MASSACHUSETTS FOREST TREES 



RED ASH (Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marsh.) 



THE Red Ash, not infrequently mistaken for the 

 ' White Ash, occurs occasionally throughout Massa- 

 chusetts. Its home is in low, rich soil near streams 

 and swamps. 



In habit it is very much like the White Ash, though 

 it is usually smaller in every way. It seldom grows to 

 a height of more than fifty or sixty feet and its diam- 

 eter rarely exceeds eighteen to twenty inches. In the 

 open the head is rather broad and round- topped. 



RED ASH 



Leaf and fruit. One-third natural size. 



The bark on the trunk of a mature tree is dark gray 

 or brown and furrowed, but less deeply and more 

 regularly than in the case of the White Ash. The 

 season's shoots are greenish-gray and coated with 

 numerous fine hairs which often persist until the sec- 

 ond season. 



The leaves are opposite, compound, ten to twelve 

 inches in length and composed of seven to nine leaflets. 



The flowers and fruit, to all intents and purposes, 

 are similar to those of the White Ash. 



The wood is heavy, hard and brittle. It is much 

 inferior to that of the White Ash, though it is used 

 for many of the same purposes. 



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