Fraxinus pennsylvanica is a common, upright- to irregularly-shaped shade tree of rapid growth rate and infrequent, bright yellow autumn foliage. Green Ash is widely planted due to its urban tolerance, including areas exposed to winter salt spray.
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F E A T U R E S |
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Form
-large deciduous tree
-maturing at 50' tall x 30' wide
-upright oval growth habit, becoming rounded to irregular with age
-rapid growth rate |
Foliage
-medium to dark green and pinnately compound, casting a relatively dense shade, but lighter in shade than White Ash (Fraxinus americana) due to the more open character of the branching and slightly thinner leaflets
-leaflets (usually 5) are commonly serrated (but sometimes nearly entire) on the margins and are narrow ovate
-autumn color is often poor and usually a mixture of green and yellowish green in Oct., but is a bright golden-yellow in good years |
Flowers
-dioecious (male and female trees)
-green to purple inflorescences in Apr. are not especially showy |
Fruit
-green changing to brown clusters of samaras, with winged seeds littering the ground or gutters in autumn (prolific samara production may occur on female trees of this species) |
Twig
-stout (but not as stout as White Ash) and comparatively thin, olive changing to brown and lenticeled
-leaf scars half-moon-shaped (or D-shaped, with the "D" on its side) with a brown pubescent bud set directly on top of the flattened leaf
scar
-lower branches become pendulous with age and curve upward at their ends
-species tends to be more twiggy than White Ash |
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Trunk
-gray-brown bark is composed of flaky thin strips in youth, becoming deeply furrowed and ridged with age, with the ridges interlacing to form a diamondback pattern
-the furrowed pattern appears in smaller diameter branches than in White Ash |
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C U L T
U R E
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Culture
-full sun
-prefers moist, well-drained soils but is adaptable to poor soils, soil pHs, drought, pollution, soil compaction, and salt spray (very urban tolerant)
-propagated primarily by cuttings grafted onto seedling understock
-Olive Family, with a few disease and pest problems (including oyster shell scales and wood borers)
-abundantly available in B&B form |
Hardiness
-zones 3 to 9
Origin
-native to the forests of Eastern and Midwestern U.S. and Southern Canada; very common tree
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U S A G E |
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Assets
-quick growth for a shade tree
-urban tolerance (including salt tolerance)
-ornamental bark
Liabilities
-some pest and disease problems
-interior shading leads to dead stem litter
-surface roots with age |
Function
-shade, street tree, or wet site tree
Texture
-medium texture in foliage and medium-bold when bare
-thick density in foliage and when bare (at maturity) |
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S E L
E C T I 0 N S |
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Varieties
and Cultivars
- Search
OSU PlantFacts for additional plants in this species
Alternates
-shade trees, especially for urban areas (e.g., Corylus colurna, Gleditsia triacanthos var. inermis, Robinia pseudoacacia, Ulmus 'Urban' and 'Homestead', etc.) |