 |
return to category |
 |
|
| © Photo Copyright All rights reserved Click for further information |
|
Fraxinus americana / Fraxinus pennsylvanica
| The White Ash, not common to the Algonquin Highlands, grows to heights of 21-24 metres and is best identified by its compound leaves with seven stalked leaflets. These leaves are opposite, whitened underneath, either not toothed or slightly toothed, stalked, and often shiny. They grow to 20-30 cm in length and change colour early in the fall to yellow, purple and deep burgundy.The Red Ash grows to 18 metres and lives 80 to 130 years. White Ash and Red Ash like to grow in the rich, moist, well-drained soils on riverbanks and lower slopes of the Algonquin Highlands, but tolerates a range of soil types. Flowers appear fuzzy in April, growing in panicles (loose branching pyramid-shaped clusters). Its fruit is a blunt-tipped, hard seed, with a thin, long, narrow tail attached, paddle-shaped, produced in dense, 15-22 cm clusters. Each seed is flattened and winged, about 2.5 - 6 cm long. The bark of the White Ash is dark with narrow furrows and shallow ridges. Red Ash is easy to identify as its bark on young trees and branches is a light reddish brown. The light brown wood is relatively lightweight, hard, strong, tough but pliant, straight-grained and shock-resistant. It is used for many applications by man, such as tool handles. The strongest wood is obtained from young trees of second growth, rather than from older specimens. White Ash seeds are eaten by birds, while the White-tail deer, Moose and Beaver feed on young twigs and leaves. |
|
|
||||
