360 TREES OF MINNESOTA. 
Propagation.—See genus. 
Propertics of wood.—Heavy, hard, strong, coarse grained and 
tough, although brittle when old; brown, with thick, lighter col- 
ored sapwood. Specific gravity 0.6543; weight of a cubic foot 
40.77 pounds. 
Uses.—The White Ash is a good ornamental tree in spite of 
its late foliage, and is desirable for timber belts in the milder 
portions of this section, but on the prairies does not grow as 
fast as the Green Ash. The wood is of less value when grown 
here than when grown in the Northeastern States. It is used 
in immense quantities in the manufacture of agricultural imple- 
ments, carriages and furniture, for the interior finishing of build- 
ings, and for any purpose where a light-colored, tough wood 
is needed. It is manufactured into baseball bats, lawn tennis 
racquets, polo mallets, tool handles, crutches, step ladders, tri- 
pods, churns, tubs and pails. The wood of what is termed sec- 
ond growth trees, i. e., those springing up after the original 
forest has been removed or from seed scattered in open fields. 
is usually superior in toughness to the first growth or large 
trees. The inner bark of the White Ash has some medicinal 
properties and is used in homeopathic practice. 
Fraxinus pennsylvanica. (/. pubescens.) Red Ash. 
Leaflets oblong-lanceolate to ovate, mostly coarsely serrate, 
velvety pubescent on their lower surface like the young shoots. 
Flowers dioecious; calyx present and persistent in the fruit. 
This tree is easily distinguished in the Eastern States, but in 
this section it merges into the Green Ash, and is often difficult 
to distinguish from it. 
Distribution—It has about the same range as the Green Ash, 
but is less common west of the Mississippi river. 
Propagation.—See genus. 
Properties of wood.—Heavy, hard, rather strong and brittle 
and coarse grained; light brown, with thick lighter colored sap- 
wood streaked with yellow. Specific gravity 0.6215; weight of 
a cubic foot 38.96 pounds. 
Uses.—In this section the Red Ash is used for planting the 
same as Green Ash. The wood is often substituted for that 
of the White Ash, which is much more valuable. 
