white ash
Family
OleaceaeScientific Name
Fraxinus americanaOther Common Names:
biltmore ash
biltmore white ash
cane ash
smallseed
white ash
Synonyms (former Scientific Names):
Fraxinus biltmoreana
Fraxinus americana var. microcarpa
Fraxinus americana var. juglandifolia
Fraxinus americana var. biltmoreana
Fraxinus americana var. crassifolia
Fraxinus americana var. curtissii
Leaves
Leaves are deciduous, opposite,
pinnately compound, 20-38 cm long, leaflets usually
7(5-9), short-stalked, ovate to ovate-lanceolate or
elliptic, acuminate, 6-13 cm long and 3-6 cm wide,
sometimes with a few teeth near the tip, dark green
and smooth above, whitish below
Identifying Characteristics
Olive family (Oleaceae). Native trees
growing to 20-30 m tall, maintaining a central leader
(strong apical dominance) in youth with an even
distribution of branches, developing a dense, conical
or rounded crown at maturity. The trunk is long,
straight, and free of branches for most of its length
(except when open grown). The bark is thick, dark
gray, with a uniform, diamond-shaped ridge and furrow pattern.
Flower Seed Head
Flowers are
numerous, very small, green to purplish, in small
branched clusters near the branch tips, usually either
male (staminate) or female (pistillate), a single tree
usually bearing only one sex (the species dioecious)
Seed Fruit
Fruits are samaras 2.5-5 cm long, hanging in clusters,
with a narrow wing extending about 1/3-1/4 of the
way down the cylindrical body. The common name
is in reference to the white color of the wood
Where Found
White ash grows over most of eastern North
America, absent only from the outer Atlantic and
Gulf coastal plains. It occurs from Nova Scotia west
to eastern Minnesota and south to Texas and northern
Florida, northward barely into southern Quebec and
Ontario. It is cultivated in Hawaii
Growth Habit
woody bush or tree
Thorns or Spines
not present
Dominant Flower Color
green
Flower Symmetry
not symmetrical
Leaf Hairs
no hairs
Leaf Shape
oval
Leaf Arrangement
opposite
Leaf Margin
entire
Leaf Structure
pinnate
Leaf Stalk
longer than leaf
Stem Hairs
no hairs
Stem Cross Section
round or oval
Milky Sap
not present
Life Cycle
perennial
Ochrea
not present
Plant Type
Tree