DICOTYLEDONOUS PLANTS 175 



78. OLEACE^. OLIVE FAMILY. 



Shrubs or trees. Leaves opposite, simple or odd-pinnate, 

 without stipules. Flowers in forking cymes, small, white or 

 greenish, perfect or imperfect. Calyx free from the ovary, 

 4-lobed or wanting. Corolla hypogynous, regular, 4-parted or 

 of 4 separate petals, sometimes wanting. Stamens 2, borne 

 on the petals or hypogynous. Ovary 2-celled. Fruit 1-2- 

 celled, each cell 1 -seeded, rarely 2-seeded. 



I. FRAXINUS, Tourn. 



Deciduous trees. Flowers dioecious. Petals wanting (in 

 our species). Stamens 2, hypogynous. Fruit a 1-2-celled 

 key, each cell 1-seeded. 



1. F. americana, L. WHITE ASH. A large tree; bark rough, 

 gray ; wood hard, strong, elastic ; twigs and petioles smooth. Leaflets 

 usually 7, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, taper-pointed at the apex, rounded 

 or obtuse at the base, entire or slightly serrate, smooth above, often 

 downy beneath, short-stalked. Flowers mostly dioecious. Calyx of 

 the pistillate flowers persistent. Key l|2 in. long, winged only 

 at the apex ; wing spatulate or oblanceolate. In rich woods and 

 swamps.* 



2. F. pubescens, Lam. RED ASH. A small tree; bark rough, 

 dark gray ; twigs and petioles densely velvety-downy. Leaflets 5-9, 

 oblong-ovate to ovate-lanceolate, taper-pointed at the apex, narrowed 

 into a short stalk at the base, finely serrate, smooth above, velvety- 

 downy beneath. Calyx of the pistillate flowers persistent. Key 1|- 

 2 in. long, the wing somewhat extended along the sides, oblanceolate 

 or spatulate, often notched. Swarnps and moist soil.* 



3. F. platycarpa, Michx. WATER ASH. A small tree ; wood 

 soft, light and weak ; twigs smooth or downy. Leaflets 5-7, ovate 

 or elliptical, acute at the apex, acute or obtuse at the base, entire or 

 slightly serrate, smooth or slightly downy, stalked. Flowers dioe- 

 cious. Calyx persistent. Key often 3-angled or 3-winged, wings 

 running nearly to the base, oblong or oval, pinnately veined. In 

 swamps and wet soil.* 



4. F. quadrangulata, Michx. BLUE ASH. A large tree, with wood 

 heavy, but not as tough as No. 1 ; the most vigorous twigs usually 

 square. Leaflets 7-9, with short stalks, somewhat ovate or lanceolate, 

 acute, sharply serrate. Fruit winged to the base, of nearly the same 

 width throughout, narrowly oblong. Rich woods, especially W. 



