I went for a short walk this morning and thought about elm trees. I’d never seen an American elm before I moved here–in the east, they’ve long been dead as a result of Dutch elm disease–but I’ve seen photographs of streets in Toronto and other cities lined with elms. They’re beautiful trees. Sure, they’re a little weedy, setting thousands of seeds that germinate everywhere you don’t want them, and they’re delicate, prone to damage from canker worms and tent caterpillars and winter kill, but they’re lovely nonetheless. I like the way their canopy covers side streets almost completely, and I love their colour in the fall. They make me glad I live here.
