Water Ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica
Other plants called Water Ash:
- Phonetic Spelling
- FRAK-si-nus pen-sil-VAN-ih-kuh
- Description
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Green Ash is a deciduous tree that may grows to 65 feet and occasionally to 120 feet tall with a trunk 2 to 3/1/2 feet across. Young trees, which have soft silky hairs covering twigs, the undersides of leaves and leaf stalks, are commonly known as Red Ash. Mature trees with smooth leaves and branches are known as Green Ash.
The leaves are opposite and pinnately compound with 7 to 9 leaflets. The bark is gray-brown with shallow furrows and crisscrossing ridges which form x-patterns. Small, light green to purple flowers, with no petals, mature in loose panicles in early spring. The female tree produces a single-winged, dry, flattened samara with a slender, thin seed cavity that matures in the fall. These can be numerous and can make a mess when they fall to the ground. Male trees are usually preferred in the home landscape because they do not produce fruit.
This plant is the most widely distributed of all the ash tree species, transplants well and grows in a variety of locations and soils. They are also very adaptable as they tolerate drought, wind, moderate salt, and alkaline soil. It is often found in bottom lands and swamps, especially along brown water rivers and low ground of the Piedmont and lower North Carolina mountains, but rarely on mesic upland disturbed sites
Insects, Diseases, and Other Pest Problems: Planting new green ash trees is no longer recommended given the susceptibility of this tree to the emerald ash borer. The Emerald ash borer will typically kill an ash tree within 3 to 5 years after infestation. Once infestation occurs, it is very difficult to eradicate this pest which feeds under the bark and bores into wood. Emerald ash borer is native to Asia and was first discovered in the U.S. in 2002. It has now spread to a number of additional states in the northeast and upper Midwest, and is expected to continue spreading. This borer now constitutes a serious threat to all species of ash in North America. Green ash trees are generally susceptible to a number of additional insect problems including ash borer, lilac borer, carpenter worm, oyster shell scale, leaf miners, fall web worms, ash sawflies, and ash leaf curl aphid. Potential disease problems include fungal leaf spots, powdery mildew, rust, anthracnose, cankers, and ash yellows. General ash decline is also a concern. Brittle branches are susceptible to damage from high winds and snow/ice.
VIDEO created by Ryan Contreras for “Landscape Plant Materials I: Deciduous Hardwoods and Conifers or Landscape Plant Materials II: Spring Flowering Trees and Shrubs” a plant identification course offered by the Department of Horticulture at Oregon State University
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- 'Cimmzan'
Seedless selection notable for its uniform upright growth habit, good fall color - red and orange shades. - 'Patmore'
Seedless, good disease and insect resistance and handsome, uniform habit. Fall color is yellow. - 'Summit'
Male cultivar, vigorous, pyramidal tree that produces a strong central leader. - var. Dakota Centennial Lanceolata
- 'Cimmzan'
- 'Cimmzan', 'Patmore', 'Summit', var. Dakota Centennial Lanceolata
- Tags:












- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
- 'Cimmzan'
Seedless selection notable for its uniform upright growth habit, good fall color - red and orange shades. - 'Patmore'
Seedless, good disease and insect resistance and handsome, uniform habit. Fall color is yellow. - 'Summit'
Male cultivar, vigorous, pyramidal tree that produces a strong central leader. - var. Dakota Centennial Lanceolata
- 'Cimmzan'
- 'Cimmzan', 'Patmore', 'Summit', var. Dakota Centennial Lanceolata
- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Fraxinus
- Species:
- pennsylvanica
- Family:
- Oleaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Wood is heavy, hard, strong, and coarse grained. Used for tools, wood floors, and furniture.
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Canada to Western, Central and Eastern United States.
- Distribution:
- Extending from Nova Scotia to Alberta south to Florida and Texas. Throughout most of U.S. except western states.
- Fire Risk Rating:
- low flammability
- Wildlife Value:
- The Green ash is a host plant for the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly and many moths. The bark is eaten by rabbits, porcupines, and beavers. Its foliage is browsed by white-tailed deer, seeds are eaten by birds, squirrels, and other small mammals.
- Play Value:
- Buffer
- Edible fruit
- Pieces Used in Games
- Shade
- Wildlife Food Source
- Wind Break
- Particularly Resistant To (Insects/Diseases/Other Problems):
- Fire in the landscape. Resistant to heat, drought, and soil compaction.
- Edibility:
- Bark can be used in cooking as a thickener for soups or mixed with grain in making bread.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 50 ft. 0 in. - 100 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 35 ft. 0 in. - 65 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Native Plant
- Perennial
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Habit/Form:
- Erect
- Irregular
- Oval
- Pyramidal
- Spreading
- Growth Rate:
- Rapid
- Texture:
- Medium
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Dry
- Occasionally Wet
- Available Space To Plant:
- 24-60 feet
- more than 60 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5b, 5a, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9b, 9a
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Green
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Fruit Type:
- Samara
- Fruit Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Fruit Description:
- Fertilized female flowers give way to drooping clusters of winged samaras (to 2 inches long) that ripen in fall and may persist on the tree throughout winter. Samaras have wings extending less than half body length. Samaras in large numbers, 1 to 2 inches long and narrow, color changes from green to tan as they mature. Fruit displays from August to October.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Purple/Lavender
- Red/Burgundy
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Panicle
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Shape:
- Tubular
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- The Green ash is primarily dioecious (separate male and female trees). Clusters of small, apetalous purplish male and female flowers appear on separate trees in April-May after the foliage emerges.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Deciduous Leaf Fall Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Leaf Type:
- Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Opposite
- Leaf Shape:
- Lanceolate
- Oblong
- Ovate
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Serrate
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- > 6 inches
- Leaf Description:
- The 6 to 9 inch opposite, odd-pinnate compound leaves, with 5 to 9 entire leaflets. Oval to oblong-lanceolate leaflets (3 to 4 inches long) are medium green above and below. The foliage turns yellow in fall, with the quality of the fall color often varying considerably from year to year.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Dark Brown
- Dark Gray
- Light Brown
- Light Gray
- Red/Burgundy
- Surface/Attachment:
- Ridges
- Bark Description:
- The bark is a 1/2 inch or more thick, gray-brown with shallow furrows and crisscrossing ridges which form x-patterns.
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Lenticels:
- Conspicuous
- Stem Description:
- Grey and stout, leaf scars. Dark rusty brown, woolly, conspicuous.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Lawn
- Recreational Play Area
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Butterfly Garden
- Children's Garden
- Native Garden
- Pollinator Garden
- Design Feature:
- Shade Tree
- Street Tree
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Moths
- Pollinators
- Small Mammals
- Songbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Deer
- Drought
- Fire
- Rabbits
- Salt
- Wind