Tree Flower - Wych Elm

WYCH ELM (Ulmus glabra)

Key: Attainment

The wych elm, also known as the mountain elm, is native to the British Isles and grows further north than any other elm. It thrives on deep, damp soils.  It is less susceptible to Dutch elm disease but it too can suffer. The leaves are hairy and very rough to the touch, have a clearly pointed tip and a very unequal base. Unlike other elms the wych elm when young has a smooth, pale grey bark when the other elms have light brown, heavily fissured and “scabby” looking bark. Wych elm , given the space, is a much wider tree than other elms but grows less tall with a maximum of about 100ft (30m). The flowers open on the shoots in February and March developing into apple-green bunches of seedcases, clearly visible before the leaves emerge. Wych elm is resistant to city pollution and so was widely planted in the towns of Scotland.

The essence of wych elm helps to bring the mind to clarity, allowing analysis and understanding of subtle thought processes. This makes it  a useful energy to employ in any study situation. Organisation and expression of material becomes easier as the logical and intuitive parts of the mind work side by side.

There is a positive, more life-affirming outlook and a lifting of mood that would be helpful where there is pessimism or depression.

The Gall Bladder meridian is strengthened in such a way that there can be a clear assessment of one’s worth and place in the world. Wych elm brings a confidence in personal abilities and strengths.

Of the subtle bodies, the emotional body is most affected. There is a greater calm and balance within which it becomes very much easier to get thoughts and feelings across to others.

At a spiritual level wych elm increases the ability to communicate and understand many different aspects of universal energy. There is a growth in peaceful awareness, no matter what state one is experiencing at the time. Wych elm can be used for meditation as it not only creates stable awareness but allows the consciousness to touch many subtle realms.