In the past, the spread of modern civilisation has heavily reduced the occurrence of natural woodlands in floodplain landscapes and the numbers of elms have also been reduced on a large scale. At the time of the outbreak of Dutch elm disease (DED), the elm populations may have already been reduced by an estimated 90%. At that time, Ulmus minor was the most common elm species in the riparian forests of lowland Central Europe. Eighty years later, the numbers of U. minor had decreased significantly. Data from three rivers in Saxony, Germany suggest that a further 90% of the trees have succumbed to DED. The survivors have mostly been reduced to shrubs and small trees. Ulmus laevis has taken over the role of the typical and well established elm species in floodplain landscapes. Being less susceptible to DED, the trees dominate parts of floodplain meadow landscapes and riparian forests. However, the overall number is low when compared with other tree species. Most U. laevis trees find only restricted habitats within agricultural landscapes and in many cases the elm itself is the only reminder of the existence of a former riparian wildwood. Also, some individuals show a high degree of crown transparency without having been infected with DED. If elms are to constitute an important part of the floodplain tree flora in the future, it is crucial to protect and enhance the existing U. laevis populations. Controlled provenances can help in the process of re-establishing floodplain forests. ; En el pasado, el desarrollo de la civilización moderna ha reducido intensamente la presencia de la vegetación natural en zonas aluviales, y como consecuencia de ello el número de olmos se ha visto también reducido en gran escala. En el momento de la aparición de la grafiosis, la población de olmos podía ya haberse visto reducida en un aproximadamente 90%. En ese momento, Ulmus minor era la especie más común de olmo en los bosques aluviales de Europa Central. Ochenta años más tarde, el número de U. minor ha disminuido significativamente. ...