OLEACEAE - - Olive Family

Fraxinus americana Linnaeus — White Ash

White Ash (Fraxinus americana) - Identified by leaves that are dark green above and much lighter to whitish below; leaflets (especially the end 5) drooping below the rachis; twigs glabrous; leaf scars deeply concave / notched on the apex, bud enclosed approx. from 1/2 to all it's length by leaf scar; fruit with wing that extends 1/2 way on seed or less; seed rounded, you can roll between your fingers. Now, recently we have two other trees, related to F. americana, that have been recognized as full species, F. biltmoreana (Biltmore Ash) and F. smallii (Small's White Ash) that are found in our area. I'm not familiar with F. smallii, but the main difference in F. biltmoreana is that it has hairy twigs.

Habitat:

Mesic slopes, rich cove forests, dry calcareous or mafic glades and woodlands (with Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana and Carya glabra).

Habitat information from:
Weakley, Alan S., Flora of the Southern and Mid-Atlantic States, Working Draft of 21 May 2015.

The range of Fraxinus americana (White Ash)

Kartesz, J.T., The Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2015. North American Plant Atlas. (http://bonap.net/napa). Chapel Hill, N.C. [maps generated from Kartesz, J.T. 2015. Floristic Synthesis of North America, Version 1.0. Biota of North America Program (BONAP). (in press)].

The Georgia range of Fraxinus americana (White Ash)

Zomlefer, W.B., J.R. Carter, & D.E. Giannasi. 2014 (and ongoing). The Atlas of Georgia Plants. University of Georgia Herbarium (Athens, Georgia) and Valdosta State University Herbarium (Valdosta, Georgia). Available at: http://www.georgiaherbaria.org/.