North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Fraxinus americana

Fraxinus americana L.

white ash, american ash

Synonym(s): Fraxinus americana var. biltmoreana, Fraxinus americana var. crassifolia, Fraxinus americana var. curtissii, Fraxinus americana var. juglandifolia, Fraxinus americana var. microcarpa, Fraxinus biltmoreana

Image ID: 14559
Image by: Sorrie, Bruce A.
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: FRAM2
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Fraxinus americana
Include in WOTAS: 0
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2019-11-30

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: FRAXI
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Fraxinus
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Ash
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of about 43-65 species, trees, mostly north temperate (Asia, North America, Europe).
GENUS IDENTIFICATION:
GENUS REFERENCES: Nesom (2010i)=X; Ward (2010a)=X; Hardin & Beckmann (1982)=Z; Miller (1955)=Y; Wallander (2008); Green in Kadereit (2004).

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: OLEACE
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Oleaceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: Hoffmansegg & Link 1813
FAMILY COMMON: Olive Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A family of about 25 genera and 600-615 species, trees and shrubs, nearly cosmopolitan, but centered in Asia.
FAMILY REFERENCE: Hardin (1974)=Z; Green in Kadereit (2004).

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO:
STEMS: Pith continuous. Young twigs (1-year-old or less) brown or gray or green or orange or purple or reddish-brown, glabrous or glabrate or pubescent. Twigs (2–4 years old) glabrous or pubescent. Leaf scars crescent-shaped or half-round or U-shaped, bundle scars numerous, stipule scars absent. Bark of mature trunks furrowed or ridged. Buds axillary or superposed or terminal, black or brown or reddish-brown, conic or ovoid or ovoid-conic, blunt, glabrate or pubescent, puberulent, bud scales imbricate.
LEAVES: Leaves deciduous, compound, once pinnately compound, petiolate, opposite, 20–30 cm long. Leaf upper surface green, glabrous. Leaf lower surface gray or green or white, glabrous or glabrate or pubescent, pilose. Leaflets petiolulate, (5–)7(–9) per leaf, 5–15(–18) cm long, 3–7.5 cm wide, lanceolate or oblong or obovate or oval or ovate, leaflet margins entire or crenate or serrate, leaflet apices acuminate or acute or obtuse, leaflet bases cuneate or oblique or obtuse or rounded, leaflet venation pinnate, terminal leaflet present (odd-pinnate). Petioles glabrous or glabrate or pubescent. Rachises glabrous or glabrate or pubescent. Stipules absent.
INFLORESCENCE: Inflorescences axillary, fascicles or panicles, flowers stalked.
FLOWERS: Flowers unisexual or pistillate or staminate, hypogynous. Perianth. Calyx radially symmetric, synsepalous. Sepals 4 per flower, calyx tubes 1–2 mm long, persistent. Corolla absent. Androecium. Stamens 2(–3) per flower, separate. Gynoecium. Ovaries superior, pistils 1 per flower. Gynoecium syncarpous, 2 carpels per flower, styles 1 per pistil, placentation axile.
FRUITS: Fruits samaras, (1.5–)2.5–6.5 cm long, brown or tan or yellow or yellow-green, fruit maturation 1 years.
COMMENTS: Abaxial surface of leaflets papillose (use at least 20x magnification); upper edge of leaf scars often with a deep notch; wing extending along the rounded body of the fruit 1/3 its length or less.
HEIGHT: (15–)20–30(–50) m tall.

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Tree

LEAF ARRANGEMENT: Opposite
LEAF COMPLEXITY: Pinnate
LEAF RETENTION: Deciduous

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY: Radial (Actinomorphic)
BLOOM TIME: March or April or May.

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
		x	x	x	x

BLOOM COLOR:

White	Red	Pink	Orange	Yellow	Green	Blue	Lavender	Purple	Violet	Brown	Not Applicable
				x				x

FRUITING PERIOD: Aug-Oct.

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE:
NATIVE RANGE: eastern North America

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text:

Bloom Table Text:

NCBG Location:

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE: Dry, Average, Moist/Wet
LIGHT EXPOSURE: Sun, Part Shade, Shade
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
GERMINATION CODE:
WILDLIFE VALUE:
DEER RESISTANCE:

GRIM ACCESSIONS

acc_id	acc_num	acc_dt	coll_id	Action
882	1985-0555			View
3794	1991-0489			View
4580	1992-0736			View
5036	1995-0155			View
5118	1995-0237			View
5712	1995-0838			View
6104	1995-1235			View

GRIM PLANTINGS

plt_num	acc_id	loc_num	pers_num	inst_dt	Action
1643	882	155	NCBG staff	1996-01-01	View
1644	882	163	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1645	882	171	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1646	882	176	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
6103	3794	199	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
6909	4580	200	NCBG staff	1993-03-01	View
7455	5036	202	NCBG staff	1992-01-01	View
7540	5118	203	NCBG staff	1992-01-01	View
8226	5712	204	NCBG staff	1993-01-01	View
8759	6104	2	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
13408	0	205	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: FRAM2
USDA Common Name: White Ash
Native Status: L48 (N), HI (I), CAN (N)
Distribution: USA (AL, AR, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV), CAN (NB, NS, ON, PE, QC)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Tree

NATIONAL WETLAND INDICATOR STATUS

Region:	AGCP	AK	AW	CB	EMP	GP	HI	MW	NCNE	WMVE
Status:	FACU		FACU		FACU	FACU	FACU	FACU	FACU	FACU

This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2016 National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.3 (Lichvar, R.W., D.L. Banks, W.N. Kirchner, and N.C. Melvin. 2016. The National Wetland Plant List: 2016 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2016-30: 1-17. Published 28 April 2016. ISSN 2153 733X). Regions: AGCP-Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain, AK-Alaska, AW-Arid West, CB-Caribbean, EMP-Eastern Mountains and Piedmont, GP-Great Plains, HI-Hawaii, MW-Midwest, NCNE-Northcentral and Northeast, WMCV-Western Mountains, Valleys & Coast

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Fraxinus americana
COMMON NAME: White Ash, American Ash
SYNONYMY: [= Mo, S, Y; < F. americana - C, K1, Va, W, WH3, X, Z; < F. americana Linnaeus var. americana - RAB, G, Pa, WV; < F. americana var. americana - F; > F. americana var. microcarpa A. Gray - F]
PHENOLOGY: Apr-May; Aug-Oct.
HABITAT: Mesic slopes, rich cove forests, dry calcareous or mafic glades and woodlands (with Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana and Carya glabra).
COMMENTS: NS west to MN, south to n. peninsular FL and TX. A valuable timber tree.
RANGE MAP: Fraxinus americana.png

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Oleaceae Hoffmansegg & Link 1813 (Olive Family)
SUMMARY: A family of about 25 genera and 600-615 species, trees and shrubs, nearly cosmopolitan, but centered in Asia.
REFERENCE: Hardin (1974)=Z; Green in Kadereit (2004).

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Fraxinus L. (Ash)
SUMMARY: A genus of about 43-65 species, trees, mostly north temperate (Asia, North America, Europe).
REFERENCE: Nesom (2010i)=X; Ward (2010a)=X; Hardin & Beckmann (1982)=Z; Miller (1955)=Y; Wallander (2008); Green in Kadereit (2004).

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

SERNEC: Find Fraxinus americana in Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)
UNC SERNEC: Find Fraxinus americana in University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Herbarium - Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)

WEB RESOURCES

USDA: Find Fraxinus americana in USDA Plants
NPIN: Find Fraxinus americana in NPIN Database
FNA: Find Fraxinus americana in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Fraxinus americana

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 14559 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 14559 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 0 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 5596 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)