Ulmus × hollandica 'Canadian Giant'

The elm cultivar Ulmus × hollandica 'Canadian Giant', the 'Canadensis' of nurseries, was mentioned as Ulmus montana Bauh. var. 'Giant' by Lindley in A synopsis of the British Flora; arranged according to the Natural Orders (1829), without description. At the time, the taxon Ulmus montana was used both for Wych Elm cultivars and for those of Ulmus × hollandica. Lindley appeared to distinguish "the Giant elm" from "the Chichester elm", while in Australia, where it was introduced in the late 19th century, Ulmus montana 'Canadian Giant' was distinguished from Huntingdon Elm. These pairings suggest that 'Canadian Giant' may have been a 'Vegeta'-type hybrid, rather than a wych cultivar, though possibly not synonymous with 'Vegeta' or 'Cicestria'.

It is not known how or when 'Canadian' was added to Lindley's 'Giant elm', but the epithet may be related to the fact that the horticulturalist William Barron, who distributed the elm as 'Giant' or 'Canadensis' (see 'Cultivation'), was head gardener at Elvaston Castle in Derbyshire to Charles Stanhope, 4th Earl of Harrington whose father, the third earl, had served in the Canadian wars.