Common Name of Plant: White Ash
Scientific Name of Plant: Fraxinus americana
Average Height of Plant: 70’ to 80’
Blooming Time: April through June
Ask the Botanist
What are the leaves like?
The leaves on white ash are deciduous leaves. They are oppositely arranged and are
compound. The leaves can be 8 to 13 inches long and have 7 to 12 leaflets per leaves. The
leaves go from dark green at the top to a lighter green at the bottom. The bottom of each leaf
is covered with tiny hairs. The separate leaflets are oval shaped and 2 to 4 inches long.
What type of flowers bloom on this plant? What do the seedpods or seeds look like?
Both male and female flowers occur on each tree. They can be light green to a dark purple.
They don’t appear until the leaves unfold. Both of the sexes lack petals. Males appear in
tighter clusters than females. The single-winged seeds are flat and grow in clusters. They
mature in fall and scatter in winter.
What is unusual about the stem or trunk?
The ash on the trunk is an ashy-brown color. It has deep ridges that form a diamond pattern.
Bark on older trees may appear scaly.
How is this plant important to animals? Has it also been used by people?
This tree is very useful to people. We use it to make sports equipment like baseball bats and
bowling alley floors. It is used for cabinets and tools also. It is plentiful and can be bent while
remaining strong.
What location does this plant prefer?
White ash grows in locations where there is a rich, moist, well-drained soil. They are often
found on sloping low lands and bottomlands near streams. This tree is very adaptable, and
prefers to be in full sunlight.
Pictures
Whole Plant
http://www.fw.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=
46
Buds
www.phyplt.ipfw.edu/.../Ash,%20White,%20Bud.J
PG
Seeds
Leaf
http://www.fw.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID
=46
Flowers
http://project.bio.iastate.edu/trees/campustrees/images/
FraxAm/FraxAm_fl.jpeg&imgrefurl=http://project.bio.
iastate.edu/trees/campustrees/FraxinusAm/FraxAm_flowers
html&h=360&w=325&sz=26&hl=en&start=71&um=
1&tbnid=SUxwaeZQ4LI8xM:&tbnh=121&tbnw=109
&prev=/images%3Fq%3DFraxinus%2Bamericana%2B
%26start%3D60%26ndsp%3D20%26svnum%3D10%
26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26sa%3DN
Stem or Tree Bark
http://www.fw.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=
46
http://www.fw.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID
=46