Adress
Near Leopold's Park, Dichtbij het Leopoldpark, Rue Vautierstraat, 31 / Rue Vautier, 31 Brussels
GPS coordinates :
50.8379 , 4.3772
Scientific inventory
669
Tree-Walk through Leopold's Park

Identity

Category :
Arbre remarquable
Latin name :
Zelkova serrata
French name :
Zelkova du Japon
Dutch name :
Japanse Zelkova
English name :
Japanese Zelkova
Family :
Ulmaceae
Height :
21 m
Targeted height :
This species can grow up to 30 m
Diameter of the crown :
12 m
Trunk circumference :
321 cm
Expected circumference :
300 cm
Expected longevity :
Can live for 300 years
Origin / Indigenous
Asia (China, Japan, Korea)
Favorite soil :
River soil: deep, fertile, moist soil, loam, chalk, clay
Favorite climate
Temperate

Usefulness and services of the tree :

Enhances the landscape :
+++ high position and wide top
Enhances the biodiversity :
++ relatively rare species
Provide oxygen :
+++ deciduous foliage but thousands of leaves
Purify the air :
+++ idem
Filter the water :
+++ large area for transpiration
Prevents flooding :
+++ a species with high transpiration, adapted to damp places
Stores carbon :
+++ Healthy tree, durable wood, resistant
Softens the climate :
+++ shaded atmosphere
Limits soil erosion :
+++ fixes the ground
Does good, heals :
+++ Anti-cancer research

Features and characters of the individual

This individual is the largest specimen of the regional natural heritage and one of the largest in Belgium. It is described in the Scientific Inventory of Remarkable Trees:

"It was probably planted in the Leopold Park in the second half of the 19th century by Jean Linden when he was scientific director of the Royal Society of Zoology and Horticulture of the City of Brussels,...".

This zelkova witnessed the transformation of the valley, the evolution of the park, the construction of the European Parliament. Therefore it has a historical value. But not only: it also plays a unique role in the landscape. As a result, it is one of the trees included in the region's safeguard list:

"... this remarkable tree adorns what was once the garden of Jean Linden's house. The zelkova is a very decorative tree, in particular because of its particular bark which detaches in shingles ".

Its beauty and rarity deserve your attention 😉

Photos: Priscille Cazin - Sylvolutions /32shoot asbl
© PC-Z
© PC-Z
© PC-Z
© PC-Z
© PC-Z
Pictures: Jan Vandervorst
© PC-Z
Twinning: Antwerp, Park Rivierenhof arboretum, gps 51.1311, 4.2747 - Picture: Jan Vandervorst
© PC-Z
© PC-Z