Ash
is a large deciduous tree, native to a wide area of Europe
except from the southernmost and northernmost regions. They have high open,
domed crowns with a straight bole. Ash trees have been popular for hundreds of
years due to the quality of the timber they produce. The species is planted
mostly for timber but sometimes used in shelterbelts. They are found in many
ancient semi-natural woodlands and it is common to see large stools and rings
of stools as a result of coppicing. In many places Ash’s are the oldest trees,
often older than Oaks. Some trees have exceeded 800 years in age and can have a
girth of over 4m. Ash woodlands generally have a light airy canopy allowing
flora to flourish on the woodland floor with carpets of species such as
Bluebells and Dog’s Mercury. Ash grows well in calcareous or base-rich soils as
well as limestone uplands. It thrives on heavy base-rich clays near the sea and
in cities.
It’s branches are mostly ascending, leaves
are pinnate with a flattened central rachis, which can be hairy. The leaves
grow up to 35cm long with 7-13 ovate-lanceolate, pointed and toothed leaflets,
each growing up to 12cm long. Leaves open very late in spring, turning pale
yellow-green in Autumn for a very short time before falling.
Ash fruits single-winged ‘keys’ also known as
‘helicopters’ that hang in bunches, starting green and turning brown. These
‘keys’ can persist until after the leaves have fallen. It also produces very
small purple flowers on the tips of twigs in the spring. Male and female
flowers tend to be on separate trees but on some trees can be found on separate
branches.
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