscape with few Rock Elms and far fewer mature ones. I
would estimate that I find a mature Ulmus thomasii about once every 50100km of road in Eastern Ontario. Fence lines, dry limestone soils, and
rich mature forests (often in understory) contain a scattered population
of the species, which can be locally abundant especially as root-sprout
colonies of young trees.
"This particular tree, still alive in 2014, measures 92 feet (28 metres) tall
with a diameter of 3.5 feet (one metre). Such a tree may have been
taken for granted a little over a century ago, but in the present day is
exceedingly rare. It is possible that this may be the largest living Rock Elm
in Canada, and perhaps even the world. Conversations with nearby
residents indicate the tree is well known, but many seem to mistake it for
a peculiar-looking American Elm.
Slippery Elm (Ulmus rubra)
The icy Ottawa River twinkled through a row of trees just beyond the
snowy field across the highway. In my painting I didn't include that
screen of near trees, because I wanted you to have a clear view of the
river and across it, the hills north of Shirley's Bay on the Ontario side. I
was rather disoriented here as I have always related to the Ottawa River
running from west to east through Ottawa - but here it runs southeast
to its big bend at Aylmer before flowing east to Ottawa.
The subject of my portrait is large for its species - 20 metres tall and 81
cm "diameter at breast height" - evidently in its prime.
A number of books state something to the effect that Slippery Elm
(Ulmus rubra) looks kind of like American Elm, but is also a little
different; additionally it has very rough leaves. Such vague description,
plus the fact that young vigorous American Elms (Ulmus americana) also
can have rough leaves goes a long way to explaining the frequent
misidentification of American Elms for Slippery Elm in the field,
herbarium, and online sources. Contributing to misidentification is the
great morphological variation possible for growth form and even leaf
appearance in American Elm, and the fact that American Elm is very
common to our region while Slippery Elm is uncommon.
"Once you've been lucky enough to find an actual Slippery Elm the
difference is clear. To consider just the leaves compared to American
Elm: Slippery Elm tends to have larger and thicker leaves with a rugose
visual texture, leaf margins with less pronounced teeth, leaves often
“folded” in half at a pronounced angle, and the leaves tend to hang
“lazily” with tips pointed toward the ground. This last feature can be
visible from a great distance away even as just a “jagged” leaf-silhouette
below a main branch. Bark, twigs/buds, flowers and fruit are just as
easily separated from the much more common American Elm.
American Elm (Ulmus americana)
This Elm tree lives in the heart of Aylmer (Rue Broad, between Rue
Principale and Rue du Patrimoine) this giant relict from the past; a rarity,
which was less than half a century ago an abundantly common sight.
Three-quarters surrounded by asphalt from road and an automobilegarage parking lot, with an industrial-sized dumpster at its base for a
constant companion, an 88' tall by 5' diameter (DBH) American Elm
defiantly rises like a monument to Nature's splendour.
This tree is a good candidate for the Ottawa region's most massive living
American Elm, in 2015, being fairly tall and stout, and with what appears to
be a fairly long life already behind it, the high branches themselves are
noticeably thick. It is to me without doubt the most visually impressive
specimen known to survive locally. Given that the tree is publicly
accessible, and appears to be in the latter stages of its life with a slightly
thinning crown and harsh day-to-day living conditions, it was a natural
choice to be the representative of its kind for Aleta's painting. If Dutch Elm
disease or another ailment should claim it soon, a collection of other
mature Elms will remain as botanical specimens for the scientist to
examine. But a century or more of healthy growth may be needed 'till they
would be ready a stand-in for the artist.
Aleta Karstad – the artist
Aleta’s paintings are in the tradition of the Group of Seven, but with an
eye of a naturalist. She prefers to paint outdoors, to see and feel the
depth and movement and the quality of the time and place that she
tries to communicate through her art. Her mission is to love the land
and its inhabitants.
Born in Guelph, Ontario in 1951, Aleta learned her love of nature through
helping her wildlife pathologist father, Lars Karstad, with travels and field
work. After the three-year Fine Arts course at Central Technical School,
Toronto, where she studied watercolour under Doris McCarthy, she
began work in biological illustration at the National Museum of Canada,
and in 1973, married biologist Frederick W. Schueler. They have been
residents of Bishops Mills since 1978, very involved in recording local
natural history. In 2002, they opened the Bishops Mills Natural History
Centre in the old General Store building.
Aleta’s books: Canadian Nature Notebook (1979), Wild Seasons Daybook
(1985), North Moresby Wilderness (1990), A Place to Walk (1995), Island
of Biodiversity-a Natural History of the North Russell Red Shale Hill
(2012) have been drawn from her illustrated natural history journals.
Online Auction Rules
Each painting is identified by the name of the Elm tree depicted.
Bids will be accepted by e-mailing to [email protected] with the name of the Elm tree painting
in the Subject Line (i.e. Slippery Elm) and the amount of the bid and the bidders name and address in the body
of the e-mail. All bidders names and addresses will be kept confidential.
Highest bid amounts for each painting will be announced daily on our Facebook page at
https://www.facebook.com/dumpthedumpnow
We have established a minimum bid of $800 for each painting. Bids must increase by a minimum of $10.
Note that shipping charges will be added if the winner requires us to ship the painting(s).
Paintings will be delivered/shipped to the winner, only upon receipt of payment.
The last/highest bid made by the closing date and time will determine the winner of the item. Bid often,
check back often!
Bidding closes at midnight EST on 30 November 2015.
You will be contacted by a member of our group to arrange payment and delivery of the item(s). If payment is
not received within 10 business days of notification of a winning bid, then the next highest bidder will be contacted.
If the minimum bid for a painting is not achieved we will sell the painting in another way.
You will be contacted by a member of our group to arrange payment and delivery of the item(s). All of the proceeds
will be used to support the Citizens’ Environmental Stewardship Association, East of Ottawa.
Questions may be sent to: [email protected]