Is a siberian elm a good tree to plant in Indiana?
Think hard about it — siberian elm is on the hazard list in central Indiana. Not native, discouraged or prohibited from planting by state and municipal lists across the Midwest, and included on the Indiana Invasive Species Council's invasive plant list — though it is not among the 44 species banned from sale under Indiana's Terrestrial Plant Rule. In practice it is a volunteer: alleys, fencerows, vacant lots, the back corners of older Indianapolis properties, and surviving windbreak rows on farm ground.
What you'd be signing up to clean up
It rains sticks — Siberian elm sheds twigs and small deadwood in essentially every wind, year round, which is the steadiest low-grade complaint about the species. On top of that, papery samaras carpet gutters, pools and driveways in April and then germinate wherever they land, so one mature tree becomes a decade of seedling-pulling in the neighbors' beds.
Where to keep it away from
Aggressive, shallow, wide-ranging surface roots that heave driveways, sidewalks and patio slabs, and elms in general are on every plumber's list of species that find old clay and tile sewer laterals. It also suckers off those roots, so an untreated stump regenerates and seedlings colonize gravel, fence lines and mulch beds every spring.
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