ON TUESDAY, people stand around the stump of an elm tree after it was cut down in Charlotte, Vermont. The tree died of Dutch elm disease, a fungus that killed millions of elm trees after it arrived in North America in the last century. The wood from the tree will be turned into furniture and other items, with the funds being used to help The Nature Conservancy replant disease-resistant elm trees. David Garrett, the property owner, said the tree, estimated to be between 250 and 300 years old, has been “a monument” for everyone in the community.