330 Eleventh Annual Report 



1. FRAXINUS. The Ashes. 



Trees with furrowed bark; opposite, compound leaves; flowers 

 appear in April or May in clusters from the axils of the last year's 

 leaves, the staminate and pistillate on different, or sometimes on 

 the same tree; fruit a samara. 



Bark of mature trees deeply fissured; fruit not winged to 

 the base. 

 Wing of fruit rarely extending down on the body more 

 than 1/3 of its length; body of fruit robust, round 

 and rather abruptly passing into the wing. 



Shoots and main axis of the leaf smooth 1 F. americana. 



Shoots and main axis of the leaf velvety pubescent. . 2 F. biltmoreana. 

 Wing of fruit generally extending down on the body 

 more than 1/3 of its length; body of fruit flattened 

 and gradually passing into the wing. 

 Body of samara less than 3 mm. (M inch) in dia- 

 meter just below the wing, usually 1.5-2 mm. 

 (1/16 inch); generally 3-4.5 cm. (IM-IM inches) 



long 3 F. pennsylvanica. 



Body of samara more than 3 mm. (3^ inch) in dia- 

 meter just below the wing, usually 4-5 mm. (34 

 inch); samara generally 4-6 cm. {\%-2% inches) 



long 4 F. Michauxii. 



Bark of mature trees scaly or flaky; fruit winged to the 

 base. 

 Ridges connecting leaf scars usually present; twigs 

 usually 4- angled and more or less pubescent; buds 



gray; leaflets stalked 5 F. quadrangulata. 



Ridges connecting leaf scars usually absent; twigs 

 round and smooth; buds a very dark brown or 

 black; leaflets sessile 6 F. nigra. 



1. Fraxinus americana Linnseus. White Ash. Gkay Ash. 

 Plate 122. Bark on the trunks of mature trees gray, deeply fissured, 

 forming numerous diamond-shaped cavities, bark on the smailer 

 branches smooth and grayish-green; the season's shoots at first 

 green, becoming gray or light brown by the end of the season, smooth 

 and often coated with a bloom; winter buds broadly ovate, obtuse, 

 with 4 pairs of scales, appearing rusty-pubescent or reddish-brown; 

 leaves 2-3 dm. (8-12 inches) long, main axis smooth, leaflets on 

 stalks 0.3-2.5 cm. (3^-1 inch) long, the stalk of the terminal one 2-3 

 times as long, leaflets 5-9, usually 7, 5-13 cm. (2-5 inches) long, 

 ovate to narrow-oblong, entire or somewhat toothed, the teeth 

 rarely extending to the base, base rounded, acute or oblique, acute 

 at the apex, usually long taper-pointed, sometimes short taper- 

 pointed, deep green and smooth above, paler beneath, usually sil- 

 very, smooth or with hairs along the veins; calyx persisting on the 

 fruit; fruit ripens in early fall, varies greatly on different trees in 

 size and shape, the fruit of each tree is however quite uniform in 



